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Saint Augustine School (SAS) |
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The Founding of the St. Augustine’s School
On June 21, 1910, four Belgian Missionaries of the Missionary Canonesses of
Saint Augustine, Mother Marie Louise de Meester, foundress of the congregation,
Mother Vincent, Mother Charles, and Mother Lutgarde arrived in a steamboat and
landed at Farola Beach at 2pm. Amidst festal rejoicing of Tagudinians who lined
the shore led by Mayor Diomedio Villanueva and the town officials.
On July 4, 1910 these missionary sisters started the St. Augustine’s School at
the basement floor of their big convent with 255 pupils on the first day of
Classes. Four weeks later, enrollment increased to 300.
The first building of St. Augustine’s School is the old covento built in 1832.
the first elementary classes where held there in 1910. As Europeans, they ran
the school along the same system as in Belgian. They taught reading, writing,
arithmetic, needlework and very intense course in religion. They did not give
written examinations anytime and until the end of the school year. They gave no
report card except for conduct. In an oral examination before a board examiners
compose father Carlu, the Mother Supeerior and their religion teacher, the
students obtained commendation express in term of “execellent”, “very good” and
“good” which was equivalent to their promotion to the next grade while those who
failed where pronounce “fair” and reassigned to the grade in which they failed.
The next year saw an enrollment of 697 children.
SAS Buildings
The building north of the belfry was built by Father Octavio Van de Walle, CICM
in 1918. it used to be a one-story building of river stones taken from the
Amubarayan River south of the Poblacion; it serve as rectory when he moved out
from the house of Don Pablo Lagunilla. It was callded “LOS DOS CAMARINES” when
father Moricio Vanoverbergh built the present rectory east of the church in
1912, the “LOS DOS CAMARINES” then served to the house the classroom of the
junior normal school. During his term as parish priest of Tagudin-1924-1932-
Father Honorato David built a second floor of the “LOS DOS CAMARINES”. He too,
built the building west of the church which was popularly called “hidden
beauty”. These two buildings and the sister’s convent serves to house the
elementary and high school departments of SAS before World War II.
In 1952, Fr. Carlos Desmet further improved this “los dos camarines” by
replacing the original stonewalls with cement and wood. When father Alberto Van
Overbecke returned to Tagudin as Parish Priest after his long stint as college
teacher and later as University rector of St. Luise University, Baguio, his
first project for SAS was the construction of a leanto annex Southside of “los
dos camarines”. Next he built the school building south of the church.
The construction of the one stately U-shape 20 classroom building north west of
the sister’s convent started in 1952 with the completion of its west wing. Its
south wing followed because of soaring enrollment, it’s south of the father’s
convent was constructed by Fr. Jaime Quatanens in 1970. the three additional
classroom annexed to it were put up by Fr. John Anthonissen in 1988.
SAS During World War II
During the Japanese occupation (1942-1945), the school opened its elementary
department. Calisthenics in Japanese commands and counting and nippongo
(Japanese language) were sublects added to the pre-war school curriculum. When
the “Liberation” of the Philippines took place in 1945 teachers and parents had
run to evacuation centers at the foot of the Cordillera Mountains. Eleven ICM
sisters, most of them came form Manila, evacuated to Alilem, three sisters chose
to remain in their convento resigned to whatever fate that awaited them. The
CICM fathers in Tagudin, opted too, to remain in their convento.
During the part of the “liberation” period (1945-1946), the school resumed
classes in its elementary department. Classes were conducted in private houses
near the school compound because the classroom of the school grounds and the
town plaza, were used to accommodate wounded soldiers in the fight of Bessang
Pass. Tagudin, particularly in SAS buildings and grounds, was commandeered as
Base Hospital of the USAFIP-NL. Thus, the school building, excluding the big
convanto of the sisters, were transformed into a “Nazareth” for soldiers. The
Sisters, including those who returned from their evacuation house in Alilem,
devoted themselves in caring for sick and the dying.
Post World War II
In 1946, the school reopened its high school department. The students were
noticeably quite old for their year in school because they were delayed by the
war. Nonetheless, they were determined to finish high school and contribute to
the great task of the national rehabilitation. Many students’ particularly third
and fourth year boys came to school in soldier’s khaki or fatigue uniform,
complete with combat shoes, army belts and helmet liners such that the school
looked like military camp. The neutralize this empression and for purpose od
economy and identity, a new school uniform was designed. It is the same uniform
worn by girls of the high school until today.
A six-month typewriting and stenography course was offered to third and fourth
year students in 1950 by the school. The course was cancelled in 1962 because of
bureau restriction.
A Pall of Gloom and Grief at SAS
On the night of March 16,1992, a fire of mysterious origin razed to the ground
the eleven room building near the parish belfry which was originally called “los
dos camarines”, almost two years thereafter on the night of October 2, 1994, the
stately U-shape 20 classroom situated northwest of the sister’s convent all went
up in smoke, again because of a fire of suspicious origin. Both tragedies cast a
giant pall of intense and traumatic shock, gloom and grief to all students,
teacher and parents and all who believe and share in the sublime vision and
mission of SAS. Government authorities blamed these tragedies to faulty
electrical wiring but attendant facts bearing on the two fires definitely negate
the explanation given buy the authorities. The facts remains that both fire came
in the heel of an earnest pastoral crusade for social, economic, political and
moral reforms directed towards Philippines contemporary society in general and
the government in particular.
A sympathy-prayer rally for truth and justice, participated in by Catholic
Schools, religious and lay leaders in La Union, Ilocos Sur, Ilocos Norte,and
Abra was held a few days thereafter at the school gymnasium. As yet the school
is still waiting its right and truth and justice relative to the two tragedies
of its school building.
“SAS, Ever Onward” Stance and Stand
True to its school hymn, “SAS ever onward”, the school rises from a fall and
marches ever onward to accomplish its mission “Despite troublo, despite pain”
reconstruction of the “los dos camarines” building started just several days
after the stinging tragedy. The following year saw students trooping to their
new building, a complete cement structure except for its roof in galvanizes
iron.
Resolte and resilient, the school did not waste the remaining part of the
schooyear after the tradegy on October 2, 1994. direct victims of the fire,
third and fourth year studentsresumed their class a week thereafter in all
available makeshift classroom.
Schools in Barrios
In 1912 the sisters started the work of education in the barrios, an important,
fruitful and counseling apostolate. Barri school were opened in Bitalag, San
pedro and Beques. These schools were intended to give only catechetical
instructions, but so as to interest both the parents and the children, lessons
in Language, arithmetic and geography were also taught.
In 1913, more barrios school were opened:
1. San Miguel in Salvacion
2. Saint Marguerite in Garitan
3. Saint Adeltrude in Ag-aguman
4. Saint Vincent in Amabalayat
5. Sain Paul in Cabugbugan.
All of these schools offered primary education, which gradually developed from
grade 1 to grade four. And these schools including SAS made Tagudin as “The
First Living Community Museum of the Philippines".
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