MANILA (July 3) — The government is poised to deploy 10,000 additional mental health workers to public schools after the Civil Service Commission (CSC) approved the qualification standards for a new cadre of non-licensed school counselors, marking a major step in implementing the country’s school mental health law.
Under CSC Resolution 2600920, the Department of Budget and Management (DBM) can now create plantilla positions for School Counselor Associate I, clearing the final administrative hurdle that had delayed the rollout of the positions despite funding already being set aside in the 2026 national budget.
The Department of Education (DepEd) had hoped to deploy the counselors in time for School Year 2026-2027, but hiring was stalled pending the CSC’s approval of qualification standards and the formal creation of the positions by the DBM.
Education Secretary Sonny Angara described the CSC action as “a major milestone in the implementation of Republic Act 12080,” the Basic Education Mental Health and Well-Being Promotion Act, which was enacted in 2024 to address the severe shortage of guidance counselors in public schools.
The law introduced the position of counselor associate to expand schools’ mental health workforce by allowing graduates of psychology, behavioral science, or guidance and counseling programs to serve in schools after completing at least 200 hours of relevant training, even without a Professional Regulation Commission license.
The CSC resolution also establishes a structured career path for school mental health professionals, creating positions ranging from School Counselor I to IV, School Counselor Associate I to V, and Schools Division Counselor.
Around P2 billion had already been appropriated in the 2026 budget for the initial 10,000 positions, but DepEd could not begin recruitment without the CSC-approved standards and corresponding plantilla items from the DBM.
Angara said the first batch of counselor associates is only the initial phase of a broader expansion of school-based mental health services, with DepEd now preparing internal guidelines on the recruitment, appointment, and deployment of the new personnel.
The delay in issuing the standards had drawn criticism from lawmakers overseeing education reforms.
During a June 29 hearing, House Committee on Basic Education and Culture chair Rep. Roman Romulo questioned the slow pace of the approval process, while Senate President Sherwin Gatchalian, principal author of the law, urged DepEd to move swiftly in filling the positions now that the regulatory requirements have been completed.
