CFO-PSO Secretariat met with DLS-CSB Student Regarding PSO Student & Alumni Experience, Supervision, and Statistics
13 February 2026 | Pasay City
The Commission on Filipinos Overseas (CFO), through the Philippine Schools Overseas (PSO) Secretariat, met with interior design senior student, Ms. Bennie Mae B. Consolacion of the De La Salle – College of Saint Benilde (DLS-CSB) on 13 February 2026, via Google Meet, for an interview regarding PSOs in the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries.
Entitled “Mga Kababayan Ko: Designing a Youth Center for Third Culture Filipino Kids through the lens of Prospect-Refuge Theory”, Ms. Consolacion’s study aims to understand issues, and sense of belonging of Third Culture Kids (TCKs), the latter being a part of PSO studentry and network of alumni, leading to a design strategy proposal for a youth center that reflects hybrid cultural experience.
Delving on the aforementioned, the PSO Secretariat conveyed a variety of identity-searching experience shared by alumni through different programs — often citing lack of awareness of authentic Filipino life and knowledge limited to family anecdotes. In relation to programs, the PSO Secretariat briefly shared how the CFO’s Youth Leaders in the Diaspora (YouLeaD) program serves as one of many initiatives for overseas Filipino youth seeking to know their heritage, identity, and culture through immersion.
The PSO Secretariat also conveyed information on the varying responsibilities of the Inter-Agency Committee on PSOs (IAC-PSO) in the regulation of school operations, the role of Filipino-Foreign demographic ratio in the socio-cultural upbringing of students & alumni, the reintegration patterns of PSO alumni upon return to the Philippines for senior high school and/or collegiate studies, and the CFO’s initiatives in strengthening Filipino pride & knowledge among PSO constituents, among others.
The interview concluded with an inquiry on PSO statistics, and the CFO-PSO Secretariat’s regards to the success of Ms. Consolacion’s study — alongside the request for a copy upon completion of the latter. The PSO Secretariat was represented by Project Management Division Chief, Ms. Marita del Rosario-Apattad, Mr. Erwin Paul Cristobal, and Mr. Alvin Antonio Cabuco.
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Pursuant to the provisions of Section 19, Article III of the Manual of Policies, Standards and Regulations for PSOs (3rd Edition), the CFO serves as Secretariat to the IAC-PSO and is also tasked to “initiating researches necessary to review, clarify, and/or formulate policies, when necessary, to effect better operation, management and representation of schools.”
