CHED OKs 76 research projects

MANILA, Philippines – The Commission on Higher Education (CHED) will provide P725 million in financial support to 76 research proposals of college professors affected by the implementation of the K-12 program.

CHED said 76 out of the 229 research proposals received by the commission will receive funding through the Discovery-Applied Research and Extension for Trans/Inter-disciplinary Opportunities (DARE TO) Research Grants program.

Each project will receive financial support of up to P15 million for a duration of two years, CHED said, noting that the funds will come from the K-12 transition fund allotted to the commission in its 2016 budget.

Out of the 76 projects approved for funding, the commission said 41 came from Luzon, 10 from the Visayas, and 25 from Mindanao.

Among the approved projects include the development of a light-powered, 24-hour digital fire monitoring system and of special livestock feeds for the processing of organic meat and eggs.

Other awarded initiatives will focus on health systems; environment; terrestrial and marine economy; climate change and energy; economy; biodiversity and conservation; smart analytics and engineering innovations; and education for science, technology, engineering, arts, and music.

CHED Research Management Division chief Custer Deocaris said the DARE TO grants aim to deliver outstanding and innovative research work while stimulating strong collaborative research among higher education institutions.

“The goal of the grant is to seek out truly ground-breaking and inspiring research. Most of the faculty we have in universities are very talented, and we want to dare them to take that leap,” he said.

CHED chairperson Patricia Licuanan noted that primary beneficiaries of the program are college faculty who have either been displaced or deloaded due to the implementation of the senior high school program.