Retail giant SM is going full steam with its education programs, like schoolbuildings and college scholarships for poor but deserving and bright students to ensure a brighter future for its beneficiaries.

It is soon tying up with another aggressive corporate citizen, the GMA 7 Foundation, which is also been building schools and distributing educational materials and school supplies to children in the remotest barangays of the country.

The two are soon signing a memorandum of agreement where they will jointly build schools in areas identified by the Department of Education as the least served in terms of educational infrastructure and material support to young children in marginalized communities. “We are doing this on our own and without any support from the government because we know we have the resources to share with these communities,” said Linda Atayde, Executive Director of SM Foundation Inc.

Each year, SM Foundation Inc., the corporate social responsibility arm of SM, allots p50 million for education, of which P10 million is spent on new schoolbuildings and the bulk on scholarships. Already, the foundation has graduated 1,180 college students, many of them finishing with Latin honors and had jobs awaiting them here and abroad, Atayde said.

“We don’t oblige our graduates to join the SM Group but let the graduates decide where to work,” Atayde said, taking pride that this is their difference from the college scholarships offered by other companies. Last August 10, the company inaugurated a one-story four-classroom schoolbuilding in Looc, Nasugbu, Batangas, which came from a P1 million cash donation from businessman Stephen Cu-unjieng (otherwise allotted for his birthday bash last year that he scrapped) and matched by SM Foundation for the cost of building plus additional funds for desks, electric fans, cabinets for books and instructional materials, books and toilets for each classroom.

The well-ventilated new classrooms will enable the high school students, previously cramped in rooms with 80 to 90 students per section (of three sections) at each level, to enjoy a more conducive learning environment with a ratio of only 50 students per classroom. The choice of Looc National High School for the school building program came from the suggestion of an SM official, who was asked to speak at the commencement exercise in 2007 and saw the dismal condition of the school, Atayde said.

Jess Lucas, president of Costa del Hamilo Inc. (SM’s high-end membership resort in Nasugbu) told the students they were fortunate to have seven to eight national high schools while other districts and provinces had only one. The school caters to the residents of barangays Papaya, Looc, Bulingan and Calayo.

“You have so many big companies locating and putting up tourism establishments in your province, which will provide jobs for your families. So make the best use of these opportunities,” Lucas said.

Hamilo Coast is located 3 to 4 kilometers away from the school and started construction two years ago. It offers beach club facilities and condominium rentals or ownership to members.

In August , SM Foundat ion inaugurated two schoolbuildings in Naga City. For September, newlybuilt two-story four-classroom schoolbuildings to be inaugurated are located in Quezon City (the D. Tuazon Elementary School), in Davao and in Dasmarinas, Cavite.

The SM Foundation is planning an alumni homecoming by October to gather all its graduates and keep track of them to determine the success of the foundation. The scholars come from families with annual earnings of at least P100,000.