Philippine School Doha marks 24th Foundation Day

DOHA: A visual feast of colourful costumes and dynamic dance performances took the breath away of thousands of Filipinos at the Philippine School Doha’s (PSD) annual field demonstration marking its 24th founding anniversary yesterday at Al Rayyan Sports Club.
More than 3,000 students in elaborate costumes competed at the much anticipated annual mega event which provided a journey to the rich collection of Philippine festivals and some of the best festivals celebrated around the world.
The students presented stunning performances of Philippine festival street dances including Masskara of Bacolod City, Kadayawan of Davao City and Tinagba of Iriga City while world festival dances representing North Korea’s Arirang Festival, Portugal’s Agitagueda Art Festival and Japan’s Sakura Festival were also featured at the five-hour extravaganza. 
Celebratory creative dances inspired by Qatar were a highlight at the event which also featured dances from Hollywood blockbusters including 1978 movie musical Grease, computer animated fantasy film Happy Feet and teen comedy film Bring It On.
Philippine Ambassador Wilfredo C Santos feted the school for its achievements as it marked its 24th year with the theme “Marking the footprints of triumph, sustaining the lead in service and excellence.”
Santos thanked the founders, the board of trustees, the PSD administration and all the people behind PSD’s success as well as the host country for its support to the school.
“I wish to highlight the generosity of our host country Qatar. To H H Sheikh Hamad bin Khalifa Al Thani, the Father Emir for granting the piece of land on which the new PSD building will be constructed,” he said.
“Our community in Qatar is very fortunate to have such a supportive host government which recognizes the contributions of Filipinos in the development of this country. In turn I urge all of you to continue to work within the established rules and regulations of the host country in order to show our appreciation for this grand gesture.”
He stressed: “The Philippine Embassy in Doha will continue to support PSD in its pursuit of education excellence for the Filipino children who are our country’s hope and future.”
Gerardo P Macasa, Jr., Chairman of the Board of Trustees (BOT) traced how the PSD had grown in number from 33 students in 1992 to the current 3,445 population of students.
“This huge leap in enrolment indicates that PSD is one of the most sought after schools in Qatar as far as basic education is concerned,” he said, highlighting the academic and non-academic achievements of students and alumni.
“Our graduates have made national headlines in the Philippines with some of our alumni garnering top places in national licensure examinations while some have landed attractive job offers in their chosen fields,” said Macasa.
Last year, two PSD alumnae placed first and fourth at the Nursing board examinations last year while one of its graduates placed eighth at this year’s Medical Technologist licensure exam. 
Two of its graduates also won in a major Philippine beauty pageant last year and this year while two weeks ago the school was crowned overall champion at the Order of the Knights of Rizal (OKOR) Inter-School Academic, Talent & Skills Competition in Bahrain for the fifth time. 
Macasa said the new school PSD building is set to open next school year which will also see change its name to Philippine Science School Doha making it the first science school in the Middle East.
Yesterday’s extravaganza was the first among the events lined up for the week-long celebration.