EDUCATION Secretary Leonor Briones urged incumbent and incoming officials of the National Academy of Sports to continue providing programs to help student-athletes hone their skills while being academically competitive.

“We hope and we expect that you carry on and make sure that sports are part of education, part of the development of the learners, part of being good citizens, part of civilization itself. Let us ensure that our learners will receive a quality education while helping them improve their skills in competitive sports,” Briones said during the institution’s oath taking ceremony on June 13.

“I am very happy that along with our high schools for Sciences, and high schools for the Arts, it is high time that we should have high schools and institutions specifically focusing on sports so that our learners and our people can start valuing the importance of physical fitness, physical preparation, and endurance, as well as combining them with academic work,” she added.

As chairperson of the Board of Trustees, Briones administered the oath-taking of Private Sector Representative Board Member Cynthia Ann Lacson Tiu, Treasury chief Jeffrey Mariano Tolentino and Registrar chief Mary Grace Valenzuela Ramoy.

NAS also welcomed Planning and Information and Communications Technology Division Project Development Officer V Cliford Millare Natividad and Legal and External Affairs Division Attorney V Atty. Izah Katrina Tan Reyes.

“It is a pleasure and honor to grace this afternoon’s very significant double event, which is the oath-taking ceremony of the personnel of NAS,” Briones said.

“And the thanksgiving for two years of hard work, two years of getting used to bureaucracy, and two years of identifying people who can push our efforts at improving sports and integrating it into the regular curriculum and program of the Department of Education,” she added.