THE DEPARTMENT of Education declared about 38,000 schools are ready for in-person classes for School Year 2022-2023.

Undersecretary Nepomuceno Malaluan said almost 38,000 schools, both private and public, are all set for face-to-face classes based on the DepEd’s assessment of schools’ readiness to implement health protocols.

According to Malaluan, majority of the total are public schools, accounting for 36,000, which is 80 percent of the country’s total of 47,612 public schools.

He said a well-ventilated classrooms and hand-washing facilities are among the standards for in-person classes.

Malaluan added DepEd aims to implement 100 percent face-to-face classes by August, and will go forward even if some places transition to Alert Level 2.