WHEREAS, the Constitution of the Philippines directs the state to establish and maintain a complete, adequate and integrated system of education relevant to the goals of national development, and further prescribes that all educational institutions shall aim to develop scientific, technological and vocational efficiency;

WHEREAS, under the Presidential Decree No. 6-A, promulgated on September 29, 1972, it has been declared a policy to reorient the educational system toward an accelerated national economic growth;

WHEREAS, the Province of Rizal is endowed with rich natural and human resources the exploitation and conservation of which will accelerate its development and economic growth;

WHEREAS, the Province of Rizal, being the site of many industrial and commercial establishments, needs trained manpower of varied specializations and/or skills, and

WHEREAS, the establishments of Technological Colleges in the province which shall offer baccalaureate degrees in agriculture, fisheries, arts and sciences, trades and technology and other degrees that may be deemed necessary to meet the needs of the province, as well as short-term courses designed to meet the manpower needs of the province and neighboring towns, will hasten the development of the province and thereby contribute to the accomplishment of national goals;

NOW, THEREFORE, I, FERDINAND E. MARCOS, President of the Philippines by virtue of the powers vested in me by the Constitution, do hereby order and decree to be part of the laws of the land the following:

SECTION 1. The present College of Rizal and the Rizal Technical High School, all situated at the Province of Rizal, are hereby converted into the Rizal Technological Colleges, the same being organized as a corporation under that name, hereinafter referred to in this Decree as the Colleges.

SEC. 2. The Colleges shall primarily provide higher technological, professional and vocational instruction and training in agriculture, fisheries, trades and technology, arts and sciences, as well as short-term technical or vocational courses, as the Board of Trustees may deem necessary, and shall promote researches in the exploitation and conservation of the natural resources in the province.

SEC. 3. No student shall be denied admission to the Colleges by reason of age, sex, ethnic consideration, religious belief, or political affiliation.

SEC. 4. The Head of the Colleges shall be known as the President of the Rizal Technological Colleges. He shall be appointed by the President of the Philippines upon recommendation of the Board of Trustees which shall fix his compensation and term of office.

The powers and duties of the President of the Colleges, in addition to those specifically provided for in this decree, shall be those usually pertaining to the office of the president of a college.

SEC. 5. The governing body of the Colleges shall be the Board of Trustees of the Rizal Technological Colleges. It shall be composed of the Secretary of Education and Culture as Chairman, the Provincial Governor of Rizal, the President of the Colleges, and four (4) other residents of the province of Rizal as members who shall be appointed by the President of the Philippines, one in the field of agriculture and fisheries, one in trades and technology, one in arts and letters, and one in sciences. Of the four members first appointed by the President, one shall serve for one year; one to serve two years; one to serve for three years; and one to serve for four years. Thereafter, persons appointed to succeed such members shall hold office for a term of four years and until their successors shall have been appointed and qualified. In case of permanent vacancy, the position shall be filled by appointment by the President of the Philippines.

Such appointee shall hold office, for the unexpired term only.

The Secretary of Education and Culture, and the Governor for the province of Rizal may designate their respective representatives in the Board who shall have all the powers and privileges pertaining to their offices. In the absence of the Secretary of Education and Culture who is the Chairman of the Board, the members of the Board present may elect the temporary Chairman to preside over the meeting.

SEC. 6. A quorum of the Board of Trustees shall consist of a majority of all the members holding office at the time a meeting is called. All processes against the Board of Trustees shall be served on the President or Secretary thereof.

SEC. 7. The Members of the Board of Trustees shall be entitled to an allowance of not less than One Hundred Pesos per meeting actually attended, provided, that they shall be reimbursed for actual and necessary expenses incurred in attendance of meetings and other official business authorized by resolution of the Board.

SEC. 8. The Board of Trustees, in addition to its general powers of administration and the exercise of all the powers of a corporation as provided in section thirteen of Act Numbered Fourteen Hundred Fifty Nine as amended, otherwise known as the Corporation Law, shall have the following powers and duties:

1. To receive and appropriate for the purpose specified by law such sums as may be provided for the support of the Colleges;
2. To confer degrees upon successful candidates for graduation. It may also confer honorary degrees upon persons in recognition of learning, statesmanship or eminence in any of the fields of specialization of the Colleges, or in recognition of public ser vice provided, that such degrees shall not be conferred in consideration of or to reciprocate some personal favor;
3. To authorize the President of the Colleges to award proficiency certificates or diplomas to students who have completed non-degree courses;
4. To organize academic units and courses as may be necessary to meet the economic and social needs of the province of Rizal;
5. To appoint on recommendation of the President of the Colleges academic and administrative officials, faculty and employees of the Colleges; to fix their compensation, hours of service, and to perform such other duties and conditions as it may deem proper; to grant to them, in its discretion, leaves of absences under such regulations as it may promulgate, any provisions; of existing laws to the contrary notwithstanding; and to remove them for cause after and investigation and hearing;
6. To approve the curricula and rules of discipline drawn by the College Council as hereinafter provided;
7. To fix tuition fees, matriculation fees, graduation fees, laboratory fees, and such other fees;
8. To provide fellowships for qualified faculty members; and provide scholarships for deserving students;
9. To prescribe rules for its own governance and to enact for the government of the Colleges such rules and regulations, not contrary to law, as may be necessary to carry out the purposes and functions of the Colleges;
10. To receive in trust legacies, gifts, and donations of real and personal property of all kinds, to administer the same for the benefit of the Colleges, or of any department thereof, or for aid to any student or students, in accordance with the directions and instructions of the donor, and in default thereof, in such manners as the Board of Trustees may in its discretion determine. All such donations shall be exempt from all taxes and to be considered as deductible items from the income tax of the donors.
11. To import duty free commodities for educational purposes as an exemption to existing laws;
12. To authorize the Colleges to undertake construction and/or repair of its buildings, machinery and equipment and other facilities, any provisions of law or executive order to the contrary notwithstanding;
13. To provide vocational training to adult citizens and out-of-school youths: and
14. To acquire sites or campuses and to provide facilities and improvements as may be necessary.

SEC. 9. On or before the fifteenth day of the second month after the opening of regular classes each year, the Board of Trustees shall file with the Office of the President of the Philippines and of the Provincial Governor of Rizal, a detailed report, setting forth the progress, conditions and needs of the Colleges.

SEC. 10. There shall be a College Council consisting of the President of the Colleges and all members of the faculty with the rank of professors. The Council shall have the power to prescribed the curricula and rules of discipline, subject to the approval of the Board of Trustees. It shall fix the requirements for admission to the Colleges, as well as for graduation and conferring of degrees subject to review by the Board of Trustees. The Council alone shall have the power to recommend students or others to be recipients of degrees or certificates. The Council, through its duly authorized committee, or the President of the Colleges shall have disciplinary power over the students within the limits prescribed by the rules of discipline.

SEC. 11. The body of instructors and professors of the Colleges shall constitute the faculty of the Colleges. The faculty shall be exempt as such from any civil service examinations or regulations as a requisite to appointment.

SEC. 12. No member of the faculty of the Colleges shall attempt directly or indirectly, under penalty of dismissal by the Board of Trustees, to influence students or any person in the Colleges towards any ideology, political or otherwise, which preaches the overthrow of the government through violence or subversion.

SEC. 13. There shall be a secretary of the Colleges who shall be appointed by the Board of Trustees upon recommendation of the President of the Colleges. He shall also be the secretary of the Board and shall keep such records of the Colleges as may be determined by the Board of Trustees.

SEC. 14. The Treasurer of the Philippine shall be ex-officio treasurer of the Colleges and all accounts and expenses therefore shall be audited by the Commission on Audit or its duly authorized representative.

SEC. 15. Heads of Bureaus and offices of National Government and the Provincial Government of Rizal are hereby authorized to loan or transfer, upon such request of the President of the Colleges, apparatus, equipment or supplies as may be needed by the Colleges and to detail employees for duty therein, when in the judgment of the head of the bureau or office such employees can be spared without serious detriment to the public service. Employees so detailed shall perform such duties as required under such detail and the time so employed shall be counted as part of their regular official service.

SEC. 16. All the assets, fixed and movable, records and personnel of the College of Rizal and the Rizal Technical High School, are hereby transferred to the Rizal Technological Colleges: Provided, however, that the positions, rights and security of tenure of personnel therein employed under existing laws prior to absorption by the Colleges are not impaired. Provided, further, that the incumbent and the positions shall remain in the same status until otherwise provided for by the Board of Trustee. All parcels of land belonging to the government occupied by the schools and colleges abolished are hereby declared to be the property of the Rizal Technological Colleges and shall be titled under that name; Provided, that should the Colleges cease to exist or be abolished or should such parcels of land aforementioned be no longer needed by the Colleges, the same shall revert to the Province of Rizal.

SEC. 17. In addition to the appropriations of the college and school thus transferred and absorbed, the Provincial Board of Rizal shall provide funds for the purchase of site and the construction of buildings therein; and provided further, that the sum of Two Million Pesos shall be appropriated by the Province of Rizal for the establishment, operation and maintenance of the Colleges. Thereafter, funds for the maintenance and operation of the Colleges shall be included in the annual appropriations of the Province of Rizal.

SEC. 18. In addition to the funds appropriated by the Province of Rizal, the National Government may appropriate such sums as may be necessary for the operation, maintenance, construction of buildings, and development projects of the Colleges out of any funds in the National Treasury not otherwise appropriated, the same to be included thereafter in the annual General Appropriations Act.

SEC. 19. Provisions of law notwithstanding, the Province of Rizal hereby authorized to levy such taxes as may be necessary to raise the funds needed for the purpose aforementioned, subject to the approval by the Secretary of Finance.

SEC. 20. All laws, decrees, executive orders contrary to or inconsistent with the provisions of this Decree are hereby repealed or amended accordingly.

SEC. 21. This Decree shall take effect immediately.

Done in the City of Manila, this 20th day of March, in the year of Our Lord, nineteen hundred and seventy-five.