Lingkod at Pagmamahal ng Saint Michael's College of Laguna Foundation, Inc.

Believing that education is the best intervention towards poverty alleviation, Saint Michael's College of Laguna (SMCL) started its community extension services on July 5, 1989 by offering pre-elementary education in Barangay Malaban, Biñan, Laguna. This was conducted in consortium with DECS Region 4 and with the Office of the Mayor of Biñan. The SMCL – initiated consortium was designed to benefit the pre-schoolers of depressed, disadvantaged, and underserved communities of Biñan.

Volunteer third year College students from the SMCL College of Education tutored the initial batch of 20 kindergarten children, aged 4 to 5 years, two hours daily. Classes were held in Malaban Elementary School. The following year, the number of enrollees increased to 40, who were split into two classes: 20 pupils in the morning shift, 8:00 a.m. – 10:00 a.m. and the other 20 in the second shift, 10:00 a.m. to 12:00 noon. Later, classes were held in Dela Paz West and in Pedro H. Escueta Memorial School. The project was called the SMCL Outreach Nursery Program.

In the succeeding years, SMCL continued to offer free pre-elementary education to batches of 25 children each who resided in Barangay Platero, the adopted community of the College. It was referred to as the SMCL Platero Community Service Program. Mothers who were waiting for their children were given sessions on values education and training in cooking, sewing, food preparation and dressmaking. Later on, the volunteer teachers also taught them basic lessons in mathematics, science, and English to be of help to their children. This project for the mother, dubbed Continuing Literacy and Livelihood Education Program (CLLEP) was a joint project of Zonta Club of Laguna, the Philippine Association of University Women, and SMCL. On March 5, 1999, CLLEP received the United Nations Development Fund (UNIFEM) Philippine Committee award, "Most Promising Livelihood Project."

Launching of LINGAP. Two years later, on 10 August 2001, Saint Michael's College of Laguna formally launched the Lingkod at Pagmamahal ng Saint Michael's College of Laguna" (LINGAP), a community involvement and immersion program that symbolizes and stands for its strong commitment to the upliftment of depressed communities in Biñan, Laguna. To date, this program, which is intended to provide proactive assistance to the less fortunate, has adopted 15 families of Barangay Platero, Biñan.

Initially, LINGAP organized outreach activities that included the Family Literacy Program, the Livelihood and Entrepreneurship Program, and the Health and Sanitation Program. The Family Literacy Program, managed by the faculty, staff, and students of SMCL's College of Education and Liberal Arts, provided refresher courses in reading, writing, speaking, and listening, as well as values-clarification activities on childrearing, family solidarity, motherhood, and family planning to the adopted families. The Livelihood and Entrepreneurship Program enabled the mothers to augment their family income through acquired skills in making straw flowers, paper trays, bags, rugs, and potholders. Through the Health and Sanitation program, the beneficiaries received free medicines, regular medical and dental checkups, and education on proper hygiene and cleanliness.

On Sept. 29, 2004, the SMCL LINGAP Social Action Center groundbreaking ceremony was held, participated in by the SMCL community and the Barangay Platero officials. Situated in G & F Subdivision, the Center was inaugurated on Dec. 8, 2004, followed by a medical mission sponsored by the Biñan Doctors Hospital, the Zonta Club of Laguna, the Biñan Medical Society, and the Biñan Dental Society.

The following year, on 17 June 2005, SMCL became an accredited member of the Philippine Association of Extension Implementors of the Philippines (PAEPI). A month later, the PAPEI-SMCL chapter was created, with the commitment to continue rendering extension services to the least privileged members of the society. It also became a registered member of the Department of Social Welfare Development agencies.

In 2006, SMCL LINGAP redefined community extension services with the theme, Beyond Giving: Nurturing and Believing. Since then, the SMCL community has given more credence to sustainability, empowerment, and productivity. LINGAP has debunked the practice of doleouts of canned goods, used clothes, and all other forms of donations. Community service takes on the meaning of partaking one's share so that others may also have their share. With this comes the realization that what makes life more meaningful is the number of lives that has been touched, and the purity of intention as the Michaelean community continues to immerse with the homeless, the neglected, and the abandoned.

At present, LINGAP's three-fold program: (1) Literacy, (2) Livelihood and Capability-Building, and (3) Health and Sanitation services form the core of its community extension. Land linkages have become more expansive, to ensure effective and efficient program implementation. At present, its networking and linkages include government organizations (e.g., Provincial Governor's Office, Municipality of Biñan, Office of the Mayor, Office of the Ombudsman) and Laguna-based organizations (e.g., Zonta Club of Laguna, Zonta International District 17, Laguna Medical Society, Laguna Dental Society, League of Biñan Leaders, Biñan Medical Society, Open Heart Foundation, Seniors' Citizens Club), as well as UNICEF, Gawad Kalinga, Ibon Foundation, Ateneo de Manila University, and Gabay-Bata Foundation, among others.

SMCL has earned the respect and trust of the community leaders and the Barangay Councils in Platero, Malaban, Dela Paz, Canlalay, San Vicente, and Soro-soro. They acknowledge the contributions of the College in the improvement of their communities. The college-community relationship has deepened because of the volunteerism and commitment of the SMCL community. During the PACUCOA Level -III reaccreditation of four of four undergraduate programs in Business Administration, Elementary Education, Secondary Education, and Liberal Arts, one of the strengths cited was the College's outreach program. To date, LINGAP has been converted into a Foundation, to ensure the stability and continuity of its services, regardless of any major change in institutional leadership.