The main thrust of this program is to open eyes and make students aware that there is more to the world than just the Ateneo High School and some nearby mall. Ateneans get to realize how to be down-to-earth, and learn how simple life really is. Through this experience, they get to cherish the privileges and benefits they presently enjoy (and perhaps take for granted).

Participation

There are around 4-6 batches that go into different places in Metro Manila or the outskirts every school year. Most of them are held in long weekend vacations or during the summer break. Each batch goes to a certain designated "Area" and stays there for maximum of 3 days. There are around 7-9 participants in each batch. The participants are required to arrive at the site using public transportation, thus giving them a more heartfelt experience. They are accompanied by an area coordinator (a fellow junior with Immersion Program experience) and a teacher-in-charge. The area coordinator/teacher-in-charge usually makes rounds every late morning and afternoon to check up on each participant. In case of emergency situations, the area coordinator is usually supplied a trunk radio or a cellular phone. Area coordinators stay the entire weekend, while teachers-in-charge come and go in day/night shifts.

Upon reaching the third day, they bid farewell to their foster families and ride back to the Ateneo High School campus using public transportation.

Further Reading

• Photographs found in these pages were taken during Batch-99 A in Area G, Sapang Palay, Bulacan, Philippines.
• Note: Banlaw directly means, "immersion in water." The project’s aim is to cleanse students from their materialistic dirtiness and immersed them in a life of simplicity.

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