Philippine Cultural College (; abbreviated as PCC) is a Chinese Filipino school with three campuses located in Manila, Caloocan and Quezon City, Metro Manila, Philippines, established on June 27, 1923 by the Philippine Chinese Educational Association. PCC is the oldest Chinese Filipino secondary school in the Philippines. It is a non-stock, non-profit, and non-sectarian co-educational education institution offering pre-school, and has a Level II re-accredited status from the Philippine Accrediting Association of Schools, Colleges and Universities (PAASCU) for its grade school and high school. Its programs emphasize in the English, Filipino, and Mandarin Chinese languages, Mathematics, Science, and Information Technology.
School History
The Pioneering Stage
The school was originally named Philippine Chinese High School. It was established by the Philippine Chinese Educational Association in 1923, under the leadership of Don Carlos Palanca Sr. With 47 students, classes were first held using the two classrooms of Anglo Chinese School (now Tiong Se Academy). Classes started on June 27, thus the date became the foundation day of the school. In 1937, the first batch of alumni organized the PCHS Alumni Association, with Mr. Go Seng Guan elected as the first president. He was succeeded by Mr. Kong Kuan. In 1938, the school was authorized by the Educational Association to organize a board of trustees which would take over the management of the school. Mr. Go Chong Beng was the first chairman of the board. For 15 years, Mr. Chow Cing Chian, Mr. Tsai Xiang Chang, Mr. Tiu See Eng, Mr. King She Hiong, Mr. Shu Seng Shan, and Mr. Huang Meng Kuei served as school principal one after another.
Surmounting Difficulties
In 1939, Teng Chiu Huang served as the 7th school principal. In 1940, a new school building was constructed along Jose Abad Santos Street. Classes were held both at the new building and at the old building of Anglo Chinese School. In January 1942, the Imperial Japanese Army invaded the City of Manila. The new school building was forcibly occupied by the Japanese troops. Classes were suspended. In May 1945, the school was the first one within the city to reopen after the war. In 1948, expansion of the Abad Santos school building was completed. The old school building was turned over to Anglo Chinese School.
On May 2, 1949, at 11:30 in the evening, a neighborhood fire brought disaster to the school. The whole school building, together with all the important records and papers, and facilities were burned to ashes.
Under the leadership of T.C. Huang and Sy Eng, the president of the Educational Association and at the same time the chairman of the board of trustees, efforts were exerted and donations from various sectors of the Chinese community were gathered. On November 11 of that same year, a new school building was finally completed.
The Struggling Years
On November 11, 1960, T.C. Huang died after serving as the principal for 20 years. On December 8 of that same year, the Board of Trustees appointed Go Seng Guan as the principal.
In 1961, using the funds from Dr. T. C. Huang Memorial Foundation, the school bought a 10,000 square meter Caloocan Campus property in Caloocan.
On November 8, 1963, Sy Eng, the chairman of the board of trustees, died. Chung Tiong Tay succeeded him.
In 1967, the Department of Education approved the construction of an Caloocan campus in Caloocan. Classes were held in June of that same year, with more than 300 students.
In 1976, the government Filipinized all Chinese schools in the Philippines. The school was renamed Philippine Cultural High School.
Since its founding, Philippine Cultural High School used to offer only high school education. But with the changing of times, both the Manila and the Caloocan campuses started offering pre-school and elementary education during the 70s.
The activities of the Alumni Association were suspended due to the uncertainty of times. PCHS Alumni Coordinating Committee, with Marcos Chua as the liaison officer, was organized instead to help contact alumni from all places. In 1976, the Alumni Association was re-organized, with Chuang Chong Chian as the president.
In 1978, the Alumni Association successfully assisted the board of trustees in the fund raising campaign for the expansion project of the Caloocan campus. thumb|200px|right| Tondo Campus