SM Foundation awards 34 scholarships in Davao

On August 5, the SM Foundation held its 2026 SM College Scholarship Awarding Ceremony at the SM Store Davao Training Room, naming 34 deserving students from Davao City as scholars. The batch joins a record‑breaking cohort of 1,100 new scholars nationwide, the largest single intake in the program’s history.

Founded by SM founder Henry “Tatang” Sy Sr., the scholarship aims to break the intergenerational cycle of poverty by providing tuition assistance and long‑term opportunities. The new scholars, who chose accountancy and engineering courses, will attend partner institutions such as Ateneo de Davao University, National University Davao, University of Mindanao, University of the Southeastern Philippines, University of the Immaculate Conception and the University of the Philippines Mindanao. SM City Davao Mall Manager Leah P. Delarmente highlighted the program’s role in unlocking quality education, while alumna Engr. Deborah Gemarino, now a project engineer at SM Engineering Design and Development, described the scholarship as a life‑changing stepping stone.