One year after a fire razed a key academic building at San Francisco High School (SFHS) on the eve of the 2025 school opening, two newly completed school buildings have allowed the country's one of the largest public secondary schools to return to a full-day class schedule, ending months of overcrowding and double shifts for nearly 7,000 students.

President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. and Education Secretary Sonny Angara on Wednesday inspected the newly completed facilities at the Quezon City campus, which serve about 6,800 learners and had struggled with a severe classroom shortage following the 15 June 2025 blaze that destroyed the school's two-story Dao Building.

The reconstruction effort resulted in a four-story, 36-classroom building funded and built by the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH), as well as the four-story Henry Sy Sr. Hall, a 24-classroom structure financed by SM Supermalls.

School officials said the additional classrooms enabled SFHS to abandon its shifting schedule, under which students attended classes either from 6 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. or from 12:30 p.m. to 7 p.m. due to the lack of learning spaces.

With the completion of the two buildings ahead of the June 8 opening of classes, students now attend classes under a single daily schedule from 7 a.m. to 2:40 p.m.

"Kapag ang pera ng gobyerno ay ginagamit sa tama, ito ang kaya natin gawin," Marcos said during the inspection. He noted that the new facilities have allowed students and teachers to avoid extended school hours associated with the previous shifting arrangement.

The fire-hit Dao Building, constructed in 1980, housed 10 classrooms as well as the school's library and social hall before it was gutted days before the start of School Year 2025-2026.

Its replacement, completed on 31 May, features nine classrooms on each floor, accessibility ramps, 16 comfort rooms, fire alarms and sprinkler systems, and upgraded safety features. Construction began in September 2025.

The Henry Sy Sr. Hall, meanwhile, replaced the campus' long-unused and deteriorating Narra Building. The 2,700-square-meter facility adds 24 classrooms and incorporates natural ventilation, wider staircases, safety railings and furnishings made from upcycled plastic materials.

Public Works Secretary Vince Dizon said the government accelerated construction to ensure the building would be ready for the start of the new school year.

"The early completion—four months ahead of schedule—of the San Francisco High School building is what happens when public funds are used properly and not lost to corruption," Dizon said.

Angara described the project as an example of how partnerships between government and the private sector could help address infrastructure gaps in public schools.

The President had visited the campus shortly after the fire in June last year and again in January to monitor reconstruction progress. During those visits, he directed concerned agencies to complete the facilities before the opening of classes in 2026.

School principal Marissa Nava-Rodriguez said the swift rebuilding effort helped restore confidence among students, teachers and parents affected by the fire.

The completion of the two buildings comes as the Department of Education continues to grapple with classroom shortages nationwide, a longstanding challenge that has forced many public schools to adopt shifting schedules and other measures to accommodate growing student populations.