Lawaan, which was a barrio of Balangiga, was established as an independent town in 1959. Soon after that in 1960, the Diocese of Borongan was formed for the whole Eastern Samar, which was once part of the Diocese of Calbayog, under the pastoring of the first bishop Most. Rev. Vicente Reyes. A year after that in 1961, the Sto. Niño Parish was Instituted.
Then parish priest Fr. Dionesio Avila Chinel set up the parochial school Divine Child Academy on May 8, 1962.
The permit to operate for first year and second year was granted on June 11, 1961, while the permit for third year was granted soon on August 30, 1962. A few years later, the permit for fourth year was granted on July 24, 1970: Permit No. 298-55 series of 1970. Finally, the over-all Department of Education, Culture and Sports (DECS) Recognition No. 13 was granted on May 29, 1973.
In 2001, through the initiative of then School Head Sr. Ma. Francis Añover, the Divine Child Academy submitted its application for registration under the company name Divine Child Academy of Lawaan Eastern Samar, Inc. pursuant to the Provision Act No.2706 as prerequisite to granting Certificate of Government Recognition by the Department of Education.
Its SEC Registration was granted on April 29, 2002 and in the same year, Certificate of Government Recognition No. 024 series of 2002 was granted on November 4, 2002. Throughout its existence, the School Director has always been the parish priest who sometimes act as the School Principal. The following have served as School Directors: Fr. Dionesio Avila Chinel (1962-1967), Fr. Crescente Japzon (1967-1974, Fr. Francisco Calzita (1974-1975), Fr. Nilo Apura (1975-1978), Fr. Jose Manuel Lugay (1978-1988), Fr. Alex Galo (1988-1993), Fr. Adamson Albert (1993-1994), Fr. Ben Noroña (1994-1997), Fr. Antonio Alconaba (1997-1999), Fr. Honorio Añano III (1999-2001), Fr. Edwin Lanuevo (2001-2005), Fr. Eleuterio Gubiana (2005-2006), Fr. Marlon Gacho (2006-2009), and Fr. Roneil Canillas (2009-June 20, 2015).
The present School Director-Principal is Fr. Rey Anthony P. Navidad, Ph.D. who has been serving the parish and the school since June 20, 2015. With the aim of making the school as a venue for the new evangelization, the current bishop of the Diocese of Borongan, Most Rev. Crispin B. Varquez, DD, for the first time, assigned an Assistant Parish Priest to Sto. Niño Parish whose duty is also to assist the parish priest in administering the school. Rev. Fr. James Abella served as the Assistant Parish Priest from November 2016 until May 2018. Rev. Fr. Miel Sedfrey L. Nebrida has been assigned only as the Assistant Principal since January 2019.
In 2005, the first volunteer teachers from the Jesuit Volunteers Philippines arrived to augment the working force of the school. Each year, volunteer teachers were often assigned to teach key subjects and advisers of Student Government Organization and other student clubs. Aside from the JVPs, throughout its existence, the school has been a recipient of selfless service of lay volunteers as well as of seminarians taking a year of regency.
In 2013, Typhoon Yolanda put to ruin the old buildings of the school that have existed since 1962 which were semi-concrete and were generally made from wooden materials. The then parish priest Fr. Roneil Canillas seek for donors for the construction of the new buildings. It is with the aid of the Caritas Germany that the construction of the new building was realized the once an elusive dream even before the typhoon was erected. Initially, the Caritas Germany planned and budgeted to construct a new one-storey school building, but later on, the organization decided to increase the budget and donated a two-storey building instead.
The construction of the new school building began in 2015 under the new administration of Fr. Rey Anthony Navidad. During the construction, make-shift classrooms were built within the church compound to ensure the continuous operation of the school. Aside from the new school building, Caritas Germany also provided many of its facilities such as tables, chairs, computers and TV monitors for each classroom. The new school building was inaugurated on October 24, 2016 with the blessing of Most Rev. Bishop Crispin Varquez, DD.
The new school building was completed in time for the opening of the Grade 11 and the Senior High School in 2016. The Grade 12 was then offered the next year in 2017. In 2017, the Simbahang Lingkod ng Bayan also donated a two-storey building for Nursery and Kindergarten. The new building was inaugurated on May 6, 2018 with the blessing of Most Rev. Bishop Crispin Varquez, DD. Currently, this new building donated by SLB also accommodates Senior High School students.
To this day, the school continues to provide quality Catholic formation to its students. Aside from their academic formation, the students enjoy a variety of co-curricular and extra-curricular activities that enrich their high school experience. Students are formed spiritually through daily prayers, monthly Masses and annual recollections and retreats. The Divine Child Academy is an unceasing reminder of generosity of many individuals to Lawaan as a whole. It is a symbol of resilience and deep faith of Lawaanons.