At the heart of this collaboration is Punta Engaño Elementary School, the primary beneficiary of the joint initiative called “Education with a Mission.” 

The partnership aims to strengthen community resilience and uplift quality of life through improved school facilities, community learning sessions, and strategic programs aligned with the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs); particularly Quality Education (SDG 4), Sustainable Communities (SDG 11), and Partnerships for the Goals (SDG 17).

Signing the Memorandum of Agreement were: Dave Junker, General Manager of Shangri-La Mactan, and Fr. Francisco Antonio T. Estepa, SVD, Ph.D. President of the University of San Carlos. The witnesses to the signing included Lotlot Dagat (Financial Controller of MacSHRI), Fr. Jesuraj Antoniappen, SVD, Ph.D. (�������� Vice President for Academic Affairs), and Bonifacio “Jon” Mercado, Jr., Ph.D. (�������� Director for Community Extension Services).

This collaboration underscores the transformative power of partnerships between academe and industry, advancing sustainable development and promoting education with a mission from the classroom to the broader community.

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�������� Civil Engineering students, under the supervision of the faculty members and graduate students of the Department, presented the proposed solutions for the river rehabilitation to the officials from barangays Bacayan, Pulangbato, and San Jose in Cebu City and barangays Alang-Alang, Paknaan, Tingub, and Tabok in Mandaue City. 

Each solution was designed to address the critical issues affecting the Butuanon River, with the dual purpose of restoring the waterway and improving the lives of the communities living alongside the river. This activity took place after a series of meetings and planning as part of the River Scan Challenge. The event marks a significant milestone in the attempt to restore the Butuanon River, which was once considered dead due to pollution. 

Representatives from the 12 groups returned to their assigned barangay to present these solutions and hand them over to the barangay officials or representatives, which include addressing local concerns such as flooding, water scarcity, poor waste management, and water contamination. 

Some of the proposed solutions also included innovative interventions like the Movabin, Aerator System, Sandbag Weir, Bira-Bira sa Basura, Cable Can, Bypass Canal, and Gabion Dam.

The students symbolically handed over these solutions via tarpaulins and fliers that contained the following documents: 

• Community meeting reports;
• ArcGIS story map; 
• Research report and solution proposal;
• Digital copy of the tarpaulin; 
• Photos during the ocular visit; and 
• A video presenting a more detailed explanation of the said problem and solution. 

Barangay officials expressed their appreciation for the efforts of the students, in taking the initiative on these proposed solutions, describing them as promising steps towards addressing the issues along the Butuanon River. Many of them remarked, however, that budget constraints could be a challenge in implementing these solutions.

Overall, the activity was a huge success, thanks to the collaborative efforts of the Local Government Units of Cebu City and Mandaue City and the Civil Engineering Department of the University of San Carlos. This initiative brings the Butuanon River one step closer to a cleaner and more sustainable future.

With reporting from the Department of Civil Engineering

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In recent years, the mode of learning continues to evolve and the University has also shifted its focus on a different teaching strategy: the student workload-based curricular planning, developed by Richard R. Jugar, Ph.D., Director of ��������’s Educational Practices, Instruction, and Curriculum (EPIC) Development. 

Dr. Jugar’s research, “Conceptualizing Student Workload in Philippine Higher Education Institutions” paved the way for the University to consider implementing a student-focused approach.

Currently, student workload is not considered in the development and deployment of curricular programs. Official documents only reflect class hours while other student learning activities outside of class hours are non-existent. This creates vast discrepancies between what is reported and what students actually do. 

This is where Dr. Jugar’s student workload-based curricular planning comes in. Under this model, the student workload should include both class hours and the student work done outside of class, including project preparation, writing papers, preparing presentations, and other school-related activities. 

The University of San Carlos piloted the student workload for the Academic Year 2022–2023, which yielded positive results. Consequently, Dr. Jugar presented his research before the Regional Development Council Social Development Committee as part of ��������’s commitment to share its best practices. 

With the success of ��������’s pilot implementation, the Regional Development Council issued Resolution No. 62, Series of 2023, enjoining the Commission on Higher Education (CHED) 7 and other HEIs in Central Visayas to consider implementing the same student workload-based curricular planning, with the pilot implementation at the University of San Carlos as reference. 

As of this writing, the University of San Carlos has already trained the following Philippine HEIs: Mindanao State University-Iligan Institute of Technology, West Visayas State University (WVSU), and University of San Agustin (USA). 

The University is also partnering with the ASEAN University Network (AUN) and the Philippines Commission on Higher Education (CHED) to encourage the development of a national policy for a formal adoption and nationwide implementation. 

Together with the AUN, Ateneo de Manila University, WVSU, and USA, �������� will host the Policy Forum on Student Workload Institutionalization and Authentic Assessment Adoption which will be attended by over 50 Philippine HEIs on October 3–4, 2024, at Sam’s 21 Hotel in Iloilo City, Philippines.

According to Dr. Jugar, the long-term goal is to position the Philippines as a model, encouraging and enabling other ASEAN member states to follow suit and develop their own student workload-based curricular planning, with �������� at the forefront.

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Aside from the stores, the students of the School of Business and Economics (SBE) also provided kits to help the beneficiaries kick start their business operations which include selling vegetables, rice, snacks, beauty products, mobile load, firewood, dried fish, among others. 

To help the beneficiaries market their products online, the student volunteers also taught them how to create Facebook pages. 

The activity is part of the student-initiated Pagsalom Project which started as a webinar that taught women, particularly mothers, how to start a business. After that, they focused on teaching the beneficiaries how to sustain and grow their businesses. 

Once the beneficiaries were equipped with the basic knowledge on how to manage a business, the students started fundraising. The proceeds went to the purchase of business kits as well as products and materials that were given to the beneficiaries to help them start their small businesses. 

�������� CES, headed by its Director Fr. Franlou Bardon, SVD, also contributed by tapping external lay mission partners and providing additional funds for the construction of the mobile stores. 

In his message, University President Fr. Narciso A. Cellan Jr., SVD, D.Comm., emphasized the importance of formation programs as part of ��������’s curriculum to broaden students’ knowledge and appreciation of lessons that cannot be learned inside the classroom. 

Fr. Cellan also reminded the students about the importance of Learning through Service which is in line with the University’s goal of providing an Education with a Mission. 

This initiative is part of ��������’s goal of strengthening multidisciplinary volunteer programs. Aside from SBE, student volunteers from the School of Engineering, School of Health Care Professions, and School of Arts and Sciences also visited the community to provide solar lighting, building construction, herbal planting and urban gardening, and a community library.

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Assistant Vice President for Academic Affairs Atty. Joan S. Largo, Ll.M. received the award for ��������. Atty. Largo was assisted by Office of Naming Rights, Endowments, and Scholarship Assistant Director Elizabeth M. Remedio, Ph.D., who was formerly the Director of the CHED-�������� Zonal Research Center and CHED-�������� Philippine Higher Education Network (PHERNet).

The awarding ceremony was held at the Center for Performing Arts of the Quezon City University, highlighted by messages from CHED Commissioners Ronald L. Adamat, Ph.D., Marita R. Canapi, Ph.D., Jo Mark M. Libre, D.P.A., and CHED Chairman J. Prospero E. de Vera III, Ph.D.

In their congratulatory message, the CHED recognized �������� with the Quality Excellence Award for having eight program areas designated as CHED Center of Excellence. The �������� Centers of Excellence include program areas in Anthropology, Business Administration, Chemical Engineering, Entrepreneurship, Mechanical Engineering, Office Administration, Physics, and Teacher Education.

The award itself is designed by renowned artist Dr. Grace Javier Alfonso and features 17 golden leaves representing the country’s 17 regions forming a flame, which symbolizes wisdom and excellence.

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The �������� Cabinet officially released a statement (above) regarding the upcoming national and local elections on May 9, 2022, enjoining Carolinians to pray:

“God our Father, source of life and hope, you teach us that good governance is a vocation of service and holiness.  In these coming local and national elections, may we vote as witnesses to the Word and followers of Christ in truth, humility, justice, peace, and integrity. This we ask with the guidance of the Holy Spirit through Christ our Lord. Amen.”

Let us vote responsibly. Let us vote as Witnesses to the Word.

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The training aims to address student engagement in online classes. At the end of the training, the �������� faculty members are expected to develop a more open perspective to change and to understand their new roles as learning facilitators in a virtual platform, demonstrate enabling attitudes to online learning, and learn strategies for the delivery of online courses that will increase student engagement in the learning process in both synchronous and asynchronous learning modalities, and develop facilitation skills and techniques.

The TOF training is designed to enable the faculty to acquire online facilitation skills by allowing the teacher trainees to experience online learning as e-learners. Thus, teacher trainees will primarily go through an asynchronous training environment blended with weekly synchronous sessions. Unlike the traditional and usual approach to trainings, this TOF training is less input-focused and more experiential or dispositional. It is hoped that the trainees will learn facilitation skills by going through the experience as e-learners. As an exclusive program for �������� higher education faculty, the school’s learning management system, Canvas, will be utilized as the training platform to provide familiarity and develop a certain degree of mastery of the school’s virtual classroom. The training will run for four weeks or 20 weekdays and includes special topics on creativity and innovation in education, lifelong learning, and exploring a live online class.

The TOF training is part of ��������’s initiative to equip faculty members with the three important components of (a) online facilitation and student engagement so that classes in the virtual platform are interactive, engaging and facilitative of active learning; (b) microlearning to avoid cognitive overload of the students; and (c) student accessibility which addresses such concerns as internet connectivity and other various constraints of a learner.

After the TOF training, �������� faculty members will next tackle the aspect of Student Workload and Cognitive Load. Commenting on the experience, one �������� instructor quipped, “I am really excited as a student-participant since I know that I still have a lot of things to learn, relearn, and unlearn. The different lessons last week and this week have provided me insights on becoming a better facilitator.”

with reporting from the Office of the Vice President for Academic Affairs

Tags: The Word Alive, Education with a Mission

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Transporting the solar panels to the islands requires boats fitted with outriggers. Here a solar panel is off-loaded at Gilutongan Island.

The microgrid power generation system for the off-grid community of Gilutongan Island in Cordova, Cebu developed by the University’s Center for Research in Energy Systems and Technologies (CREST) was recently featured by a British Council Philippines posted on September 17, 2020. �������� CREST previously presented their research outputs at EnerCon 2018. This project is in collaboration with the University of Southampton and is co-funded by the Commission on Higher Education (CHED) Newton Agham Program.

Engr. Rabuya explains the economics of off-grid solar panels to island residents.

Tags: Community Extension, Engineering, Education with a Mission, Witness to the Word

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