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UP
turns 97: Unwavering passion, unparalleled ingenuity
UP
students win int’l
engineering prizes
UP launches IT Training Center
UP general fund for CY 2005
UP, Intel partnership keeps techno-beat upbeat
National Artist collection turned over to UP
UP and DepEd deploy teacher-volunteers nationwide
UP
turns 97
Unwavering passion, unparalleled ingenuity
By ARSHAD A. IQBAL
HOW
BETTER TO mark the 97th Founding Anniversary of the University
of the Philippines
than by celebrating two ideals that have painstakingly
guided the State University in coming into its irrepressible own—passion
and ingenuity?
For UP’s 97th, “I thought of certain characteristics that
would sum up the UP life,” says Dr. Eufracio C. Abaya, Vice Chair
of the Steering Committee on the Foundation Day celebrations. And passion
and ingenuity, he says, make UP distinct among all the other educational
institutions in the country.
Abaya, who also
serves as director of the Office for the Initiatives on Culture and
the Arts, further says: “UP has a unique sense
of passion and ingenuity. We are tireless in our pursuit of excellence.
We are always looking for new ideas. And we are not afraid to go beyond,
most times against, the conventional.”
Dr. Helen Lopez,
faculty member of the UP Diliman Department of English and Comparative
Literature who has written a book on the UP presidents
and who is presently working on a book on UP’s history, calls
it the UP Spirit: free inquiry, social criticism, open mindedness,
resilience, and principled skepticism of, if not hostility to, anything
that smacks of authoritarianism or absolutism. “Every UP graduate,” she
asserts, “has that consciousness, that spirit, and that attitude
that no matter how difficult the circumstances are, they can make it.”
Lopez attributes
such attitude to the kind of environment students are exposed to
in UP, where diversity of opinions, ideas, and expressions
is tolerated and, in fact, encouraged. “We have the freedom to
be,” she says. “It is that kind of freedom that enables
you to be your own person, to develop knowing the risks involved if
you took one direction and not the other, not the one you are obliged
to take.”
Art exhibit and musical concert
This June, UP celebrates its 97th year with a host of activities that,
Abaya points out, exemplifies passion and ingenuity. “We will
have an art exhibit that will run from June 13 to 18 at the Bulwagang
Rizal, Faculty Center,” he says. “We are calling the exhibit ‘Works
in Progress’ because artists, like UP, continue to look for growth.
They are always experimenting with new ideas.”
Another activity
is a musical concert that will be held on June 17, 4:30 p.m., at
the Abelardo Hall, College of Music. It will feature
some of the UP alumni who are prominent performing artists both here
and abroad. The concert will be call ed “UP Surge” because,
says Abaya, “I want to express an explosion of ideas,” an
activity that has shaped and reshaped UP into what it is today.
There will also
be a book sale in cooperation with the UP Press. “This
time,” says Abaya, “we would like to show the research
aspect of the UP life. It is the UP passion and ingenuity in print.”
Shaper of destiny
UP today is undeniably a premier learning institution,
a bastion of academic freedom, and a university of the Filipino people.
This is no mean
feat for an institution whose destiny, since its inception, has been
tied with that of the nation. Dr. Lopez notes that
when the
idea of establishing a university was broached by Morgan Shuster in
1904, the University was already recognized as a “potent instrument
for shaping the country’s destiny.” Shuster, at that time,
was the Secretary of Instructions.
“Early
on, therefore, UP became a microcosm of the larger world outside.
It was meant to produce professionals who would be leaders of the country,” Lopez
explains. “Also, it was expected to spearhead the Filipinization
of the government system even as it was supposed to be the vanguard
of the national culture.” UP became the testing ground for new
ideas.
UP responded to
the challenge by sending the members of its faculty abroad to pursue
graduate studies and acquire expertise in their chosen
disciplines. “At that time, there was no university in the country
that was offering graduate programs,” recalls UP President Emerlinda
R. Roman. “So when these faculty members came back, they helped
develop graduate courses in UP. And in these graduate programs, we
admitted not only our own faculty members but those of other universities,
as well. In that sense, I think we have contributed quite substantially
to the development of quality higher education in the country.”
And UP, continues
Roman, has since been faithful to its mission. “Aside
from training the country’s youth, we also actively engage in
research and extension services that are all geared toward the improvement
of the country’s competitiveness,” she says. “For
example, we help build the country’s scientific manpower base,
which is very important in the survival of any country, particularly
in this day and age of technological developments.”
UP’s
prized assets
Ultimately, beyond its traditions of excellence and freedom, Lopez
believes that UP is all about its people—faculty, students, alumni,
administrative staff, researchers, and the administrators. “They
are UP’s contributions to the nation,” she says. “Who
do we have in the government, in Congress, in the industry? [We have
there] the UP alumni.”
Indeed, Roman
says it is the faculty that has enabled UP to effectively move with
the times and last this long. “Many of our faculty
members stick it out with the University in spite of the fact that
doing so is not financially rewarding for them,” she explains. “I
believe that our faculty members are here simply because they love
to teach. And they teach for the love of our country.”
UP students
win int’l engineering prizes
By JO. FLORENDO B. LONTOC
SHOWING HOW GLOBAL networking results in the improvement of the product,
two University of the Philippines students who collaborated with
three other students from the National University of Singapore (NUS)
with the advice of professors, gained international recognition for
an engineering project to rehabilitate the infamous Payatas dump
site.
The project of Erwin Torio and Hans
Mark Chua, two students from the UP Environmental Engineering (EnE)
graduate program collaborating
with
three counterpart students from the NUS, was announced one of the four
winners of the First Mondialogo Engineering Award under the sanitation
and waste management category. The UP-NUS team was also one of only
five that won a special jury recognition “for the outstanding
quality of their work.”
According to Louernie Papa-de Sales,
project adviser of the two UP students, 412 international teams from
79 countries joined the contest.
Earlier, the project entitled “A sustainable approach to the
control and remediation of municipal solid waste leachate at the Payatas
disposal facility in Metro Manila, Philippines” landed in the
top 40 projects, which enabled Torio and NUS student Marvin Montefrio
make a paper presentation in Berlin. Montefrio used to be a research
associate at UP Environmental Engineering, De Sales added. Twenty-one
projects became the ultimate winners under the eight categories of
the contest.
The jury members were experts from
the University of Science and Technology of Ghana, the World Federation
of Engineering Organizations,
the American
Association for the Advancement of Science, Istanbul Technical University,
Southeast University of China, the UNESCO, and the Daimler-Chrysler
multinational. The last two organizations are the founders of Mondialogo,
a partnership that seeks to promote intercultural dialogue, understanding,
and exchange among young people. They believe that the fields of engineering
and technology play a key role in developing nations. Therefore, the
contest looked for engineering projects—resulting from inter-cultural
collaboration—that could improve everyday living conditions and
contribute to modernization and progress.
The UP-NUS team is called the TeamEnerg or Environmental Engineering
Research Group. It includes five students and two advisers, one each
from UP (De Sales)
and NUS (Jeffrey Obbard). The team is optimistic that, with the international
expert recognition, the project for Payatas can now be adopted.
UP launches
IT Training Center
By ARLYN VCD ROMUALDO
“THE OBJECTIVE OF developing an IT-enabled force is a national
goal which UP as the national university is ready to contribute to,” stated
UP President Emerlinda R. Roman at the launching of the Information
Technology Training Center (ITTC) last June 3.
IT development ranks high in the RP
National Development Plan and the University served to realize this
goal through the establishment
of
the ITTC. The project was started in 2001, when UP’s proposal
was approved by the national government’s Inter-agency Investment
Coordination Committee (ICC). The ICC then endorsed the UP ITTC project
to the government of Japan for grant aid funding. Since then, consultations
have been made with key IT firms and organizations.
Four years after its inception, the ITTC formally opened its doors
to its first batch of students. With assistance from the Japanese
International Cooperating Agency (JICA), the ITTC offers medium to
high-level IT
training to new college graduates as well as IT professionals.
Although mainly involved in IT, the training center provides a multidisciplinary
approach to the industry. The ITTC, therefore, has sought the participation
of other UP units such as the Technology Management Center, College
of Engineering, College of Science, College of Business Administration,
College of Arts and Letters, and Center for International Studies.
Aside from these units, other affiliate instructors will come from
the IT industry and other universities.
Armed with these resources, JICA Resident
Representative Shozo Matsuura believes that the ITTC will surely
help “eliminate the discrepancy
between IT education and practice” in the Philippines. Through
cooperation among the government, industry, and academe, the ITTC will
work towards the national goal of enhancing IT capabilities in the
country.
UP general fund
for CY 2005
By ARLYN VCD ROMUALDO
THIS
YEAR, THE University’s budget allocation (General Fund)
from the National Government is P4.45 billion. UP’s Internal
Operating Budget (IOB) actually comes from two sources, the General
Fund and the Revolving Fund, though the University relies heavily on
the former.
General Fund (GF)
The GF refers to the UP budget allocation from the National Government
through the General Appropriations Act. This allotment provides lump-sum
amounts for the University’s programs such as General Administration
and Support Services, Support to Operations, Advance and Higher Education
Services, Research Services, and Extension Services. These programs
are classified according to types of expenditure: Personal Services
(PS); Maintenance and Other Operating Expenses (MOOE); and Capital
Outlay (CO).
Furthermore, the GF provides staff and faculty benefits like Magna
Carta incentives, clothing allowance, cash gift, productivity incentive
bonus, 13th month pay, terminal leave, employees compensation and insurance
premiums, home development mortgage fund, PhilHealth insurance premiums,
personnel economic relief assistance and additional compensation allowance,
and retirement and life insurance premiums (RLIP).
Of this year’s P4.45 billion GF, the Philippine General Hospital
(PGH) gets P1.048 billion or 24%. The rest is divided among the academic
units as follows: UP Diliman (UPD) with 27.9% or P1.214 billion; UP
Los Baños (UPLB) with 20.5% or P895.024 million; UP Manila (UPM)
with 8.4% or P365.883 million; UP Visayas (UPV) with 7% or P306.902
million; UP Baguio (UPB) with 1.7% or P73.698 million; UP Mindanao
(UPMin) with 1.1% or P47.132 million; UP Open University (UPOU) with
1% or P44.749 million; UP System Administration (UPSA) with 4% or P175.781
million; and a Miscellaneous Fund of 4.3% or P188.718 million. In addition,
the GF also includes appropriations for RLIP amounting to P289.046
million—P229.027 million for Constituent Universities (CUs) and
P60.019 million for PGH.
Revolving Fund (RF)
This year’s RF of P951 million will be used to augment the budget
of various programs and projects of the UP System and CUs. The RF comes
from the University’s income from the following sources: tuition,
interest income, rental income from housing and other properties, hospital
fees, legal research fees, residence hall and dormitory fees, income
from other auxiliary services, and other miscellaneous sources.
Also included in the RF expenditures are items for
personnel benefits such as Provident Fund, merit incentive, rice
subsidy, and Magna Carta
for Health Workers’ Benefits. The RF also augments MOOE for utilities,
janitorial, and security services.
UP, Intel partnership
keeps techno-beat upbeat
By JO. FLORENDO B. LONTOC
THE
WORLD’S LARGEST
computer chip maker, Intel, partners with UP to make the premier
state university a leader in Physics, Science,
and Engineering education and research in Southeast Asia.
Thanks to Intel, UP Science and Engineering
students now enjoy new and industry-updated courses. Some students
even enjoy funding from
Intel for their research, improving their chances of being hired by
the multinational company, or providing the means to get them the training
to become the country’s future industry leaders. Meanwhile, faculty
members who could have opted for higher-paying jobs are lured back
into the academe by the upgraded laboratories. Teachers are also able
to pursue further education, enjoying financial support from Intel.
The upgraded equipment as well as the support the teachers are getting
produce high-impact work in such technical fields as Materials Science,
Electronics, and Applied Physics.
University techies in the Intel team who visited UP last March 12
to hear updates on the Intel-UP collaborations confirm the much-improved
learning atmosphere in the Science and Engineering departments. Intel,
a leading manufacturer of computer, networking, and communication
products,
has been sponsoring projects with the Department of Mining, Metallurgical
and Materials Engineering (MMME), the Department of Electrical and
Electronics Engineering (EEE), and the National Institute of Physics
(NIP) mostly in the last three years. A project with the Department
of Industrial Engineering (IE) is in the works.
At MMME, Department Chairman Dr. Alberto
Amorsolo Jr. lists the projects benefiting from Intel’s contribution,
beginning with the rehabilitation and upgrade of the Transmission
Electron Microscopy (TEM) facility.
This was complemented by competency development in the use of this
kind of electron microscope. The competency development training involved
updating the curriculum and training the faculty, sending faculty members
to international conferences, training vendors, and inviting experts.
Intel also provided funds for the establishment of a printed circuit
board (PCB) substrate processing laboratory.
With the TEM and PCB facilities in place, both vital in the semiconductor
industry, Amorsolo proudly notes that new courses have been offered
to students, and research in the Department has substantially become
more industry-related.
Meanwhile, two batches of five students each have just benefited
from Intel research grants for their postgraduate studies in MMME.
The grants,
including those for EEE and NIP students, have greatly reduced the
drop-out rate in postgraduate studies, Engineering Dean Rowena Guevara
reported. She says that in the past, of 58 Master of Science (MS)
scholars, only around five would finish their studies due to financial
difficulties.
Now, she said, EEE alone, where 15 MS students are scholars of Intel,
graduates around 20 MS students each year.
Apart from the university training, Intel also reserves five internship
slots for senior UP students. This, even as Intel people are being
sent to UP for post-graduate studies, Amorsolo said.
At the EEE, Prof. John Richard Hizon,
head of the microelectronics and micro-processors laboratory, talked
about Intel’s donation
of 56 PC workstations and computer-aided design (CAD) tools, namely,
Cadence, Synopsys, and Xilinx. The microchip giant also made it possible
for the laboratory to have integrated circuit (IC) fabrication and
testing facilities. Thus, students can design, fabricate, and test
their own ICs, something that cannot be done under one roof in other
educational institutions in the country, Hizon said. The laboratory’s
testing facility has a logic analyzer, network analyzer, and spectrum
analyzer, courtesy of Intel. Consequently, Hizon reported the fabrication
of eight chips or integrated circuits in the laboratory since 2000.
The goal, he said, is to integrate all the functionalities of a mobile
phone into a single chip.
Intel is also providing scholarships to four undergraduate and fifteen
Master of Science students in the Department.
The NIP is another major partner of
Intel. NIP’s Dr. Arnel Salvador
reported that since 2001, five graduate candidates and one undergraduate
student have been beneficiaries of Intel scholarship. One Ph.D. student
is set to graduate this year. Intel has also been funding three one-year
researches in the institute since 2004. One of the researches involves
applying microscopy techniques to biological samples and semiconductors.
Also in 2004, Intel donated an amount enabling the NIP to acquire
a streak camera, complementing its P18-million femtosecond laser facility.
The camera works in tandem with the femtosecond laser to measure
high-speed
optical processes. Salvador said that, within the region, UP is matched
only by Singapore and Japan in owning both femtosecond and streak
camera facilities. Already, as a result of acquiring the new equipment,
NIP
has a publication in the Applied Physics Letters, an international
refereed journal.
During the presentations, both UP President Emerlinda Roman and UP
Diliman Chancellor Sergio Cao expressed their gratefulness for the
magnitude of the partnership, which they noted is one reason UP is
truly the science and technology university of the country. On top
of the specified collaborative projects, Intel is open to working
with UP techies for more collaborative research.
The March 12 meeting was also used
by the Department of Industrial Engineering to present its plans
arising from a collaboration currently
being established with Intel. Like MME, EEE, and NIP, IE has been a “feeder” or
personnel-provider to Intel and has just been allotted a grant for
a computing lab and for an MS scholarship. The laboratory, envisioned
to be a teaching and research laboratory, is expected to be finished
in July. Dr. Aura Matias, IE Department Chairman, and Prof. Lowell
Lorenzo of IE Operations Research, who will head the new laboratory,
made the presentation for their Department.
The collaboration between UP and Intel
is a commitment to their goal of boosting the country’s intellectual firepower.
National
Artist collection turned over to UP
By JO. FLORENDO B. LONTOC
THE
UNIVERSITY LIBRARY adds to its treasure trove with the turnover
from the Joya family of the Jose
Joya collection, consisting of 1,200
book volumes, 31 foreign serial titles, 124 art brochures, and the
National Artist’s diary, photographs, programs, and invitations.
The books, many of which date back to the 18th century,
cover visual arts, literature, anthropology, philosophy, and history.
Twenty-two
titles are set for restoration, according to University Librarian
Salvacion Arlante. To house the precious collection, the College
of Fine Arts reserved a space on the mezzanine of its library, which
is now called the Jose Joya Reading Room.
The collection is a gift from Joya’s estate, represented by Joya’s
sister, Atty. Josefa Joya Baldovino. Accepting on behalf of the University
was President Emerlinda Roman. The turnover ceremony held last June
3, Joya’s birthday, was attended by National Artists Virgilio
Almario and Napoleon Abueva.
Joya graduated from the UP in 1953, the first-ever magna cum laude
of the University. He was the dean of the College of Fine Arts from
1970 to 1978. He died in 1995 and was conferred the National Artist
for Visual Arts title in 2003.
UP and DepEd deploy
teacher-volunteers nationwide
By MAE ASTRID TOBIAS
WHEN SCHOOL OPENS this June, thirty-seven graduates from the University
of the Philippines System will bring their university education
to the remotest areas in the country as public school teachers under
the Gurong Pahinungod program.
Now on its 7th year of implementation, this program is the result
of a partnership between UP and the Department of Education (DepEd)
which
assists underserved schools by sending UP graduates to work as full-time
teachers for at least one school year.
The volunteers or the Gurong Pahinungod
(GP), as they are officially called, come from the different constituent
units of UP in Diliman,
Manila, Baguio, Los Baños, Visayas, and Mindanao. They will
be deployed to sixteen different public schools in provinces like,
Benguet, Masbate, Maguindanao, and Agusan del Sur. Aside from teaching
in the classrooms, the GPs are expected to initiate community projects
in their areas.
According to Professor Vic Villanueva,
GP-Diliman coordinator, most of the schools where the GPs will serve
are annex high schools. “Being
annex high schools usually means that they are far away from the local
DepEd authorities, seldom supervised, and more under resourced compared
to the national high schools. And teachers (from those provinces) have
less access to training.”
He added that while one of the immediate
problems of the country’s
educational system is the lack of teachers, the GP program is more
than just a stopgap measure. “The GPs do not just fill vacant
slots. They are UP and DepEd’s channel for the development of
the schools and communities. Their involvement in this environment
allows us to see the actual situations in the schools,” said
Villanueva. “We learn more about the learning culture—how
the students learn, what they need to learn. These are a lot of insights
for educational development which are particularly useful for the UP
College of Education as well as DepEd in training other teachers.”
Before the GPs were deployed, they attended an intensive preparation
program where they were trained in new and effective teaching techniques
as well as community development. This batch of GPs also attended
reading remediation seminars in order to address the documented reading
needs
of public high school students.
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