Tag: July 6, 2013

THE COURT of Appeals overturned the ruling of a Manila trial court against UST and stopped the private firm operating the multi-deck UST carpark from negotiating new lease contracts for commercial spaces in the structure.

Selegna Holdings Corp. has elevated the case to the Supreme Court via a petition for review.

“Of course, we will oppose the petition because we believe it is without merit,” Faculty of Civil Law Dean Nilo Divina, whose law firm represents UST, said.

METROPOLITAN Manila Development Authority (MMDA) Chairman Francis Tolentino and his flood control team have opened a new office across the University’s main gate on España so as to effectively respond to traffic and flooding problems.

The MMDA monitoring center officially opened last June 25. It is located on the third floor of Brickly 1 dormitory, a three-story private building on España Boulevard and Centro Street.

In an interview with the Varsitarian, Tolentino said they would be staying in the monitoring center until December when monsoon season ends.

THE UNIVERSITY’s freshmen enrollment for this academic year has declined by 10 percent, records from the Office of the Registrar show.

The University has admitted 12,026 freshmen as of June 20, a 10.28-percent drop from last year’s 13,490.

This year, a total of 42,271 were enrolled in the University, a 7.22-percent cut from last year’s 45,564.

Office for Admissions Director Marie Ann Vargas said the downward adjustment was done on purpose in order to improve the quality of education.

“The target now is quality [education] ,” she said.

"We would like to make sure that the classrooms are not overcrowded so we set certain limits for students per class.”

AN ENGINEERING student lost her spare tire last June 6 while her car was in the carpark.

In a report filed with the Sampaloc station of the Manila Police District, Bernadeth Cui, a Mechanical Engineering senior, said she discovered her tire was missing at 5:10 p.m. from her Mitsubishi Adventure.

Spartan Security Agency, Inc., denied Cui’s claim, saying there was no record of her vehicle having a spare tire.

“Based on the information I gathered, there has no record of spare tire. We strictly monitor the spare tire of those vehicles entering the carpark,” wrote security officer Roberto Mosende in his incident report.

THE NEXT time you take an exam, it might be on your mobile phone.

The Education Technology Center (EdTech) launched a mobile version of the Blackboard Mobile Learning Application early this month, commonly known by Thomasians as Electronic Learning Access Program or “e-LeAP.”

Leonid Lintag, Technology and Infrastructure manager of EdTech, said adopting the application because of the increasing number of smartphone users.

“[Ang] mobile, kahit saan ka magpunta, dala-dala mo. Nowadays halos lahat ng estudyante naka-smartphone na. [At] halos lahat ng lugar, may Internet na,” he said.

THE UNIVERSITY’S National Service Training Program (NSTP) Office has cried foul over the proposed revival of the mandatory Reserve Officers’ Training Corps (ROTC) for college students.

The proposal has been made by Defense Secretary Voltaire Gazmin to increase the number of military reservists.

But mandatory ROTC “would deprive students of their right to choose,” said UST-NSTP Moderator Jose Ricarte Origenes.

“The said measure would deprive the students of their right to choose which type of (national) service they would want to perform -- military, civic or literacy (training),” Origenes said in an e-mail to the Varsitarian.

MASYADO na nga bang maraming magkakaparehong student organizations sa Unibersidad?

Ayon kay Antonio Chua, direktor ng Student Welfare and Development Board, mahigit kumulang 30 ang mga organisasyon ng mga mag-aaral sa Unibersidad.

Dagdag pa ni Chua, sinisigurado naman ng Office for Student Affairs (OSA) na hindi magkakapareho ang mga layunin ng mga organisasyong nais magpa-recognize. “Otherwise, we will just recommend that they merge or we will not recognize them and tell them to join this organization because they have the same purpose,” aniya.

A GIANT “dustpan” designed by two Thomasians could be the solution to the seemingly endless pollution problems in Manila Bay.

Two Electronics Engineering (ECE) students won the Metropolitan Manila Development Authority’s (MMDA) Manila Bay Cleanup Competition last June 21 for their simple yet innovative design to clear the thickly polluted Manila Bay.

The winning design of ECE seniors John Beljoe Abao and Ariel Manalaysay involved the construction of V-shaped seawalls along the bay.

A concrete tube, situated in the middle of the V-shaped structure, would serve as the filter and lead to an underground containment tank, where all the litter would be stored. This structure would use the bay’s waves to push garbage into the seawall.

THE UNIVERSITY’S new deans—Jesus Valencia of the Faculty of Medicine, Marilu Madrunio of the Graduate School and Ma. Elena Manansala of the Faculty of Pharmacy—have pledged to raise academic standards.

The new college heads will be evaluated for a year before they can be appointed for a full three-year term, according to the Office of Academic Affairs.

Valencia, previously the Medical Education department chair, said he will continue the programs and policies of past administrations to uphold excellence in Medicine education.

THE UNIVERSITY administration and nearby communities around the campus have formed themselves into a citizens’ watchdog group to check crimes in the Sampaloc district.

The Sampaloc-UST Neighborhood Watch was formed on the initiative of UST last June 27, said Fr. Manuel Roux, O.P., vice rector for finance.

The association consists of school and business leaders, police officers, and barangay sentries around España Boulevard, Lacson Avenue, and P. Noval and Dapitan Streets.

It aims to provide safety and security for Thomasians in and around the campus.