Tag: October 23, 2014

THE UNIVERSITY will establish a committee to focus on the improvement of UST’s standing in the Quacquarelli-Symonds (QS) world university rankings, following its poor showing in recent years.

Maribel Nonato, director of the Office for Research and Innovation (ORI), said Rector Fr. Herminio Dagohoy, O.P. had decided to form a committee of administrators that would synchronize UST’s strategy to achieve better QS results.

“The move of one will certainly affect the other office kaya kailangan parallel, synchronized ang mga [strategies]. Father Rector will be calling a big [meeting with the] lead offices,” Nonato said.

APARENTLY, there are exceptions to the “no master’s degree, no teaching load” policy.

While 87 professors and instructors without Master of Arts (MA) and Master of Science (MS) degrees have been retired to comply with the minimum requirement of the Commission on Higher Education (CHEd) that UST has implemented since 2010, a few others without higher degrees were allowed to stay. UST gave consideration to faculty members teaching “skill-based” courses, according to Secretary General Fr. Winston Cabading, O.P.

POPE Francis has appointed UST Vice Chancellor Fr. Gerard Francisco Timoner III, O.P. as the lone representative of the Philippines to the International Theological Commission.

Timoner, prior provincial of the Dominican Province of the Philippines, was chosen along with 29 other theologians from different countries last Sept. 23. The new members of the commission will serve for five years, from December 2014 to 2019.

The International Theological Commission advises the Vatican’s Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith in the in-depth study of Church doctrines. It was established by Pope Paul VI on April 11, 1969.

THOMASIANS emerged as topnotchers in three state licensure examinations in September, although UST recorded lower passing rates in medical technology and electronics engineering.

UST slipped to 10th place in the medical technology board exams after posting a 93.30-percent passing rate, with 209 passing the test out of 224 examinees, results from the Professional Regulation Commission (PRC) showed.

UST was the top-performing school in the medical technology boards in 2010, but slid to third place in 2011. It ranked second in 2012. Last year, UST plunged to eighth place after recording a 95.19-percent passing rate, equivalent to 277 passers out of 291 examinees.

HALOS isandaang libong piso ang ibinigay ng Unibersidad sa Dominican Province of the Philippines (DPP) bilang tulong sa mga Dominiko na nasa Iraq na naiipit sa karahasang dulot ng teroristang Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS).

Sa pamamagitan ng Tulong Tomasino Para sa Iraq, isang proyektong sinimulan ng Simbahayan Community Development Office, nagbigay ang UST ng P99,343 noong Okt. 8.

Ayon kay Marielyn Quintana, direktor ng Simbahayan, layunin ng proyektong tumugon sa pangangailangan ng Dominican Sisters of Saint Catherine of Siena-Iraq at ng iba pang mga Dominikong pari at madre roon. “Ang purpose natin is for us to be able to respond to the call of the Dominican nuns and priests who are taking care of the refugees in Iraq,” ani Quintana.

THE University-wide Department of Social Sciences is set to transfer four disciplines to a number of colleges, to promote specialization and strengthen faculty affiliation.

General psychology will be under the Department of Psychology in the College of Science and will be headed by Claudette Agnes, while socio-anthropology will be transferred to the Department of Sociology of the Faculty of Arts and Letters (Artlets) and will be headed by Josephine Placido.Economics, taxation, and agrarian reform as well as Philippine government and Constitution will also be moved to the Artlets-based departments of Economics and Political Science, respectively.

THE UST Graduate School has introduced a master’s degree in occupational therapy (OT) to meet the growing demand for higher studies in the field.

Dean Marilu Madrunio said the new program was initiated by College of Rehabilitation Sciences Dean Cheryl Peralta, who serves as program leader for the health sciences cluster of the Graduate School.

“It was through her that the feasibility study was made, which revealed that more than 90 percent of occupational therapy graduates expressed their desire to pursue a master’s degree,” Madrunio said in an interview with the Varsitarian.

Twelve students enrolled in the program this semester.

THE UST Faculty Union (USTFU) has given back P10 million in excess funds to its members, covering union dues collected since 2010. USTFU President Dr. George Lim said the savings were distributed because the union had “enough funds.”

“The P10 million is only what we saved during our term of office,” he said in an interview with the Varsitarian.

The distribution of the fund began last Oct. 10, with union members claiming their checks from their respective faculty club presidents after accomplishing a membership identification form.

The distribution of checks to retired professors began last Oct. 15 at the USTFU office.

THE CENTRAL Student Council (CSC) has introduced a new form for student complaints against fellow students, faculty members, administrators, support staff, and organizations.

The “STRAW Form,” launched during the Students’ Rights and Awareness Week (STRAW) held Oct. 20-24, can be obtained online or from the CSC office, the Office for Student Affairs (OSA), and college student councils. The form must be enclosed in an envelope and submitted in drop boxes at the OSA and council offices.

According to the project proposal, the presidents of CSC and the college student council will represent the complainant in investigations. Complainants may seek the assistance of a lawyer.

FACULTY of Civil Law Dean Nilo Divina has called on students to raise their “concerns” directly to his office or to the student council, in response to anonymous posts on Facebook.

Divina released an open letter last Sept. 19 through the Civil Law Student Council’s official Facebook page, addressing students who had anonymously vented “their frustrations and disappointments with the [faculty], its professors, or fellow students” on pages such as “UST Law Files.”