June 2022

UST Passing Rate: 61.54%

National Passing Rate: 35.63%

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Anne Marydon V. Lariosa

1^st – 81%

Physical Therapist Licensure Examination

June 2022

UST Passing Rate: 100%

National Passing Rate: 54.65%

Certified Public Accountant Licensure Examination

May 2022

UST Passing Rate: 41.24%

National Passing Rate: 22.29%

Nurse Licensure Examination

May 2022

UST Passing Rate: 100%

National Passing Rate: 68%

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Francheska Nicole L. Chua

10^th – 87.40%

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The post Topnotchers – June 2022 appeared first on University of Santo Tomas.

He was welcomed by the UST Office of Public Affairs Director Asst. Prof. Joreen T. Rocamora, Ph.D., and representatives from the Faculty of Engineering, including the Regent Fr. Roberto Luanzon, Jr., O.P.

Engr. Corpas was accompanied during the visit by Industrial Engineering alumna Engr. Elvira Arceo. After a tour of the campus and the Museum, they met with the Engineering International Relations and Programs Coordinator Engr. Angelito A. Silverio, Ph.D., and the Industry, Government, Academe, and Alumni Relations Program Coordinator Engr. Charlie A. Marquez.

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Assoc. Prof. Luděk Hynčík, Ph.D., Vice-Rector for Research and Development of the University of West Bohemia in the Czech Republic visited the University of Santo Tomas on June 14, 2022.

He was welcomed by UST Office of Public Affairs Director Asst. Prof. Joreen T. Rocamora, Ph.D., joined by UST Vice-Rector for Academic Affairs Prof. Cheryl Peralta, DrPH, and UST OIR­P Associate Director Prof. Karen Santiago, Ph.D.

Dr. Hynčík met with Executive Assistant for Research Operations and Management Prof. Cecilia Moran, Dr.rer.nat., Research Center for the Natural Sciences and Applied Sciences (RCNAS) Director Prof. Bernard Tongol, Ph.D., Research Center for the Health Sciences (RCHS) Chief Program Officer Prof. Consuelo G. Suarez, MD, Ph.D., Dr. Peralta, and Dr. Santiago for possible collaborations. His visit also included a tour of the UST Museum.

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Former AB Community Development Coordinator, Asst. Prof. Ronald Castillo, and current AB Faculty Secretary, Asst. Prof. Ma. Zenia Rodriguez, were the speakers at the opening and closing webinars of Dunong Tomas. Both hailing from the UST Department of Political Science, each provided strategic topics for both ends of the advocacy.

The opening of Dunong Tomas equipped voters with the ABCs of voting. Rodriguez spoke on evaluating candidates while Castillo undertook the topic of political discourse.

For the closing webinar, it featured themes on post-election reform, vigilance, and social responsibility, in which Castillo focused on institutions and what needs to be fixed in Philippine democracy, while Rodriguez discussed civic and political consciousness.

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To be published next year by the UST Publishing House (UST PH) is Pascual’s latest translation into Filipino of Hidalgo, her Tales for a Rainy Night (1993) under the title Mga Kuwentong Bayan para sa Gabing Maulan.

His translations of her Where Only the Moon Rages (1994) as Sa Bayan ng Nagngangalit na Buwan, and Ballad of a Lost Season (1987) as Kundiman ng Panahong Naiwan, were published by UST PH in July 2021, while the Filipino version of Catch a Falling Star (1999) was released by Lampara Publishing House in September 2021.

Pascual is an awarded essayist, fictionist, and literary critic. He teaches literature and creative writing at the UST Graduate School and Faculty of Arts and Letters. He has written 13 books and co-edited many anthologies.

Hidalgo, who is the Center’s director, is a pioneer in the writing, teaching, and promotion of the creative nonfiction (CNF) genre in the Philippines. She has published over 40 books of fiction, CNF, and literary criticism.


The significance of memory in literature

Pascual, long a fan of Hidalgo’s works, said he chose to translate her books and make them accessible to to a wider Filipino audience because he believes they are a significant reminder of the importance of memory and narrative in literature toward the shaping of a nationalistic and feminist social identity.

“Binabasa ko talaga si Ma’am Jing [Hidalgo’s nickname] dati pa,” Pascual said. “At formative din ang mga kuwento niya sa akin bilang manunulat, kaya karangalan ko nang pumayag siyang isalin ko ang mga akda niya sa Filipino.”

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In a critical essay for the UST PH translations, he wrote: “Sa kabuuan, maaaring ilarawan ang mga akda ni Hidalgo bilang makabayan, makababae, at eksperimental… Ngunit marahil, ang pinakahamahalagang kontribusyon ni Hidalgo ay ang pagpapahalaga sa gunita, ang walang tigil niyang pagpapaalala na dapat tayong umalala, at huwag na huwag makakalimot–sa mga kuwento ng kababaihan, sa mga kuwento ng bayan.”

[Overall, Hidalgo’s works may be described as nationalistic, feminist, and experimental
But perhaps the most important contributions of Hidalgo are the value she places on memory and her constant reminders that we should always remember and never ever forget – the stories of women, the stories of the nation.]

Pascual wrote Kumpisal: Mga Kuwento (UST PH, 2015), Pagpasok sa Eksena: Ang Sinehan sa Panitikan at Pag-aaral ng Piling Sinehan sa Recto (UP Press, 2016), Ang Nawawala (Visprint Inc., 2017), and a translation of Miguel Syjuco’s 2010 novel Ilustrado (UST PH, 2022), among others.

His forthcoming titles this year are Bayan ng mga Bangkay, a horror/crime short story collection (UP Press), and two volumes of the Maramihan anthologies co-edited with Dr. Rolando Tolentino (Ateneo de Manila University Press).

Pascual has won many awards, among them the Dangal ng UST Gawad San Alberto Magno for Best Book and Best Published Research in 2019 and Best Creative Work in 2017;Ìęand Best Book of Short Fiction in Filipino, National Book Development Board/Manila Critics Circle 2018 National Book Awards for Ang Nawawala.

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@cccruz@ust.edu.ph maybe we can just keep the original tagalog quoted text.

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If I recall correctly po, anything longer than a sentence (that isn’t a story/poem excerpt) has to be translated into English po. Previously, when Tagalog comments were paragraphs long, we just kept the English ver. and indicated that it was originally said in Filipino (e.g. [English translation], X commented in Filipino.)

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Since the contemporary design style in the Walled City is inspired by the Spanish-era colonial style, little is known about the architecture of the district after the Spanish occupation. With this, the exhibition is an attempt to shed light on the district’s architecture focusing on the beginning of the 20^th Century. It is important to note that architectural gems during this time were mostly destroyed during the Second World War, except for the San Agustin Church.

The exhibit, which is based on a book that is currently in development, aims to bridge the gap in the understanding and appreciation of Intramuros’ unique character and stylistic identity by the end of the Spanish colonial regime. The exhibit is divided into two major parts: Housing the People, which explores the Bahay na Bato, its indigeneity, as well as its place as the prevailing architecture of Intramuros; and Housing God and King, which presents how power and dominance is projected in the churches, state buildings, palaces, and the fortifications of the Walled City .

Prince Wico is a Class of 2021 graduate from the University of Santo Tomas College of Architecture, and as an emerging professional in heritage work, he promotes the importance of contemporary innovation in the treatment of historic fabric.

Rancho Arcilla currently heads the Archives of the Intramuros Administration in Manila. Concurrent to this position, he also serves at the panel of the Intramuros Technical Committee on Architectural Standards, the review board of IA on all matters of new constructions in Intramuros. He has an MA in Philippine Studies from the University of the Philippines Diliman and a BA in Asian Studies from the University of Santo Tomas.

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The first episode of the Center’s official podcast was aired in August 2020 and featured Edgar Calabia Samar, who discussed his novel Teorya ng Unang Panahon.

Among the show’s other guests have been playwright Rody Vera, scriptwriter Ricky Lee, poet and TV personality Lourd de Veyra, poet and novelist Mookie Katigbak-Lacuesta, historian and writer Ambeth Ocampo, fictionist Eliza Victoria, and actor Mae Paner.

CCWLS Director Professor Emeritus Cristina Pantoja Hidalgo, Ph.D., is proud of what the ‘USTinig’ team has achieved in terms of the quality of its content. “It is several notches above much stuff that is on the ‘Net,” she said. “Its content is original and engaging, and the team has tried to give it popular appeal.”

Feedspot.com, in its May 29, 2022 ranking of best writing podcasts, places ‘USTinig’ at #13 among “thousands of podcasts on the web ranked by traffic, social media followers, domain authority, and freshness.” Metroscenemag.com last year included the show among its choice of five local podcasts on literature.

Show format, hit episodes

‘USTinig,’ hosted by creative writing instructor Mr. Jose Mojica, has two types of episodes: ‘RTs’ or Reading Texts, which features a creative work such as a book, play, or movie, and the author reading an excerpt; and ‘DMs’ or Discussion Matters, which is a conversation with a writer about their work, writing process, and other topics related to creative writing.

In 2021, a lively and engaging segment hosted by Asst. Prof. Dawn Marfil-Burris was added to the show. The other segments are the “USTinig Questionnaire,” patterned after Vanity Fair’s Proust Questionnaire, and “Save, Edit, and Delete,” where the guest is asked their opinion about a popular cultural product or phenomenon and asked whether they will save (the best), edit (“puwede na”), or delete (below par).

Among the ‘USTinig’ episodes that were the most popular with online audiences was Episode 20 that aired in March 2022, an RT featuring Jhoanna Lynn Cruz, who penned the memoir Abi Nako or So I Thought, an important contribution to Philippine queer literature.

Podcast team members are UST homegrown talents

The ‘USTinig’ team comprises Mr. Jose Mojica (host and technical team head), Asst. Prof. Dawn Marfil-Burris (segment host & producer), Asst. Prof. Paul Castillo (producer), and Assoc. Prof. Chuckberry Pascual, Ph.D. (producer).

Assisting them are the technical team members who create posters, audio trailers, video trailers, and edit the entire episode. For the premiere episode, these were UST Department of Literature faculty members Kimberly Nicole Panis and Francis Rae Quilanting.

For the succeeding episodes, the tech team was composed of UST Communication Arts majors, who do the work as part of their on-the-job training. The current tech team members are Korina Dela Cruz, Thea Flores, Ry Philip Jaco Galvan, Maxine Joaquin, Patricia Logina, and Joshua Miguel Rivero.

The show’s name comes from a spoken word album released by the UST Creative Writing Center under Prof. Ophelia Dimalanta, which features herself and UST faculty and alumni Vim Nadera, F. Sionil Jose, Cirilo Bautista, Lourd de Veyra, Ramil Gulle, Michael Coroza, J. Neil Garcia, Nerisa del Carmen Guevara, and Lito Zulueta.

Catch ‘USTinig’ on Spotify, Anchor, Google, and Apple podcasts:

1. https://spoti.fi/37QKuAh
2. https://apple.co/33L5Dd7
3. https://bit.ly/2JNeRye

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UST Rector Very Rev. Fr. Richard G. Ang, O.P., Ph.D., in his opening remarks, greeted USTAA and welcomed them as the newest addition to the growing number of Thomasian alumni associations around the globe.

“UST Alumni Australia is poised to distinguish itself as a dynamic and robust organization of professionals which will inspire our students and alumni of the university to look back with pride in their roots,” said Fr. Ang, adding that their enthusiasm for projects and activities will surely provide the impetus to bring all Thomasian alumni closer to the University.

Ambassador of the Philippines to Australia Her Excellency Ma. Hellen B. De La Vega, in her inspirational message, praised USTAA’s effort in establishing and uniting such a diverse group during the pandemic. The association has members from different states of Australia such as New South Wales, ACT, Victoria, Queensland, Western Australia, and South Australia.

“Less than 6 months in their existence as a community organization, the women and men behind UST Alumni Australia, under the great leadership of Ms. Benjie de Ubago, have demonstrated their strong resolve to live and spread the Thomasian core values of competence, commitment, and compassion especially as we face today’s global challenges,” said Ambassador De La Vega, ending her speech with declaring herself as a proud Thomasian Asian Studies alumna.

More prominent Thomasian alumni such as John Lapus, Christian Esguerra, and Miriam Quiambao, joined the celebration and left a few words of inspiration for the group. The virtual concert also featured the performances of music legend Nonoy Zuniga, pianist Hildegarde Palafox-Mendoza, balladeer Jun Polistico, and performer Rie Manaloto.

The program ended with the USTAA President Ms. Benjie de Ubago extending her sincerest gratitude to the people who supported the association’s journey. She invited everyone to join them in their upcoming activities and projects.

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Held from June 13 to 22, 2022 via Zoom, this is the third time that the UST NWW was held online. Abad has been a stalwart of the workshop for years now.

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This year’s writing fellows were:

• For the SHORT STORY: Larissa Mae Suarez (Quezon City, UP Diliman) and Reil Benedict Obinque (Davao City, Ateneo de Davao)
• For MAIKLING KUWENTO: Carla Mortel Baricaua (Caloocan, UP Diliman) and Jerwin Bilale Uy (Manila, UP Diliman)
• For POETRY: Jessie Raymundo (Muntinglupa, DLSU), Karl Ren Lalas (Pangasinan, St. Louis University). and Cindel Ong (Manila, UST/UP Diliman)
• For TULA: John Christopher DG Lubag (Bulacan, UP Diliman) and Nikki Mae Recto (Valenzuela, PUP)
• For CREATIVE NONFICTION: Linus Van Plata (Laguna, UPLB), Hezekiah Louie Zaraspe (Laguna, UST), and L. A. Piluden (Baguio City, UP Baguio)
• For SANAYSAY: Jason Federigan Pozon (Pasig City, UP Diliman) and Sherald Salamat (Cavite, PUP)
• For the ONE-ACT PLAY/SCREENPLAY: J.M. Gomez (Cagayan de Oro, DLSU) and Zarina Sarapuddin (Laguna, St. Luke’s Medical Center College).

Asst. Prof. Joselito Zulueta was the 2022 workshop director and Asst. Prof. Dawn Marfil Burris the workshop coordinator.

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2022 NWW teaching panel

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The teaching panel comprised CCWLS Director Prof. Cristina Pantoja Hidalgo, PhD; CCWLS Assistant Director Assoc. Prof. Ralph Semino GalĂĄn, Resident Fellows Prof. Augusto Antonio Aguila, PhD; Asst. Prof. Ma. Ailil Alvarez, Mr. Mark Angeles, Asst. Prof. Paul Castillo, Assoc. Prof. Joselito Delos Reyes, PhD; Assoc. Prof. Nerisa del Carmen Guevara, Burris, Mr. Jose Mojica, Asst. Prof. Benedict Parfan, Assoc. Prof. Chuckberry Pascual, PhD; Prof. John Jack Wigley, PhD; and Zulueta, as well as Associate Fellow Asst. Prof. Jenny Ortuoste, PhD.

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In addition to Abad, the other senior guest panelists were University of the Philippines (UP) professors Luna Sicat Cleto, PhD, and Vim Nadera, PhD, as well as acclaimed writer and poet Jerry Gracio. Their participation was made possible through the sponsorship of the UST Varsitarian.

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The 2022 workshop was the 11th since the Center’s revival in 2012, but the 22nd counting the workshops held by the Center’s founding director Ophelia Dimalanta.

The first online NWW – 2020

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The Center was ready to hold the 2020 workshop in June that year in Baguio City as usual, but the Covid-19 pandemic and the subsequent lockdown of the country put a halt to those plans.

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When it became apparent that the pandemic would not disappear soon, the Center’s resident fellows, after much deliberation, decided to hold that year’s workshop online. It was agreed that to hold a virtual workshop would be better than no workshop at all, as the NWW is the Center’s flagship program.

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UST’s 2020 NWW, slated on Nov. 9 to Dec. 2, from 5:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m. daily via Zoom, was the second online workshop to be held in the country after the UP Institute of Creative Writing’s Likhaan. The teaching panel was composed of the Center’s resident fellows and senior guest panelists Abad, Sicat-Cleto, and Gracio.

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The workshop took longer than a month because in the midst of it a typhoon hit Manila, knocking down power lines and wreaking havoc on already unstable internet connections. Despite these challenges, the workshop was a success.

The second online NWW – 2021

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With more experience holding online events under their belt, the resident fellows of the Center decided to hold the 2021 NWW on Zoom again from June 14 to July 2.

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While the opportunity to fellowship with each other face to face was still not an option, given pandemic restrictions, holding the Zoom online “democratized” the workshop. Pascual and Castillo, workshop director and coordinator respectively, said over 50 of the 103 applicants of the 2021 workshop were from the country’s other regions. Of the 12 fellows, seven were based outside of NCR.

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According to 2021 writing fellow Chuck Smith, “This opened the UST workshop to a wider range of voices and critical perspectives. A writer with a laptop or mobile phone and an internet connection can apply to join the workshop now, with distance and money not as big a concern as it was during its physical iterations.”

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The online sessions were no less thorough and critical than the physical workshops. Smith said, “For essayist Wigley, a good literary work is one that doesn’t buckle or hesitate when revealing its truth and its insight. Fictionist Joselito delos Reyes highlighted the importance of telling a story without the frills and pretentiousness.”

Other members of the teaching panel that year included Hidalgo, Galan, Parfan, Zulueta, and Mojica, with Abad, Sicat Cleto, and Gracio joining again as senior guest panelists courtesy of The Varsitarian, UST’s official student paper.

Smith also wrote: “Hidalgo, author of numerous books of fiction, nonfiction and criticism, cautioned writers that creative nonfiction—a genre that is often defined as ‘true stories, well told’—is not an excuse to be ‘sloppy
The piece of creative nonfiction should be as artful as fiction
We expect it to say something. Meaning, it should not be just ‘kuwentuhan.’ It should be ‘kuwento.’ It has to have a point.’”

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2022 NWW

As the Center held its third year of holding the NWW online with writing fellows from all over the country, Hidalgo said it remains committed to sustaining its flagship project in the coming years to develop and encourage emerging writers and contribute to the growth of Philippine literature.

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Together with the Embassies of Belgium, Czech Republic, Germany (and the German Academic Exchange Service), Ireland, Spain (and Instituto Cervantes), France (and Alliance Française), Italy (and the Philippine-Italian Association), Austria, Poland, and UST through the Office of Public Affairs, the European Union Delegation to the Philippines set the theme “Pagkakaisa, Pag-asa” (Togetherness, Hope) for the international event. The festival is part of the Viva Europa cultural program, in commemoration of Europe Day, which took place on May 9.

Deputy Head of the EU Delegation to the Philippines Dr. Ana Sanchez Ruiz said in her opening remarks that Bersong EuroPinoy is a “festival of the richness and diversity of the European and Filipino languages, which brings to you the passion beneath 15 literary gems revered by European readers and Filipino poets. Poetry mirrors life, nurtures friendship and compassion, saves our core beings, our souls, emotions, and our identities.”

UST Secretary-General Rev. Fr. Louie R. Coronel, O.P., EHL, called the program “a celebration of oneness, which bridges the east and the west, and brings a message of hope to every nation. We may be thousands of miles apart, but we feel and think as unified citizens of this world. We dream for our sustainable and peaceful future, and we hope for harmony in our social relationship with all our brothers and sisters as stewards of God’s creation.”

UST academic staff Asst. Prof. Joselito delos Reyes, Ph.D., recited “Ang Init Na ‘to”; UST PH Assistant Director Asst. Prof. Ned Parfan presented “The Waves”; Asst. Prof. Paul Castillo delivered “Para Lang Sa Langit”; and Assoc. Prof. Nerisa del Carmen Guevara presented “How to talk to the Dead in the Garden.”

Diplomats and representatives from the Embassies of Belgium, Czech Republic, Germany and the German Academic Exchange Service, Ireland, Spain and the Instituto Cervantes Manila, France, Italy and the Philippine Italian Association, Austria, and Poland recited poems in their original languages with English subtitles.ÌęÌę

Included in the presentations were: “Tree of Justice” by FrantiĆĄek NovotnĆ· (recited by Dalibor Mička, Deputy Head of Mission, Embassy of the Czech Republic); “Hope” by Freidrich Schiller (recited by Dr. Monica Fröhlich, German Academic Exchange Service); “When all the others were away at Mass” by Seamus Heaney (recited by Irish Ambassador to the Philippines H.E. William Carlos); “Wild Swans” by William Butler Yeats (recited by Brian McCrohan, Deputy Head of Mission, Embassy of Ireland); Variaciones Sobre El Instante Eterno (The Eternal Instant) by Jose Hierro (recited by Professor Carmen Ruiz de Apodaca, Instituto Cervantes Manila); LibertĂ© by Paul Eluard (recited by students from the French School Manila); Un Adesso Immenso (Immense Now), by Filippo Balestra (recited by himself with audio-visual rendition by Alessio Bertallot); Amo (Love) by Grazia Deledda (recited by Cristina Morrica, Philippine-Italian Association); An Mauern Hin (Along Walls) by Georg Trakl (recited by Tajana Platzer, Embassy of Austria); and Stepy Akermanskie (The Akkerman Steppe) by Adam Mickiewicz (recited by the ChargĂ© d’affaires a.i. Mr. JarosƂaw Roman Szczepankiewicz, Embassy of Poland).

A special presentation of “Doordeweeks” (On Weekdays) was recited by its author, the poet Mustafa Kör, who is the 5th Poet Laureate (National Poet) of Belgium.

The UST Singers, two-time winners of the Luciano Pavarotti Choir of the World trophy, delighted the audience of students and diplomats from Europe and the Philippines with song renditions.

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