First of all, I’d like to congratulate the Class of 2022, Cluster 3 COLLEGE OF ENGINEERING! YOU ARE FINALLY HERE! I am so elated that we have come to this most awaited time!
Dear graduates, today you are about to embark in the liminal space, on the precipice of transitioning out of one period of time and into something new. You are still technically not there yet, but you are about to journey on your path to unlocking your own doors.
As you stand on the brink of moving into a life beyond the door and gates of Camarines Sur Polytechnic Colleges, change is inevitable. It could even be practically overwhelming. It is certainly gratifying to see that you, our Graduating Class of 2022 has matured and became skills-proficient, prepared to tackle and further your lives in your chosen fields of profession.
Without a doubt, you will face new obstacles and it is inexorable that things may seem a little different in the years ahead. Life will definitely be a little “shaken up and stirred.” During your stay in CSPC, your Alma Mater has nurtured and protected you. You have been cloistered and sheltered. But as you step out the portals of our beloved institution, you will grapple with reality. And in doing that, you will be on your own. You will need to contend with a world that is Volatile, Uncertain, Complex, and Ambiguous. This VUCA world has even become more challenging because of the pandemic that has brought forth a host of new obstacles. More importantly, your batch will soon face the difficulties of a new phase of global revolution which is Industrial 5.0.
This year’s Commencement Exercises is guided with the theme: “Resilient Graduates: Striving and Excelling as Shapers of a Post-Pandemic Future.” Beautiful, isn’t it?
The future can be a cornucopia of doubts and uncertainties but, CSPC honed you to exhibit RESILIENCY. To become responsible, global citizens and shapers of the future society.
With the increasing mobility in the higher education arena, CSPC has its very own “PANDEMIC PRESIDENT”. An alias next to my name when I began my term as President on July 10, 2019 after having been announced that we are facing a global pandemic crisis. Being a pandemic president is a first, which is not only felt in our institution but across the other SUCs and HEIs in the educational spectrum. In fact, during this term, we have encountered a number of firsts. You are probably wondering where those two years have gone by? It doesn’t seem long ago that you were just about to graduate as the pioneer senior high school students and would be entering college. You have waited for this time to come.
The roadmap to being proclaimed as the Polytechnic State University of Bicol served as a blueprint to the many firsts here in our beloved institution. This has been the core point of where we should go—on what door we should enter in carving our niche towards our path to achieving excellence yet contributing to transformation. Let me bring you to the specifics of the salient and remarkable accolades we had for the past two years.
The endless pursuit for excellent and transformative education is fueled by the Act converting CSPC to PSUB with requisites for its implementation. As a polytechnic university for higher education, the roadmap for 2019-2028 was crafted to become that unifying thread to determine the strategic plan to achieve the College’s vision to provide the best polytechnic education and beyond.
But more than these, to become a SMART POLYTECHNIC UNIVERSITY.
We are bustling (bus-ling) with numerous recognitions starting off with the Philippine Quality Award (PQA) Recognition for Commitment to Quality Management along with top universities across the country. Our being PQA awardee, is the very first of its kind from among the nine (9) State Universities and colleges in the Bicol region and we are the third among the SUCs in the ENTIRE country where there are 114 other SUCs who were recognized by the National Government. LET’S GIVE A RESOUNDING APPLAUSE FOR THIS AMAZING MILESTONE!
The victorious feat (feet) has been a grueling and nerve-wracking journey with our superb CSPC PowerTeam. With this, we were presented with two resolutions from the Sangguniang Bayan ng Nabua–one as recognition of this nationally-acclaimed award from the Office of the President of the Republic of the Philippines and the other resolution is the recognition of our achievement of being one of the awardees of the Search for Outstanding COVID-19 Volunteers with our Extension Services and endeavors.
In fulfillment of our response to the unprecedented challenge of this pandemic surge (pre and post), we have expanded our means of more options to be offered to you, our dear graduates, in catering to your educational needs with the recently launched PSUB Broadcast Center, one of the major milestones of the College which features the Educational Digital Terrestrial Television Broadcast (DTTB) as the main backbone of the whole operation as a full-fledged Blended Learning Project in addition to the existing Campus Radio. Truly, we are maximizing the available resources of the institution by not only catering to your needs and the needs of your professors, but by other stakeholders of the digital era.
WE REALLY NEVER SETTLE FOR MEDIOCRITY AMIDST THE DESPERATE TIME OF THE COVID-19 PANDEMIC.
The CSPC, through the Center for Gender and Development, was able to distribute 400 learning tablets to marginalized students as well as laptops to the members of the CSPC teaching force. We hope that those 400 who are some if not all, are here today; have been aided and supported by these tablets as learning tools in the course of your learning experience. This is through the initiative of your proactive student-trustee, Mr. Nick B. Namoro! Let’s all give him an astounding, round of applause!
CSPC is extremely amped up with enthusiasm while on the process of being a SMART CAMPUS as we have received Php 24.9-million budget from CHED to upgrade our ICT infrastructure, our Learning Management System (LMS) and computer connectivity assistance for Smart Campuses Development. Our very own College of Computer Studies proponents aim to address the demands of the NEW NORMAL and to bridge the gap of the DIGITAL DIVIDE. Anchored in this is the partnership with the Institutional Development and Innovation Grants (IDIG) which is a continuous collaboration with CHED.
Allow me also to take this opportunity to inform you that just recently we were informed by the Department of Budget and Management (DBM) that our projects are under “For Later Release” because these are projects that are funded through the budget insertion. We are so thankful from the Office of the Senator Pia Cayetano for having initiated this budget to CSPC which amounts to Php 30,895,000 in the increase in carrying capacity of nursing and allied health programs. This, ladies and gentlemen is the budget for a total of 90 plantilla positions to be opened in the College of Health Sciences.
The College has also achieved greater new heights because of the additional programs as it rakes in more enrollees now and in the years to come. Just recently, the College has been evaluated by the Technical Committee for Information Technology (TCIT) of the Commission on Higher Education to offer the programs: Master in Information Technology and Doctor in Information Technology. We are also currently working on getting validated to offer Doctor of Philosophy in Nursing. These are manifestations of how flexible and resilient the Camarines Sur Polytechnic Colleges is.
CSPC has numerous partnership engagements with agencies/institutions. Just to name a few: Department of Science and Technology (DOST), University of the Philippines Los Baños, ULAP.org (which stands for Underrepresented Youth Learning Assistance Program, a Denmark-based non-profit organization) and Camarines Norte State College, Bicol University, Polytechnic University of the Philippines for Adjunct Faculty and many others. We also have a partnership with the Department of Trade and Industry which in fact has offered us a Shared Service Facility which YOU, our dear graduates can utilize. This is a facility that will be supporting young entrepreneurs like you, if you wish to venture in the world of business.
CSPC carries on being globally-competitive and connected with prestigious universities and institutions abroad. Forging collaborations to educational institutions to become partners for faculty and student exchange programs and research endeavors.
Despite the pandemic, CSPC is able to formalize and forge partnerships with higher education institutions from Indonesia, Malaysia, Korea, Denmark, Ukraine and USA. We have actually doubled our number of international partners since 2020. A proof that CSPC is not only trusted by you, our graduates and your parents, but also by the international community. Some of our students have experienced attending virtual classes in Ukraine, India, and soon in the USA where they will be interacting with their foreign classmates and showcasing their skills and ability as they collaborate with their international counterparts.
The Bureau of Immigration has accredited our program offerings and authorized our institution to admit foreign students: a testament that we are ready for the world and an affirmation that our quality of education is excellent and world-class.
CSPC is also a proud member of the Association of Universities in Asia and the Pacific, the University Mobility in Asia and the Pacific, the School’s Network of Southeast Asia Ministers Education Organization and the Global School Alliance which bring impetus to further internationalization of our institution.
CSPC has this dire desire for quality service to you, our dear student-clienteles and of course, in support to your parents and families, as they are your source of inspiration in pushing forward. As the President of this institution, more so, as what many called me the “Pandemic President”, I’d like to ingeminate this mantra. And I’d like you to echo this to your friends, siblings who wish to enter CSPC.
“This degree that you will be getting is your ticket to a good life. To a good future. Cherish it. CSPC has got your back.”
This is one of the many major cobblestones in the path of your life. Oftentimes, you may be finding yourself in a limbo of uncertainties. Though the future holds unforeseeable events but with this concrete plan, the roadmap, our vision—NO MATTER HOW ARDUOUS AND UNCERTAIN THE FUTURE WILL BE, under my leadership WE CAN PREDICT THE FUTURE.
We are in deep awe and pride, especially on my part because as we know this has been the first time during my presidency that the face-to-face ceremonial graduation rites had finally carried on after two years.
Congratulations to all of you on the marvelous job and the well-deserved Latin honors and non-academic awards and accomplishments you have achieved and I wish you joyous moments like this bathed with the fruits of your hard-labored efforts. What a job well done, Batch 2022! I couldn’t be more proud of your achievements in this academic year with the various recognitions and hurdled competitions in the local, regional, national and international levels. To the parents and family, we thank you for trusting us with your children.
On behalf of the whole Camarines Sur Polytechnic Colleges, I wish you a future full of happy coincidences, necessary failures and all of the triumphs in the world.
You may be facing the world on your own but you will face it on a firm and steady ground. You will not be standing alone for you will stand on the shoulders of giants: the encompassing and transcending gift of education honed by a tradition of excellence, handed to you by the great bastion of men and women of CSPC.
You are ready for the world and the world is ready for you!
Congratulations future shapers of the post-pandemic era! We are proud of every single one of you.
Mabuhay tayong lahat! Bagong sinag ng buhay. Bagsihay, CSPC-PSUB!
GOV.PH