Officer-in-Charge, Office of the Vice President for the Ateneo Professional Schools (Memo U2122-067)

Memo to        :           The University Community

Subject           :           Officer-in-Charge
                                    Office of the Vice President for the Ateneo Professional Schools

I wish to inform the community that Dr John Paul C Vergara will complete his term as Vice President for the Ateneo Professional Schools (VP-APS) on 31 May 2022 after serving a 3-year term.

In view of the direction to study the possibility of a Higher Education structure that would entail the integration of the Loyola Schools (LS) and the Ateneo Professional Schools (APS), I have determined that it would be beneficial to have the VP-LS serve as Officer-in-Charge (OIC) of the Office of the VP-APS as well.

Hence, I have requested Dr Maria Luz C Vilches to be OIC of the APS from 1 June 2022 to 31 May 2023 concurrent with her post as VP-LS in the same school year.

Dr Vilches’ being OIC of APS will greatly help in shepherding the alignment of structures and processes between LS and the APS that we hope to carry out during the SY 2022-2023 transition period. Moreover, with the ongoing functional reorganization which will transfer the supervision of administrative support offices (Facilities Management, Human Resources, Information Technology, Finance, Social Engagement and Formation) from both LS and APS to a respective functional VP in Central Administration, the VP-LS/OIC-APS can now have a better leadership focus on academics – e.g., teaching and learning, research, and internationalization.

I would like to thank Dr Vilches for her Ignatian generosity in accepting this additional responsibility and for her readiness to serve the university community.

We take this opportunity to express our appreciation and gratitude to Dr Vergara for his excellent stewardship of the Professional Schools since 2019. Dr Vergara introduced enhancements in the APS Student Information Systems, strengthened the health governance thrust of APS through the development of public-private partnerships towards greater healthcare access and health equity in the country, and initiated the digital transformation of management information systems within the VPPS office. All this, always in consideration of people management processes that made these changes less daunting to the APS community.

We have a challenging year ahead with the changes that we envision. I continue to trust in the resilience of the university and in the unrelenting support that we have experienced over the years. Dr Vilches will particularly need that support so that she can fulfill the responsibility that she has taken on for the community.