LS Faculty Day: Reimagining the next possible

Loyola Schools (LS) administrators and faculty members virtually convened on 24 February for Faculty Day. The gathering celebrated the start of the second semester. With the theme “Hakbang: Addressing the Present, Reimagining the Next Possible,” the special day touched on the LS community’s ability to transition and move forward.

Dr Maria Luz C Vilches, Vice-President for the Loyola Schools, shared the latest developments on campus, from the resumption of limited face-to-face classes to granting Level III accreditation for the school’s 73 graduate programs by the Philippine Accrediting Association of Schools, Colleges, and Universities (PAASCU). In addition, several undergraduate programs will be up for resurvey of PAASCU accreditation in April. Dr Vilches also spoke on the increase of research and scientific publications of LS faculty members. She expressed hope, enthusiasm, and gratitude for the community’s willingness to pilot and flesh out the University’s Lux in Domino Strategic Plan 2030. 

“We need to look not only internally but also externally to the bigger society to understand better how we can make our plan our own,” she said. 

University President Fr Roberto C Yap SJ gave depth to the strategic plan, drilling down into its 4 strategic areas: education reform and transformation, integral ecology, universal health and well-being, and bridging the cultural divide. The university, he said, will be a “collaborative and engaged leader in the work of social transformation through education, formation, research, and social engagement.”

In light of the upcoming national elections, Professor Victor Andres C Manhit, C.E.O. and Managing Director of Philippine Stratbase Consultancy, Inc., gave an overview of the national survey results on voter preference the importance of combating fake news and disinformation during elections.