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ANAC logo - by Avelino Bautista, Batch 1991

ANAC ng Pisay 2013 A National Alumni Convention of PSHS Sons and Daughters

May 25, 2013

4th Floor Main Building, PSHS Main Campus

Agham Road, Diliman, Quezon City, Philippines

Sponsored by:

Philippine Science High School National Alumni Association,

Inc.

Facilitated and organized by:

ANAC ng Pisay Organizing Committee

Program Committee – Leticia A. Moreno , Head Jonathan A. Flavier, Vida Soraya Verzosa, Cristina Santos Keppler, Carlo A. Subido


Secretariat – Jan Michael B. Espino, Head Sherman Tenorio, Sheila De Yro-Villon Physical Arrangements – Gina Santiago-Eubanas, Head Therese Anne Onchangco-Diaz, Felix Rolex R. Marcelo III, Susan Warren Mercado, Richard Raymund L. Nepomuceno Publicity/Technical Committee – Ernesto C. Boydon, Head Cesar B. Zaldarriaga, Victor David T. Sta. Maria, Mary Rose de la Cruz

Documentation – Benigno A. Agbayani, Head Jocelyn Sanchez Mendoza, Ana Maria A. Chupungco, Edmund Jason G. Baranda Center for Emerging Technologies and Innovations of the Philippines, Inc. A technology business development consultancy firm owned by PSHS alumni members from Batch ‘85

About the ANAC ng Pisay 2013

With the 50th anniversary celebration of Philippine Science High School (PSHS) fast approaching, the

Philippine Science High School System National Alumni Association Inc. (PSHS NAA) convened for the

first time A National Alumni Convention of Philippine Science High School Sons and Daughters (ANAC

ng PISAY) on May 25, 2013. The invited delegates are batch representatives, two per batch, from all

batches in all campuses of the PSHS System.

For the delegates, organizers or convention support team, this document refreshes as about what

we discussed and what we want to do; more than that, we should be reminded of the fire within us

– what our alumni convention tribal leader Doc Iggy has called A-LAB – as we went through the

workshop process and the presentations.

For those who were not able to join the ANAC ng Pisay 2013, this document gives an inside

perspective of what transpired and invites you to connect with the discussion group that resonates

with your interests.

As depicted by the logo of this event, designed by artist-engineer Avelino Bautista of Batch ‘91, we

imagine groups or batches self-organized around their specific circles of excitements, contributing in

various ways to the school and the various campuses, to the association and foundation, to the

scholars, to the staff, or the national and global community.


We are all ANAC ng Pisay with many ways of participating: we can participate in the usual ways, or

we can participate in ways unheard of, the more creative and the more responsive, the better. Just

keep the community posted about what you are planning or doing.

We suggest we start with where we are and build on what we have. Let us, together, share our

stories in the PSHS NAA hub http://pshsnaa.org and meet again during the next alumni activities –

there will be an upcoming Freshman Acquaintance Party especially for incoming PSHS alumni who

will be studying in Metro Manila universities, and we have the National Alumni Homecoming this

September.

We look forward to continue meeting more of you at http://anacngpisay.org and our PSHS NAA hub.

Schedule of activities

Masters of Ceremonies: David Sta. Maria and Dr. Benigno Agbayani, Jr.

Process Starts Ends Facilitator/Speaker

Breakfast, registration and negotiating space 7:30 AM 9:40 AM Dr. Gina Eubanas, Sherman Tenorio, Sheryll Baranda, James Paul Esguerra

Invocation 9:40 AM 9:51 AM Boogie Boydon

Welcome message 9:52 AM 10:11 AM Dr. Josette Biyo

Inspirational speech 10:12 AM 10:54 AM Dr. Rey Vea

Intermission game 10:55 AM 11:18 AM Atty. Vida Soraya Verzosa

http://pshsnaa.org/

http://anacngpisay.org/


Introduction to plenary discussion 11:19 AM 11:24 AM Dr. Jondi Flavier

Plenary session on guiding the PSHS NAA to a more relevant direction

11:25 AM 12:16 PM James Paul H. Esguerra and Edwin dela Torre

Breakout session on indicative themes with working lunch

12:17 PM 3:00 PM NAA Board Members and discussion group facilitators

Intermission game 3:00 PM 3:12 AM Atty. Vida Soraya Verzosa

Plenary session: discussion group presentations

Presentation of Research and Development Group

3:13 PM 3:24 PM James Paul Esguerra

Presentation of 50th Anniversary / Infrastructure Development Group

3:25 PM 3:35 PM Dir. Virginia Andres

Intermission raffle draw 3:35 PM 3:45 PM David Sta Maria

Presentation of Career Development Group

3:46 PM 3:52 PM Jodl Gayatin

Presentation of Alumni Governance Group

3:53 PM 4:02 PM Atty. Celeste Sioson

Presentation of Curriculum / Public Policy Group

4:03 PM 4:17 PM Tito Sarmago

Presentation of Professional Cluster Group

4:18 PM 4:28 PM Mark Posadas

Presentation of Pay It Forward Group 4:29 PM 4:37 PM Rose Chu-Dizon

Presentation of Networking Group 4:38 PM 4:54 PM Edwin Soriano

Raffle draw and awarding of prizes 4:55 PM 5:07 PM David Sta Maria and Atty. Vida Soraya Verzosa

Plenary session: synthesis 5:08 PM 5:12 PM Dr. Benigno Agbayani, Jr. and James Paul Esguerra

Closing message, and induction of 2013 PSHS NAA Board

5:13 PM 5:30 PM Dan Lachica and Dean Rowena Guevara

Thanksgiving fellowship at Trellis 6:00 PM 11:30 PM David Sta. Maria and Zeno Martinez


Breakfast, registration and negotiating space

The registration process starts with providing an ID to the delegates, guests and support teams,

followed by writing the following on metacards:

● Keywords for search engines, an ice-breaker; What they can bring to ANAC; What they

are expecting to get out of ANAC

● A survey was carried out by the PSHS NAA Board showing the following response of the

participants in the ANAC ng Pisay

PREFERRED ALUMNI SERVICES

RANK NUMBER OF RESPONSES

alumni news 4.2 67

alumni directory 4.9 70

networking events 5.6 62

events calendar 6.0 64

community service 6.1 63

career planning 6.7 56

faculty news 6.9 60

providing mentoring 7.9 60

job opportunities 7.9 56

speaker events 8.6 56

job fairs 8.8 54

Others* 9.1 7

receiving mentoring 9.4 56

alumni merchandise 10.0 56

organized trips 10.1 54

group insurance 12.7 55

* - Assistance to alumni in terms of medical referrals/services and/or financial aspects; Recreation, school/student record of excellence in academics; PSHS news/developments


COMMITMENT TO CONTRIBUTION OF TIME, TALENT, OR TREASURE

Number of Respondents

community services 43

organizing events 37

chapter activities 30

mentoring program 32

electronic communications 23

fundraising 22

recruiting members 19

organizing trips 10

MODE OF COMMUNICATION PREFERED

RANK NUMBER OF RESPONSES

Email 1.8 68

Facebook 2.4 63

Website (i.e. alumni hub) 2.8 60

Twitter 4.4 51

SMS (incl Viber, WhatsApp) 4.6 54

LinkedIn 5.5 52

You Tube 5.9 44

Foursquare 7.1 44

Vimeo 7.4 45


Scenes from ANAC. Photos from Facebook uploads.


Photo documentation of delegates and other attendees in wacky pose with their ID and keywords

metacard, as well as the rest of the proceedings, is handled by Jonelo Sobreguel of Batch ‘97.

Natural and creative photography is provided by Dr. Benigno Agbayani, Jr. of Batch ‘82.


The two other metacards are clustered by the technical support team during registration and

presented by the facilitator at the plenary.

Opening Ceremonies

To officially start the conference, Boogie Boydon provided the following invocation:

Let us come into the presence of our almighty God, in the name of the Father, and of the

Son and of the Holy Spirit.

Heavenly Father, we come before you today with gratitude in our hearts. We praise and we

thank you for our national alumni association and for the people who have initiated and

helped make this event possible. Today we have gathered here as sons and daughters of

Pisay in the first of what we hope to be a continuing annual national convention.

Lord, as we approach the golden year of our beloved school, we acknowledge that you have

given us things more precious than gold: our minds, our intelligence, and the knowledge that

you have allowed our minds to absorb.

But today, o Lord God, we ask for another gift, the gift of wisdom. The wisdom to

understand that the intelligence and knowledge you have given us are for naught if they are

not used for your greater glory. That the best use of our gifts is to make use of them for the

service of others, our family, our neighbors, our society, our country.

Lord let the words of our hymn be a guiding thread that will permeate this day's activities. As

our school has given us wings that lent us flight in the sowing of our gifts, may we now learn

to orchestrate the harnessing of our harvests to reap bountiful benefits.

Throughout this day, we ask for your guidance oh God. Yes today's proceedings may just be

a start but we look at it as a small step in a great direction. Generating ripples of awareness

that may eventually create waves of interest, we hope to see all of these propagate into

mighty currents of change, change for the better.

Be with us all throughout the day and enlighten us with your guiding presence. We believe in

ourselves and in our capabilities but we trust in you and in your power more.

All this we ask in Jesus name. Amen.

In the name of the Father, and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, Amen.

The prayer was followed by the singing of the national anthem lead by David Sta. Maria, the Master

of Ceremonies. After the national anthem, four participants (Dir. Gene Andres, Teresa Ongchangco

Diaz, Ana Chupungco and David Sta. Maria) lead the singing of the PSHS Hymn.


Welcome message

Dr. Josette Biyo, PSHS System Executive Director started by tracing the history of Pisay, dating back

to 1965. The PSHS System is the result of the efforts of Dr. Leopoldo V. Torralballa to put up a school

for students gifted in math and science. She notes that the first PSHS valedictorian is Dr. Rey Vea. It

is envisioned that the PSHS system will be the country’s leading science high school to prepare

world-class Filipino scientists dedicated to nation building and be the leading science high school in

Asia in the succeeding years.

Many successes were achieved in the last two years. The school was benchmarked with the best

schools in Asia and established linkages with the best international science schools. The faculty also

underwent various workshops regarding curriculum, in preparation to develop and implement the

six-year curriculum. Their competencies were validated as they train other DepEd teachers.

She then lays out what needs to be done for 2014: faculty and staff development for globally

competitive services; finalization of six year curriculum; alumni tracking to engage them for greater

involvement; upgrading of infrastructure, facilities; construction of three campuses and

establishment of two campuses; research dissemination; and establishing more linkages.

Throughout the years, new campuses have been built and by 2016 – 16 campuses will be in

operation across 16 regions.

Inspirational Speech

Dr. Rey Vea‘s speech focused on marshalling Philippine human resources for science and technology.

He provided information on laws for the establishment of PSHS and support for scholarships,

research and development, and science and technology. He also mentions the establishment of

expanded support as the PSHS system started to expand to more campuses nationwide. He then

summarizes the number of graduates and those that actually pursue a career in science and

technology, be it locally or abroad. With the UNESCO benchmark of 340 research scientists and

engineers per million people, the 90 per million in the Philippines is too low, and the current rate of

producing science/engineering graduates is not enough to reach the desired numbers.

He raised the question of the relevance of PSHS. He explains that the school seems disjointed from

the local realities and context. Once seniors graduate, there seems to be no special track for

specialized growth in undergraduate and graduate courses. Local industries do not have much

absorptive capacity to accommodate graduates who have good skills in science and technology.

However, Dr. Vea asserts that these must not hinder the school effort in honing its students in these

fields.

During the open forum, Dr. Biyo remarked on the question of the relevance of PSHS, citing the

significant number of students from PSHS who take science and technology courses in college

compared to the national average. She also mentions that there are discussions with UP for an


honors’ course, in line with changes in the curriculum. Grades 11 and 12 will be reserved for

specialization on certain fields of science. Upon entering UP, subjects taken for those year levels will

be credited, allowing PSHS alumni to graduate after 4 or 5 years with a masters’ degree in addition

to the undergraduate course they take.

Dr. Vea also reported on the work of the PSHS Foundation and funding programs of PSHS

throughout the years.

Dr. Gina Eubanas raised a question, during the open forum, on the acknowledgment and distribution

of funds being donated in the main campus. It was clarified that alumni from the main campus can

donate to other campuses. Some campuses even have their respective foundations that can be

contacted for coordination. To date, donations and funding has already been earmarked for other

campuses.

Intermission game

Atty. Vida Soraya Verzosa, the game master, led the participants in a Pisay Henyo game. One

representative per team must guess a PSHS-related word in less than 1 minute. The participants

were divided into 5 teams: 1) earliest batches-79; 2) 80-89; 3) 91-99; 4) 00-13 A; and 5) 00-13 B.

Introduction to plenary discussion

Jondi Flavier, PSHS NAA Chairman, welcomed the representatives from different campuses and

batches. He highlights the welcome remarks of Dr. Josette Biyo by recalling that alma mater is Latin

for bountiful mother and how it is becoming even more bountiful as a special science high school for

the entire country. Focusing on the challenge of Dr. Rey Vea to be relevant to what is needed by the

Philippines – he emphasized the need for special tracks after high school, after college, and

graduation.

As alumni and PSHS graduates pursue those special tracks we can be organisms that practice

commensalism, hopefully not too many – becoming parasites, and many more in a symbiotic

relationship with other alumni. This is far from the origin of the word Alumni which is said to be a

Latin noun meaning foster son or pupil and it is derived from the verb alere meaning to nourish or to

feed and support.

It is the objective of the ANAC ng Pisay 2013 to encourage the coming together of PSHS graduates to

nourish and support each other for a more bountiful PSHS, and a better Philippines and global

community.


Plenary session on guiding the PSHS NAA to a more relevant direction

Mr. Esguerra assumed the role of facilitator for the plenary sessions. The session is initiated with a

ritual carried out by Edwin dela Torre who establishes the disposition of sharing space, especially in

terms of being PSHS alumni, a person who must constantly foster and nurture the growth of science

in the country.

James Paul Esguerra then briefly presents the thematized input and output expectations written

during registration. He proceeds to orient participants on Open Space Technology after having them

form a circle. He instructs participants to write the issue that they would like to discuss on

metacards. Then, the plenary assigns the issues to particular themes. After establishing themes, he

asks for volunteers to facilitate the breakout groups. An NAA Board Member is also requested to co-

facilitate and/or document the discussions.

Breakout groups and their respective facilitators are as follows:

Group no.

Group name Facilitators

1 Networking Edwin Soriano

2 Pay It Forward Rose Chu Dizon

3 Professional Cluster Mark Posadas

4 Research and Development Maria Lourdes Dario

5 Curriculum and Public Policy Tito Sarmago

6 Career Development Jodl Gayatin and Atty. Vida Soraya Verzosa

7 Alumni Governance Celeste Sioson

8 50th Anniversary and Infrastructure Development Dir. Gene Andres

The original networking cluster is deemed too big for one discussion group, so the group decides to

divide to three groups, listed as the first 3 groups in the above list.

Research and Development turns out to have no members, so it is assigned to Maria Lourdes Dario

(Batch 85) joined by colleagues at CETI Philippines, facilitators of the conference, and a faculty

member (Ana Maria Chupungco of Batch 83).


Breakout sessions on indicative themes

Breakout groups start their discussions over lunch. They are given freedom on how they would

present their outputs. The technical support team provides assistance on some groups in preparing

their materials, and presentations.

One group, Curriculum and Public Policy, moves out of the auditorium and conducts its discussion in

a classroom nearby.

Intermission game

Before the presentations, Ms. Verzosa requests for representatives from each group to sing

the Filipino version of the PSHS theme, with all the vowels changed to a single vowel.

Presentation of group outputs

1. Presentation of Research and Development Group

Mr. Esguerra presents their output through a mindmap. The group’s key problems are gathering

funds for R&D and providing exposure to students in terms of experience, training, use of

equipment, and engaging the market. To address these issues, they aim to nurture the network of

PSHS, as single coherent linked initiative, to strengthen its R&D capability.

They suggest some strategies. First, consider pooling research funds for junior/senior researches,

teachers’ researches, and for overseas competition. This also includes support on patent

applications. Second, corporate product development and other partnerships can also be considered

to link and nurture bright ideas for research. Third is to provide venues for discussion and

engagement such as a TEDx-Pisay, academic fora, and international science fairs. Fourth,

infrastructure that supports research must be strengthened, such as laboratories and marketing

networks to promote awareness. Lastly, there must also be policies to resolve issues on receiving

and using funds, and protecting research ideas from exploitation.

2. Presentation of 50th Anniversary/ Infrastructure Development Group

Dir. Gene Andres presents their output through a mindmap, edited live by Mr. Esguerra. Her group

frames their discussion towards giving back, particularly with regards to the 50th anniversary

celebration of the PSHS system. They suggest that an organized body will be formed to coordinate all

efforts that would compel participation of alumni such as:

● Building one foundation to manage funding


● 50 names for the 50th – identification of 50 participants from each batch (across campuses)

to attend the anniversary celebration

● Yabang Wall – live updating of the names on the previous item

● Marketing of PSHS alumni achievements

● 8th Gawad Lagablab Awards

● Highlighting the PasChorus as a common tradition across PSHS campuses

3. Presentation of Career Development Group

Jodl Gayatin presents their outputs through a visual concept map and the acronym CLASSIC:

● Career Counselling (Pre-college and Post-college)

○ Alumni volunteers to conduct whole day one-on-one sessions with

graduating students

○ Create a regular “career section” in the newsletter to provide career tips and

announce opportunities

● Leadership and Entrepreneurial Training

○ Provide gap assessment for current pool of alumni in different functions

(e.g. communication for management leadership etc.)

○ Identify alumni who can train on the skill set

○ Establish a regular form for leadership training

○ Establish metrics for tracking success of program

● Active Mentoring

○ Matching of students and younger alumni with more seasoned and

experienced alumni

○ Experience sharing

● Service Obligation

○ Balik-Scientist Program

○ Payback if non-science course

○ Serve in the Philippines either in government or academe or private sector

○ Get research projects patented or published later in journal

● Social Responsibility

○ Gather alumni with similar social inclinations and develop projects together

● Internship

○ Identify students’ interests

○ Match/Develop skills

○ Implement feedback system

○ Create/Follow a specific program or work target

● Collaboration

○ Incorporate suggestions into the program for PSHS career week

○ Create avenues for discussions between current students and professionals


4. Presentation of Alumni Governance Group

Celeste Sioson presents her group’s output through metacards. She mentions the need for

engagement of younger NAA members. The NAA’s direction must be system-wide, able to address

concerns of all campuses and maintains social relevance. Their suggestion is to employ a bottom-up

approach, establishing and strengthening local and international chapters of the NAA. The

association must also be dissociated from the homecoming and focus on system-wide activities.

They also suggest improving branding and marketing of the NAA, especially among current PSHS

students.

5. Presentation of Curriculum / Public Policy Group

Tito Sarmago starts off his presentation by stating that the curriculum of PSHS still has a high quality

standard despite the changes brought by K-12. One suggestion he cites is coming up with a separate

senior high school that is designed similarly to a college environment. He suggests giving the NAA an

observer/reporter position for the system-wide curriculum committee. He also suggests a venue for

research projects along the tambayan, where ideas and support for research can be shared.

6. Presentation of Professional Cluster Group

Mark Posadas presents their outputs through an outline, focusing on building professional clusters across fields of expertise and increasing awareness among clusters. Programs can include professional mentoring and an inter-cluster kapihan or forum. This will move the NAA towards forming a critical mass on participation towards national development, enhancing the impact of services offered by each member.

7. Presentation of Pay It Forward Group

Rose Chu-Dizon presents her group’s PowerPoint. Their central issue is how to get sustained

participation from NAA members besides the homecoming. They aim to provide a venue for alumni

to contribute resources, suggesting an online interactive portal to share company activities,

advocacy projects and training. She also mentions developing PSHS yellow pages and alumni card.

8. Presentation of Networking Group

Edwin Soriano presents his group’s outputs by building on what was already mentioned by other

networking groups. These includes: increasing and updating the database, linking pocket networks,

promoting consistent meet-ups (older batches hosting for younger batches), and building alumni

chapters. Lastly, he wants to generate content for the online portal, inviting Irwin Cafugauan to

present concrete examples through contents from his Facebook page and Youtube channel.

Raffle draw and awarding of prizes

David Sta Maria announces another round of raffle winners and calls on game participants to hand

out their prizes.


Conference synthesis

Dr. Benigno Agbayani, Jr. applauds the success of the first conference, thanks those who participated

and those who made the event possible; and lets James Paul Esguerra summarize the content of the

discussions through a mindmap. Mr. Esguerra enumerates the following key points:

1. The PSHS NAA is immersed in various emerging contexts, and must respond to maintain its social and organizational relevance. Among this would be to play its new roles and functions.

2. Flexibility must be exercised in terms of establishing new institutional arrangements while still retaining the high standards of PSHS.

3. Everyone must be open to new ways of doing things, especially with new opportunities for growth.

4. The NAA must make use of the opportunity to design their organization well in order to maximize each member’s capabilities and endeavours.

5. The NAA must establish the identity of every PSHS alumnus as member of a unified system, as well as that of every chapter, the NAA, and also contributing to the PSHS System identity.

Closing Message and Induction of 2013 PSHS NAA Board

Dan Lachica, a member of the PSHS System Board of Trustees, shares the responsibilities and role of

a member of the National Alumni Association and introduces the closing speaker. Then, Dr. Rowena

Guevara shares the DOST’s Secretary’s wishes for Pisay. She highlights the school system’s

excellence in curriculum development and how the vision for PSHS to become the leader in the

region is within reach. She reveals that PSHS students and alumni receive more benefits from DOST

beyond the direct fund allocated for the schools. She concludes by encouraging every alumnus’

sense of giving back, not only on the upcoming 50th anniversary, but also to society as Filipino

citizens.

Dr. Guevara then inducts the 2013 NAA Board Members who were still present: Jan Michael Espino,

Christina Keppler, Arnie Azcarraga, David Sta. Maria, Dr. Benigno Agbayani Jr., Usec. Julianito

Bucayan Jr., Ma. Theresa Onchangco-Diaz, Tylette Moreno, Dr. Jondi Flavier, Dr. Gina Eubanas, Mary

Rose dela Cruz, Dr. Virginia Irene Santos.

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