KASC LAB-HIGH RECEIVES COMPUTER UNITS

By Marciano Paroy Jr.

Information technology (IT) is the buzzword these days in all fields – whether in governance, commerce, warfare, and all other areas. Especially in the field of education.
With the classroom as the setting where the youth undergo formal inception of knowledge, it has to be equipped with appropriate materials and gadgets that would hasten the learning process. The computer, undeniably, responds to this. All schools recognize that the preparation of schoolchildren to move higher in the educational ladder would be handicapped without their exposure to information technology.
So, fill the classrooms with computers, one might say. Until one realizes the problems attached to the very idea of acquiring computers. But it would not be as complicated as it may seem, if one knows where to go.
And the Kalinga-Apayao State College – Laboratory High School did exactly know where: the Congress.
As part of his program on furthering educational growth in Kalinga, Hon. Laurence Wacnang, Congressman for the province, responded to the request from a number of secondary schools in Kalinga by allocating budget for the purchase of computer units.
The allocation of budget was coursed through the Department of Education (Dep-Ed) Regional Office – CAR. The regional office then identified an IT company to serve as the conduit of the materials to be transferred to the recipient schools. For the Cordilleran schools, Hub Trading won the contract.
“There are now five schools in the province of Kalinga that have received their computer units, courtesy of the Congressman,” Antonio Zeta, Seminar Director for Hub Trading, said. Zeta handles the crash-course seminar for recipient schools on basic computer program operations. He observed that the trainees who attended the one-day seminar last October 19 at the Laboratory High School of the KASC were all advanced users. He added, “KASC is by far the luckiest school we have visited because the school has been given twenty units.”
The turn-over ceremony took place right after the training activity. Ms. Rosita Sakiwat, invoicing representative from the Dep-Ed – CAR, officially transferred twenty computer units complete with accessories, tables and swivel chairs worth P2,696,200.00 to KASC, with Mrs. Rosalina Gunaban, Director for Administration and Finance, receiving the properties in behalf of the College President, Eduardo Bagtang, who earlier solicited for the gadgets.
“Speaking for the KASC community, we are extending our deepest gratitude to the Congressman for his deep concern and interest in improving the quality of education in the province,” Ms. Corazon Osdeg, KASC-High School Principal, stressed. “We would also like to say thank you to our higher-ups at the Regional Office of Dep-Ed.”

JAPANESE VOLUNTEER LEAVES KASC

By Marciano Paroy Jr.

Mr. Ryota Okazaki, part of the Japan Overseas Cooperation Volunteers (JOCV) Batch 127, has recently completed his two-year stint at the Kalinga-Apayao State College where he was stationed as an expert-consultant on environmental and mapping concerns.
Arriving in 2005, he was taken in as part of the KASC’S on global information system (GIS) – an undertaking initiated by Dr. Jovita Saguibo and Engr. Manuel Bilagot during Dr. Venus Lammawin’s last year as president of the state college. The GIS project uses satellite technology in accurately delineating territorial boundaries and topographical features of all land types – and come up with a mass of technical data that would be useful in planning and implementation of projects.
Mr. Ryota, a holder of a degree in forestry, shared his expertise in furthering the outputs of the GIS project. With the other members of the GIS team, Engr. Bilagot and JV Flores, he had been busy roaming the hilly and forested terrain of the province. After two years of collecting data on-field, and storing these data into the computer database, he had accomplished what he has originally intended to attain for KASC.
The Japanese volunteer, who hails from the city of Kyoto, is part of a Japanese team that included Ms. Aya Monoi (in physical education); Mr. Takeshi Mori (in computer technology); Mr. Koichi Nakamura (in welding technology); and Ms. Hiromi Tanaka (in education). Like Ryota, these young men and women were turned over to their respective local partner organizations (LPOs) last 3 May 2005. And now that the volunteerism contract expired, they are now ready to leave the Philippines. Fortunately, they will be replaced by other visionary young people.
JOCV Resident Representative Mr. Katsumi Yoshida and Joselito C. de Vera Executive Director of the Philippine National Volunteer Service Coordinating Agency (PNVSCA) are behind the scheduling of the volunteers. The major areas of assignment of the volunteers are education, social work, youth counseling, aquaculture, environment conservation and protection.
As part of their preparation, JOCV and PNVSCA adopted a cluster-based culture and language learning that is geared toward easier and faster adjustments of the volunteers. And Ryota did learn to like a lot about his host province: he came to love binungor, pinakbet, lauya, and basi which according to him is not that different from their native sake (Japanese for wine).
Ryota was given a formal send-off party by the KASC administration during which College President Eduardo Bagtang expressed his sincerest appreciation for Ryota’s work – which the school benefited from. For free.

DIASEN VISITS KASC

Hon. Floydelia Diasen and KASC President Eduardo Bagtang

Gov. Diasen Graces KASC Induction
By Marciano Paroy Jr.

For the first time since assuming her post as the provincial governor, Hon. Floydelia Diasen visited KASC by serving as the Guest Speaker and Inducting Officer during the State College’s Mass Induction of Officers last July 25 at the Tabuk Gymnasium.
Obviously feeling nostalgic, the Lady Governor expressed how much she misses going to her classes. “But sacrifice has to be made, and I have to stand by the changes that came my way,” she noted.
Earlier, Dr. Carmelita Ayang-ang, Vice President for Academic Affairs, said that her bid for the Presidency of KASC may have been destined because a greater task awaited her at the Provincial Government. The VPAA said, “She left a post at the Institute of Health Sciences where she had already masterminded a series of developments, and put into motion her many plans.”
As the Inducting Officer, the Governor focused on the ability of student leaders to follow as they lead. She stressed that “the essence of leadership is followership. One cannot become a leader without following.”
She told her audience to advocate the creation of a climate that is conducive to a leadership style that realizes the vision of the organization under which one belongs.
Facing a group of potential leaders, she enjoined the student officers to take part in the attainment of her PEACE agenda for the province – explaining to them its elements of Peace and Order, Education, Agricultural Productivity, Culture and Tourism, Environment and Health.
Echoing GMA’s words in her State of the Nation Address this month, the Governor advised the young leaders that if other people get in the way of one’s goals and objectives, then the concerned leader must do something about resolving the conflict so that the leadership aspirations would be accomplished without hassle.
The Governor’s speech took an emotional turn when she lightly touched on the late Atty. Rommel Diasen’s death. “I asked myself why this thing should happen to me, but as Dr. Carmelita Ayang-ang told me, ‘Floy, it’s time to brace yourself for a higher level of service,’” she said.
The Lady Governor ended her speech by reiterating her commitment to serve the province of Kalinga for the next three years with sincerity and efficiency.

*****

Dr. Ayang-ang noted that the Governor’s departure from KASC has left her as one of the very few pioneering instructors from the old Kalinga Community College. The dwindling group includes Mrs. Edna Yumol and Dr. Gloria Floresca.
*****

Gov. Diasen had also served KASC as the Director for Student Affairs and Services, and during her stint as such, she has pushed for the accreditation of clubs and organizations – prohibiting the formation of groups that are not duly recognized by the school.

ARNEL BANASAN AND MAYOR CAMILO LAMMAWIN VISIT KASC

PEP TALK WITH THE YOUTH. Acclaimed authority on Cultural Music Arnel Banasan, and City Mayor Camilo Lammawin address college students during the Scholars’ Orientation organized by Mrs. Rosalina Gunaban, Scholarship Coordinator of KASC. (M-16)

THE FARMERS INFORMATION & TECHNOLOGY SERVICES (FITS) CENTER OF KASC

By Marciano Paroy Jr.

Export quality apples are now being grown in Agbannawag, Tabuk, Kalinga Province.

There. I got your attention.

Dilemma: Whenever an enterprising farmer would be in dire need of information regarding, say, a possible change in his crop, or a shift in his farming techniques, he is most oftentimes left scratching his head.

Fact: Farmers and small-scale entrepreneurs always inadvertently find themselves in the dark, lumped with those we term as “not-knowing.” This doesn’t mean though that they lack the initiative “to know.” It’s just that they don’t know where to go, in order “to know.”

Enter the Farmers Information and Technology Services (FITS) Center of the Kalinga-Apayao State College.

Designed to cater to the information needs of the underserved members of the population regarding opportunities that could make them contribute to community development, FITS is a depository of beneficial information and available technology.

The establishment of FITS is not a new concept. FITS Centers proliferate across the country. Some are housed in state colleges and universities; some are managed by local government units (municipal level); and some are even operated by resourceful barangays.

And so KASC, back in 2002, had enough initiative, through Research Director Jovita E. Saguibo, to establish the first (and the only) FITS Center in the province of Kalinga. It has been unrelenting since then in its commitment to serve the information-hungry farmers and entrepreneurs by way of trainings and other extension activities.

In fact, a year after it was launched, our FITS Center in the province was chosen as the Best FITS in the Cordillera. This was then during Dr. Venus Lammawin’s term.

With Dr. Eduardo Bagtang now at the helm of the state college, FITS continues to enjoy the support of the administration. It is still within the fence of the Research and Extension Department – which has recently been re-structured, with Dr. Maximo Garming now sitting at the Extension arm of the unit, and Dr. Jovita Saguibo retaining the most probably uncontested seat at the Research wing of the college.

An invitation: FITS is a storehouse of information; so anyone (farmer, entrepreneur, student, researcher, scientist-expert) can visit the center in KASC and pore over the materials (publications) or look into the scheduled training opportunities and extension activities, or possibly build a tie-up with the center – as long as the welfare of our intended clients take the forefront of our undertakings.

So whether you may want to look into our publications, or look into our training activities, the doors of the FITS Center in KASC are open. There just might be something here that could answer your concern about changing your crop of choice.

Apples cannot, of course, be grown in Agbannawag or anywhere else in Tabuk.

DIASEN ENDS KASC CAREER

By Marciano Paroy Jr.

Ma. Gracia Padaca (Isabela), Luisa Cuaresma (Nueva Vizcaya), Josefina Dela Cruz (Bulacan), Teresita Lazaro (Laguna), Bellaflor Castillo (Aurora), Carmencita Reyes (Marinduque), Josephine Sato (Mindoro Occidental), Salvacion Perez (Antique), Gwendolyn Garcia (Cebu), Milagrosa Tan (Samar), Rosette Lerias (Southern Leyte), Aurora Cerilles (Zamboanga del Sur), Imelda Dimaporo (Lanao del Norte), Ma. Elena Palma-Gil (Davao Oriental), Daisy Fuentes (South Cotabato).

Floydelia R. Diasen (Province of Kalinga).

Thus goes the list of women elected as governors in the country. Some of them have sought re-election, while some have moved on to the House of Representatives. Nevertheless, they have all become members of the Governors’ League – further cementing the study conducted by the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF), which lists the Philipines as one of the most “gender-fair” countries in the world. The UNICEF report on the state of the world’s women and children observed that the Philippines has accomplished “significant progress in the involvement of women and young people in the political decision-making process.”

Dr. Floydelia Diasen, though relatively new in the realm of political decision-making, has, for the past three decades, a contributor to rural development by way of teaching – a stint that takes the biggest chunk in her resume where professional experience is concerned.

“My stay with KASC since 1979 has effectively imbued in me the management skills that I would be needing,” the governor-elect replied when asked whether her long-time career in the academe would be sufficient as preparation for the tasks at hand at the Capitol Hill. “I had, for a long time now, been holding administrative roles in KASC. Plus, it is now an opportunity for me to put into motion all the concepts I have been teaching about public administration.”

Following is the transcript of the actual conversation with Dr. Floydelia R. Diasen:

MPJr: You would be remembered in KASC as being considerate. Would this flexibility still be around, now that you are the chief executive of the province?

FRD: I would strongly push for a people-oriented administration. I do recognize that planning does not involve only one mind – therefore, I would be heavily advocating participatory decision-making. But of course I have to be firm in areas where strong will is needed.

MPJr: Indeed, you were cast as a strong-willed woman during the campaign period. Where exactly did you draw this strength from, considering that you are still grieving?

FRD: It is still a matter of wonderment for me how I managed to keep up with the demands and pressure of the campaign period. I think, at the back of my mind, is the prodding resolve to continue what has been started. As our battle cry says, “On with the fight.”

MPJr: Has there ever been a moment when you felt like giving up?

FRD: A lot of times. But then I keep getting my inspiration and willpower from the outpour of support from people. There had been an overflowing show of love and care that I could not do anything but give in to their clamor that I should pick up where my husband has left off.

MPJr: If I may touch a bit on the late Atty. Diasen, you mentioned last April to Mariz Umali of GMA-7, “What makes me sad is that it happened in a place where my husband and I would feel very safe.” How have you been coping so far?

FRD: Only God knows how I have been handling it all. It’s a miracle, really. What keeps me going now is the thought that I have been given something to do, and I have to do it. People believe that I can do it – that is inspiration enough.

MPJr: It’s written somewhere that our true source of strength are the people around us – and not from within ourselves as other philosophers would like to stress.

FRD: That is true. After asking guidance from God, I simply looked around me, and there the people were – believing in me, pushing me. It really re-invigorated me. It made me feel I could trust people again.

MPJr: And soon it will be your turn to give back to these people who have such trust in you.

FRD: Yes. It would be a pleasure to serve them, and the whole province. I have been a politician’s wife for such a long time, but never did I entertain the idea that I would one day be a politician myself. As a politician’s wife, I have been dealing with people only from the sidelines.

MPJr: Now you also have former rivals to deal with. How would you launch your camp’s healing scheme and bridge gaps with those from other camps?

FRD: The occurrence of a healing process is the natural course of events after elections. That’s why I keep appealing to all my supporters and friends to let go of the pain and animosities that we allowed to build up during this past campaign and election period. We should move forward, and instead work together – whatever side one may be identified with.

MPJr: Your arrival at the capitol is highly anticipated, that your departure from KASC is somewhat overshadowed. Would you be missing your former “professional home?”

FRD: I have always thought that I would retire as an educator, but given the circumstances, I have to put that behind me. I cannot say that I would be leaving the academe, because part of me would always be an educator. Instead, I shall be bringing this with me and see what I can do in the field of education for the province. I only have three years to serve, and I just wish that I could serve the people uninterrupted. After which, I shall then bow out and retire. (End of interview)

Dr. Diasen’s addition into the list of female governors further establishes Philippines’ 6^th rank out of 115 countries on gender equality – the only country in Asia to land in the Top 10.

According to the Manila Times (Dec. 16, 2006), “Filipinos have elected a great number of women senators and representatives. Female governors and mayors run provincial and municipal governments across the country. The Supreme Court, the Court of Appeals and the judiciary have benefited from the wisdom of women justices and judges.

“The barriers are formidable, of course. But their stories demonstrate the power, the place and the potential of the Filipina.”

Madam Floy Diasen at the conference room of KASC, when she was
still Dean of the Institute of Health Sciences.

Patch Farming in Barangay Magao-gao

Patch Farming Practice in Barangay Magao-gao

By Ernesto Miguel and Jovita Saguibo

(Edited by Marciano Paroy Jr.)

Abstract

This study was conducted to assess Patch cultivation practices in Barangay Magao-gao, Pinukpuk Kalinga. The study was conducted from November 2005-July 2006.

Investigation showed that culture and tradition and socio economics indicators are strong factors. However further investigation and review conducted by the researchers indicated that other than the stated factors, population growth that has caused migration and poverty had caused the farmers to practice patch cultivation.

The introduction of a simple but effective technology in Barangay Magao led the farmers into a solution that made their patch farms become permanent agricultural production sites.

Rationale

Patch cultivation, common term for “shifting cultivation,” is a deforestation technique used to clear large areas of forest for agriculture and other purposes.

In many forested areas, the regeneration of mineral component in the ground, after frequent agricultural use, takes a very long time. Hence, pressure to find new, unused arable land to farm is obtained by clearing the remaining virgin forests and later burning the wood or the felled trees. The formerly used patch farms are often abandoned or allowed a phase of reforestation before cultivating again; however, it may take years, the most 7 years for an area to become agriculturally useful once more to the patch farmers.

(this is a poster on the research on Patch Farming, designed by Marciano Paroy Jr.)

COA Equips KASC With e-NGAS

The finance department of the Kalinga-Apayao State College joins the ever-growing number of agencies that opted to have a fully automated accounting system through a five-day training attended compulsorily by finance and administration personnel, on from Aug. 27 to Sept. 1, 2007.

The training, given by experts from the regional office of the Commission on Audit (COA), aims to equip finance and administration personnel with a state-of-the-art technology known as Electronic New Government Accounting System (e-NGAS).

As posted in the home page for the program (http://engas.gafmis.ph), e-NGAS is an accounting software developed by COA which aims to simplify government accounting, and provide adequate internal controls, as well as reliable and timely financial management information without sacrificing data integrity and fiscal transparency. Implementation of e-NGAS is under the Government Accountancy and Financial Management Information System (GAFMiS) of COA.

The training in KASC, led by Ms. Mary D. Bacwaden of COA-CAR, showed that e-NGAS is a powerful accounting tool that gives its users an immediate picture of the school’s entire financial situation by generating accounting reports and statements at the click of the mouse.

The features of the system include the following: Automated recording of accounting entries to the general journal, posting to the subsidiary ledger and the general ledger; Automatic checking of balances between debits and credits; Adequate security control mechanisms for data integrity and accuracy; Up-to-date generation of government standard reports necessary for management and auditing purposes; Real-time query of interim reports and documents; User-friendly screen; Simplified entry of financial transactions and activities, using transaction templates; Use of responsibility accounting for a more detailed financial reporting and analysis

“This makes our work so much easier,” Mr. Jeoffrey Peralta, KASC Accountant, expressed. “It is to our advantage that the administration has decided to avail of the benefits that the system provides. We shall no longer have problems on pegging how much a certain unit or department still has in its coffers.”

Mr. Peralta also added that if COA returns to fully put the system in place by October, KASC may be the first state college and university in the region to use e-NGAS.

The training was attended by personnel from the Accounting Section: Rex Duclayan and Renee Anjinette Chaclag; from the Cashiering Section: Mary Sarne, Normalyn Buen, Erlingine Sison, and Lourdes Natarte; from the Budget Section: Danilo Buen; from the Payroll Section: Antonio Pang-ay; and the Supply Office: Romulo Langgaman and Artefino Buen.

“After this training, we shall make it the administation’s commitment to have the system implemented the soonest time possible,” College President Eduardo Bagtang said.

Mr. Hector Cortes, one of the trainors, said “We are impressed by the enthusiasm showed by the trainees, and we commend the officialdom of KASC for embarking on this undertaking.”

The team from the regional office includes Peter Garas and Mydee Novencio. – Marciano Paroy Jr.

KASC Creates Website

Responding to the need to hook up with the unrestricted network of information-sharing, the Kalinga-Apayao State College has just created its own website, accessible via http://www.kasc.edu.ph.

In the official website, College President Eduardo Bagtang says “As you continue to search KASC's website, you will find various programs of the college that makes it an interesting educational institution. The dedicated and hard working faculty and staff make the college more promising institution for students who would like to craft a better future and be competitive in the world market.”

The site offers “clickable” tabs into its different areas like Administration, Instruction, Research, Extension, Production, Admission, and Special Projects. Strategically embedded are the all-too important Vision, Mission, Goals and Objectives as well as the History of the State College.

The website is continually being developed and maintained by the IT Team headed by Engr. Manuel Bilagot Jr. and Mr. Javyee Flores.

IEA of KASC Launches Super Wax

IEA of KASC Launches Super Wax

By Marciano Paroy Jr.

The Institute of Entrepreneurial Arts, under Dean Edna P. Yumol, launched its first official product last September 19. Known as Super Wax, it is the institute’s formal foray into the development of a product ready for sale as part of its income-generating projects.

“This floor wax production was conceptualized when we visited Isabela State University last year,” Dean Yumol said. “We were assisted all the way by Mrs. Emma Santos, the chairperson of the ISU program on entrepreneurship. She was so supportive that she agreed to serve as our trainor when we conducted a training last March 1, together with our adopted barangay of Nambarran.”

After the training, the IEA faculty and staff had to wait for six months before finally deciding to go into production full-blast. As seed money, the profits from IEA’s catering activity last June during the provincial Sports Training was used to jumpstart the business.

“I congratulate IEA and the Dean because they are the first unit to start an IGP at the institute level,” Mr. Tomas Carabbacan, Chief of Business Affairs, said in his message during the launching. “The challenge of putting-up IGP’s was posed to all deans, and Dean Yumol is the first to respond.”

Mr. Carabbacan stressed that “human and material resources are present and available within the state college, but to convert them into productive endeavors largely depends on the commitment, dedication and creativity of the leaders and the experts.”

In turn, Dean Yumol commended Mrs. Virginia Petang and Mrs. Zorayda Gavino for initiating the project, with strong support from the IEA faculty.

The College President Eduardo Bagtang did the honors of cutting the ribbon as the Super Wax’s ceremonial venture into the market.

ROTC: Training The Youth For A Progressive Nation

ROTC: Training The Youth For A Progressive Nation

By Marciano Paroy Jr.

Change…We are treated to the same myriad pronouncements of solutions from thinkers who propose them out of the vain desire to catch attention. They demand this! They demand that! Remove him! Oust her!

Change…We are bombarded from all sides with abstractions that actually signify nothing. Proposals. Plans. All grandiose. Yet all self-serving.

Change…I pose this query before us today: what kind of change? And who shall initiate such change?

One side glance into the statistics of our nation and we are immediately confronted by how many young people are lost from the society and instead become un-productive and indifferent to the overall development efforts of the nation. The youth, as a tender receiver of anything new, would simply glide along with what is offered to be good – and presto! They end up as societal problems that do not only break the law, but do everything to mock the law.

Values go down the drain, parental authority is disregarded, and even schools become breeding ground for apathetic young individuals.

Clearly, this necessitates a more intense re-infusion of leadership contributory to the molding of highly accomplished leaders that shaped the history of this nation. This necessitates the stepping-in of the kind of training that would transform the mindset of young individuals so that they may become builders of this nation.

ROTC steps in to make a meaningful difference.

Since its mandatory establishment in 1967 through Executive Order No.59 by the former President Ferdinand Marcos, the Reserved Officers Training Corps has done its share in the training of individuals who were properly imbued with the vision that they shall become leaders of the nation – and impose positive change.

The ROTC has not only been a preparatory stopover for the youth who are taught how to mount the offensive. In fact, the ROTC, along with the Armed Forces, has been channeling its energies towards community development activities. It has effectively repackaged itself as a unit which is sensitive to the needs of the society.

Look back into our history and see the quality of leaders that ROTC had trained. The ROTC cadets and graduates who fought in Bataan and Corregidor for three bloody years have turned out to become efficient leaders whom the country benefited from. And the decades can prove us that the rigid discipline and nationalistic training that cadets have been subjected to all resulted to give this nation a push towards progress.

Obviously, we need more of this training. And each young individual who enters college must pass through it. But the program, which complied with the constitutional mandate that every Filipino citizen may be conscripted into the military service, was abolished by Republic Act 9163, which made military training voluntary in 2001 and replaced it with the National Service Training Program. Critics have called the national service program a weak substitute. It does not instill in the youth the sense of national duty and patriotism that the ROTC program fosters.

May I quote the late statesman Blas F. Ople who protested the scrapping of the mandatory ROTC program. He assailed the politicians who “want to capture the sympathy of college students failing under the ROTC course” and urged President Arroyo to save the ROTC as the very core of the country’s citizen army from untimely extinction.

Last year, Cebu Representative Eduardo Gullas filed House Bill 5460 seeking to restore the compulsory military training as a part of all baccalaureate courses and two-year technical or vocational courses as a requisite for graduation.

And I say that this is timely. We need to organize and mobilize students for national preparedness in the event of a national security emergency. We need to prepare a generation of young people ready to defend the country in any eventuality.

The premise is this: if the ROTC program has indeed imbued in our past leaders the level of competence that pushed them to implement reforms for the progress of the nation, shouldn’t we re-study such measures and consider a full re-entry into the original program?

If indeed we are on the pathway towards progress, then the time is now to inculcate into the young minds the heavy responsibility of nation-building. It is easy to say “progress,” but it is much harder to attain the requisites for such progress. And we refer to preparedness, we refer to training – not only in combat, but the more encompassing training for the willingness of the youth to take charge in the future and make this nation bustling with life again!

ROTC responds to the challenge.

This, while still pursuing our academic goals. This, while still full of our patriotic and nationalistic ideals. This is training. This is change.

- This piece was written for Miss Kamille Nieves Hortelano. She delivered it during the ROTC Regional Public Speaking Competition in Isabela. She placed second.