The Varsitarian

TWO CONGRESS bills are seeking to restore the mandatory nature of the Reserved Officers Training Corps (ROTC) only four years after Republic Act (RA) 9163 made it optional in order to check the excesses and abuses of a compulsory ROTC.

Senate Bill 2224 (SB 2224) by Sen. Alfredo Lim seeks to make ROTC mandatory for male and female students while House Bill 5460 (HB 5460) by Cebu Rep. Eduardo Gullas seeks to make ROTC mandatory for males but optional for females.  read more »

THE SACRED Congregation for Catholic Education of the Holy See has confirmed the appointment of Fr. Ernesto Arceo, O. P. as rector of the University of Santo Tomas, the Varsitarian has learned.

Father Arceo, the rector of the UST Central Seminary and former prior provincial of the Philippine Dominican Province, will replace Fr. Tamerlane Lana, O. P. who finished his term last April.

UST is a pontifical university and the Vatican confirms the election of the UST rector.

“CELLAR-dwellers,” “unpredictable,” “toothless Tigers.”

These were the words used to describe the UST Growling Tigers at the start of Season 69 of the UAAP basketball wars.

But last Oct. 2, the Tigers were christened different names: brave-hearts, never-say-die heroes, and finally, champions.

In a tough season in which they were initially dismissed as perennial non-contenders, the Tigers became champions at the expense of the league’s top-billed squad.  read more »

CRIMINALS would not anymore have a dog of a chance on campus.

The UST-Reserved Officers Training Corps (ROTC) is training canines at the University grounds every Sunday to guard the campus during special occasions. According to Elmer Tan, trainer of UST-ROTC canine unit, UST’s ROTC is the first in the country and in Asia to train a canine unit in its Army Reserve Command Unit.  read more »

FACULTY leaders of the College of Nursing are confident that their stand for a retake of the leakage-marred June nursing licensure exams will be sustained by the Court of Appeals (CA).

Earlier, President Macapagal-Arroyo made an about-face on the issue and ordered a retake of the exam. Previously, she had stated there was no need for a retake.

But apparently informed that the matter had been brought to the CA by the Faculty Association of the College of Nursing (Facon) of UST, she said she would wait for the court’s decision.  read more »

MEDICAL Technology (Med Tech) magna cum laude graduate Lorayne Ann Lim Chua topped the Med Tech licensure examinations last Sept. 2 and 3.

Chua registered an 87.30 per cent average. The last time a Thomasian topped the Med Tech exams was in 2004 when Mark Christian Pabustan averaged 89 per cent.

“I was so afraid of failing so I prayed about the exams,” Chua told the Varsitarian. “I just saw myself passing the exam but when I got the results, I was really shocked that I topped it.”  read more »

BY A WHISKER and a mile, the UST judo teams underscored redemption on separate mats of fortune to remain an indomitable force in UAAP Judo. Tenaciously engaging archrival University of the Philippines (UP) in another head-on collision on the battle decks, the determined charges of coach Jojo Arce played a reversal of roles atop the medal podium, regaining the overall plum in the men’s division while carving a bridesmaids’ finish on the women’s side at the Blue Eagle Gym last Oct. 1  read more »

THE UST Beach Volleyball teams remain in the hunt for a winning formula in the inaugural edition of the UAAP Beach Volleyball Competition at the University of the East-Caloocan Campus.

Lady Spikers assistant coach Cesael delos Santos told the Varsitarian that his wards are still recovering with their 3-2 win-loss record. The team, known to be a perennial contender in the UAAP volleyball, lost their spunk against the Far Eastern University (FEU) Lady Spikers in a 21-15, 17-21, 9-15 loss last Sept. 24.  read more »

The UST Lady Woodpushers clinched their second consecutive title in the UAAP Season 69 Chess Championship last Sept. 16 at the University of the East (UE) Briefing Room.

UST, with its 31 points, was way ahead of perennial rivals Far Eastern University (FEU) and University of the Philippines (UP). FEU placed second with 25. 5 while UP settled for third with 25 points.

Although UST lost its final match to the Diliman-based chessers, the Lady Woodpushers had already secured the title two rounds earlier with their 5.5 point lead.  read more »

THE MOST MALIGNED coach—and deservedly so if we go by the way he handled preseason interviews—faced his side of the coliseum, arms raised in V, thumbs up and flashed a smile that in no way contrasted the tears that threatened to spill from his eyes.

If someone had frozen the television coverage at that particular frame, he would have stared into a man choking up on a smorgasbord of emotions that he could not pick a particular one to wear on his Tiger-motif sleeve.

Alfredo “Pido” Jarencio should have laughed.  read more »