ATENEO ENDED the school year with two awarding ceremonies that celebrated students’ success in the field of leadership and the arts.
A total of nine awards were conferred during the 2014 Loyola Schools (LS) Awards for Leadership and Service held on March 3 at the Ricardo and Dr. Rosita Leong Hall auditorium.
Themed “Paghahandog: A Celebration of Student Leadership and Service,” the awarding ceremony paid tribute to the individual and collective excellence that various student leaders and groups exhibited during the school year.
Meanwhile, a total of 20 students were recognized during the 2014 LS Awards for the Arts (LSAA) held on March 12 at Escaler Hall.
The awarding ceremony recognized graduating students who exhibited excellence in various fields of the arts, including creative writing, theater arts, visual arts, dance and music.
Leadership and service
Three awards were conferred upon the most outstanding student group, most outstanding project and most outstanding individual during the LS Awards for Leadership and Service.
Health sciences senior Vincent Anthony Tang said that being deemed the Most Outstanding Individual and bagging the Most Outstanding Student Group for Project LAAN, of which he is project manager, was a “humbling experience.”
For Tang, the recognition of his individual efforts is a challenge for him to continue fighting for his advocacy: Universal health care in the Philippines.
He admitted that although Project LAAN was facing the challenges of a young organization at that the time of its win, it was “nothing short of a deep sigh of relief for the path and direction [Project LAAN] had taken this year.”
Project LAAN is an organization advocating for universal health care in the Philippines as well as raising awareness of health care inside and outside of the Ateneo.
Meanwhile, CanoDerm emerged as the winner for Most Outstanding Project. CanoDerm acts as a source of livelihood for the Canossa Social and Health Center in Silang, Cavite by producing herbal ointments against various skin diseases.
“It was definitely a gracious and awe-filled moment for us for our efforts to have been recognized by the whole Ateneo community,” said group leader Jason Haw.
Aside from him, the following health sciences majors compose the CanoDerm team: Niña Albiola, Karl Francis Chan, Ken Gerald Dela Cruz, Chloe Stephanie Gotianse, Neil Pecache and Sarah Stephanie Uy.
Ascend awards
Three students were granted an Ateneo Socio-Civic Engagement for National Development (Ascend) award during the LS Awards for Leadership and Service.
Ascend awards are given to students whose projects successfully engage the community while contributing to nation building.
Beatriz Ignacio from the School of Humanities obtained an award for her project entitled “Halo-halong Himig.”
The project aims to rejuvenate the youth’s interest in traditional Filipino music by allowing a user to research and virtually use ethnic instruments online.
Marie Chang, John Dela Rosa, Mikhail Maginsay, Nicole Mendoza, Diance Tan and Alessandra Uy from the School of Science and Engineering won an award for their project, “Program on Early Development and Learning (Pedal).”
Pedal’s goal is to “create a home-based daycare environment for the growth and development of children found in caregiving facilities.”
Ma. Leonila Nuñez was given a special citation award for her project entitled “Let There Be Dance.”
Nuñez’s project “aims to raise awareness for the dances of [the] Philippine indigenous through the use of infographic videos.”
Photo by Francine A. Bharwani
LS Awards for Sports
Three student athletes were also recognized during the LS Awards for Sports, which was also held during the LS Awards for Leadership and Service.
Lady Tanker Jasmine Veronica Ong received the Ambrosio Padilla Athlete of the Year award after bringing home a gold and silver medal in the 76th season of the University Athletics Association of the Philippines (UAAP) women’s swimming.
The said award is given to an athlete who excelled in both academics and sports.
Meanwhile, Blue Spiker Marck Espejo received The GUIDON-Moro Lorenzo Sportsman of the Year award. Espejo is the Rookie of the Year and the Most Valuable Player (MVP) for the UAAP men’s volleyball.
Lady Shuttler Bianca Carlos was given The GUIDON-Moro Lorenzo Sportswoman of the Year award after being crowned as Rookie of the Year and MVP for the UAAP women’s badminton.
The two awards are presented to athletes who are “at the top of their game, but who also exhibit generosity and grace in victory.”
LSAA
Several students were also rewarded for their achievements in the arts during the LSAA.
The following students were recognized for their excellence in creative writing: Christianna Dominique Calma and Dominique Beatrice La Victoria for playwriting, Abner Dormiendo and Ma. Socorro Orlina for poetry, Rodolfo Eduardo Santiago for fiction, Stephanie Shi for non-fiction, and Antonio Rafael Elicaño for fiction and non-fiction.
Maria Fatima Gabito and Jan Gabriel Cerezo were the LSAA awardees for theatre arts and dance, respectively.
Another five students were recognized for their work in visual arts. Kara Beatrice Chung was awarded for graphic design and photography, Mark Kevin De Guia and Maria Sophia Lizares for graphic design, Patrice Anne Mendozafor photography, and Megan Dominique Ong for mixed media.
Six students were also recognized for their achievements in the field of music: Juan Gabriel Cabangon and Jose Angelo Gonzales for performance, Gianne Erika Cruz, Mateo Tomas Escueta and Rez Luigi Toledo for composition and Maynard Kenneth De Guzman for arrangement.
Editor’s Note: Patrice Anne Mendoza is The GUIDON Multimedia Editor. Kara Beatrice Chung is a Katipunan Magazine staffer.
