AFTER A month-long donation drive, the Office of Admission and Aid (OAA) concluded OokAAy, an ukay-ukay fundraiser aimed at raising funds for tuition and fee scholarships, as well as food subsidies.

With the initiative now in its second iteration, OAA Assistant to the Director for Scholarships Christine Magboo mentioned that the office’s Director Jose Ma. Edito Tirol—who was inspired by clothing donations to the OAA over the years—initiated the project in 2023 as a way to provide pre-loved items to scholars and eventually raise funds for additional financial aid.

Upholding the mission

OokAAy Project Manager Erwin Arroyo detailed the team’s focus on streamlining product categorization and storage logistics to enhance their process of collecting donations. Co-Project Manager Love Caranza also emphasized automating product coding for efficiency, noting that the project was run mostly by volunteer students and scholars.

Furthermore, Scholarship Officer Rosalydele Bajao shared that scholars were tasked with the fundraiser preparations to ensure responsibilities are divided. Meanwhile, she said that the OAA focused on reaching out to donors and marketing the initiative on official communication channels.

Beyond organizing systems and duties, Caranza stressed the initiative’s communal nature, as scholars, offices, and organizations within the Ateneo came together to volunteer and donate to the initiative.

Future for scholars

With the previous iteration raising Php 600,000, Bajao said that this year’s OokAAy targets to raise Php 2 million for Ateneo college scholars, especially with its improved systems and larger reach. However, she clarified that the goal of the initiative during its inception goes beyond being just a fundraiser.

“That was the goal of OokAAy—it wasn’t just to generate revenue the first time it happened; it was to give scholars the things that they need,” Bajao expressed. 

As such, both Arroyo and Caranza are hopeful that the initiative will be sustained to remain an avenue to help scholars in need. “We want people to see the value of [OokAAy] more, because even if it’s hard to execute, I think that this project finds the people that it needs [and] empowers the scholar community to help and serve,” Caranza shared in a mix of English and Filipino.

Following this, Magboo expressed her hopes of doing more projects like OokAAy to sustain scholar support. Bajao also reaffirmed the OAA’s commitment to assisting scholars, emphasizing that the office remains open to other initiatives that address scholars’ needs and go beyond merely generating revenue.