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President Pacifico B. Aniag stressed the importance of the tie up of the school-based Public Employment Service Office (PESO) in solving the problem of job mismatch and producing graduates who can easily be absorbed by the industrial sector.

Aniag delivered the keynote speech during Federation of PESO Managers Meeting held at the Executive Lounge of the Wesleyan Food Court last February 15, coinciding with the celebration of the university’s 66th founding anniversary.

Aniag said that through the guidance of the Department of Labor and Employment in informing the academe on the kinds of skills needed by the industry based on its Project Jobfits 2020 Vision, colleges and universities can adjust the courses they offer to fit the needs of both the enrollees and their prospective employers.

WU-P is among the first schools to have a school-based PESO.

During the federation meeting, officials of Wesleyan and the Nueva Ecija PESO managers witnessed the signing of a memorandum of agreement between DOLE, General de Jesus Academy and Good Samaritan College for the accreditation of the two schools as school-based PESOs.

The move aims to strengthen public employment service by creating more school-based PESOs to bridge the programs and services of DOLE to soon-to-be members of the labor force in Central Luzon. ###

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Stakeholders of Wesleyan University-Philippines gathered in a “University Summit” at the University Auditorium from February 17 to 18 to discuss the role of the United Methodist Church (UMC) in the operation of the university.

The affair was timed to coincided with the 66th founding anniversary of the university.

Conceptualized by President Pacifico B. Aniag, the summit aimed to come up with clear policies to avoid the instabilities experienced by past administrations and could result in amendments to the university’s Articles of Incorporation and By-Laws.

The summit agenda from the perspective of the United Methodist Church was presented by retired Bishop Emerito P. Nacpil, reacted to by a panel composed of Dr. Emmanuel G. Cleto, Dr. Anselmo D. Lupdag and Prof. Gladys P. Mangiduyos.

The perspective of the Wesleyan community was presented by a team composed of Dr. Clarafe A. Gonzales, head of the Research, Development and Productivity Office; Dr. Virginia O. del Rosario, dean of the College of Arts and Sciences; Corazon C. Gonzales, president of the  WU-P Faculty and Staff Association; and Edison Mamauag, Supreme Student Council president. Reactors included Bishop Rodolfo A. Juan of the Baguio Episcopal Area and Angelito P. Pedreno of the Association of Christian Schools, Colleges and Universities.

The final presentation was the perspective of the outside community through Lawyer Cesar R. Villar, with Corazon C. Gonzales, Edisen Mamauag and Dr. Virginia O. del Rosario as reactors.

The participants then broke up into groups for workshops on the university’s corporate structure, policies and programs, and the Wesleyan system of education. ###

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A thanksgiving service with retired Supreme Court Chief Justice Reynato Puno as speaker kicked off the week-long celebration of the 66th founding anniversary of Wesleyan University-Philippines (WU-P) last February 12.

Dwelling on theme “Rising Up to the Challenges of the Times”, Puno enumerated the problems that confront not only the university but the world as a whole.

Among these are global warming that  leads to severe climate change unless checked; excessive population growth that in time could lead to a world population of 8 billion exceeding what the planet could handle; world shortages, among them water for agriculture; destruction of ocean life, with only two percent of edible fish remaining and rapidly declining; mass famine due to decline in farm productivity that hits the poorest countries the hardest; the spread of deserts due to soil erosion; deadly pandemics like the spread of AIDS; and extreme poverty affecting three to four billion people, mostly in undeveloped countries.

Puno said the founders of WU-P must have had a vision of the problems that would be encountered and their solutions, citing the university’s vision of “God’s reign through a Christian institution of learning inspired by Methodist tradition for the transformation of society”. He said that vision correctly predicted that man’s problems would be fought, lost and won in the minds of men, with the main arena of battle in the institutions of learning – in schools, colleges and universities.

“If God is to be sovereign in the minds of men, God has to rule in our institutions of learning. If God loses man’s battle for the intellect, man will be worshipping false gods. Man will not know the God to worship. Man will again be building monuments dedicated to the unknown gods, a repeat of the times of Saint Paul,” he said.

Drawing a parallelism between Athens during the time of Saint Paul and the United States, considered the intellectual capital of the world today, Puno said that of the more than 200,000 churches there, more than half do not report any conversion in an entire year, with 3,500 to 4,500 churches closing down every year. Every month, 1,500 pastors leave the ministry never to return, with only 15 % of the churches growing and only 2.2 percent of those through conversion.

He said many events transpiring in the United Methodist Church (UMC) today are distressing – divisions, disunity, lack of church growth, including an impending schism.

“What the church needs now is not politics or rhetoric but an honest to goodness revival and returning back to God through the power of the Holy Spirit,” he said

He proposed a Wesley revival to rise to the new challenges of society -- revival in minds, churches, institutions and society.

He pushed for “scriptural holiness” in the United Methodist Church, quoting from John Wesley, with the objectives of achieving church growth and spiritual maturity; leading all UMC members to true repentance and rededication of life to God; bringing healing, harmony and unity in their ranks; and praying for spirit-filled and empowered servant leaders.

Puno cited the start of a revival program in the Northwest District, Quezon City Philippine Annual Conference East of the United Methodist Church, involving the renewal of persons to reawaken spiritual concerns against worldly issues and refocusing the people’s vision back to God.

He announced the launching of the UMC revival program entitled “Revive Us, Oh Lord” on March 24 at the Puno United Methodist Church and invited the WU-P community to attend. ###

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The WU-P Board of Trustees unanimously elected Pacifico B. Aniag as the 11th university president last March 17.

Aniag’s election was confirmed by the College of Bishops of the United Methodist Church (UMC). He will serve the unexpired portion of the term of his predecessor, or until 2014.

The Wesleyan community, particularly the Wesleyan University-Philippines Faculty and Staff Association (WUPFSA), immediately hailed the news of Aniag’s election.

Aniag had been acting as Officer-in-Charge of the Office of the President since June 2011 and is credited with implementing policies that helped in the rapid turnaround of the university’s former dire financial condition.

A Mathematics major from the then De La Salle College, Aniag attended the Harvard University Kennedy School of Government Financial Institution for Private Enterprise Development.

At WU-P, he served in the Board of Trustees under two administrations, and was the BOT chair when appointed as Officer-in-Charge of the Office of the President.

Aniag is no stranger to the administrative side of the academe. He had been administrator of the Bulacan Ecumenical School in Malolos City since 2007, member of the Board of Regents of Bulacan Agricultural State College in San Ildefonso, Bulacan since 2010, member of the Board of  Directors of Bulacan Polytechnic College from 2007 to 2010, a court-appointed receiver for Philippine Christian University in 2009, and member of the Board of Trustees of Mary Johnston Hospital in Tondo, Manila.

In the United Methodist Church, Aniag, a lay leader, is a member of the General Council on Finance and Administration of the UMC based in Nashville, Tennessee, U.S.A. – the governing body of the Church worldwide. He is also a member of the Board of Directors of the United Methodist Church Foundation, the holding corporation of about $7 billion in assets held in trust by the UMC, and member of the General Commission on Archives and History of the United Methodist Church based in Dayton, Ohio, U.S.A.

In government, Aniag served as chairman of Barangay Atlag, Malolos City from 1982 to 1986, Sangguniang Bayan member of Malolos from 1986 to 1988, and member of the Bulacan Sangguniang Panlalawigan from 1998 to 2007.

Being an entrepreneur himself as vice president and general manger of  Enrian Development Corp. which is engaged in aquaculture and printing press operation, and C & K Handicrafts whose specialty is papier mache packaging products, Aniag is deeply involved in trade and cooperative concerns.  He a director of the Bulacan Chamber of Commerce and Industry, founder and president  of the Bulacan United Methodist Multi-Purpose Cooperative that started in 1991 with a capital of only P32,000 but now worth P18 million in resources, and member of the Bulacan Federation of  Aquacuturists.

In the civic front, Aniag was president of the Malolos Jaycees in 1979. In the Rotary movement, he was the District Governor of Rotary International District 3770 in 1992, a delegate to the Rotary Council on Legislation in 2001, president of the Rotary Club of Malolos in 1986 and team leader of the Rotary Group Study Exchange Team to England in 1989.A member of Freemasonry, he was the Grand Master of all Freemasons in the jurisdiction of the Philippines, Guam and Okinawa from 2008 to 2009.

Aniag is married to the former Alice Umlas with whom he has three children – Carlo Pacifico, a businessman; Katrina, who manages the family handicraft business; and Benjamin Antonio, who recently graduated from the Bulacan State University High School Department.

During his leisure hours, Aniag plays the piano and organ, and engages in a round of golf whenever his schedule permits. ###

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Wesleyan University-Philippines conferred the degree of Doctor of Humanities, Honoris

Causa on Vice President Jejomar C. Binay during the 65^th Commencement Exercises held at the Nueva Ecija Convention Center in Palayan City last April 12.

Binay was cited for “his extensive academic achievements; exemplary, selfless government service; and uncompromising stand for the protection of human rights and democracy”.

The conferral rite was led by President Pacifico B. Aniag and Board of Trustees Chair Junifen F. Gauuan.

In his speech, Binay paid tribute to the parents, teachers and students.

He attested to the power of education to liberate man from poverty, citing his own experience.

"It is for this reason that I have never really stopped studying. Learning has been my constant companion and even today, as your Vice President, I continue to seek current knowledge on matters that are important to my office and our country,” he said.

He said the education obtained is meant to change the lives of others.

“It is not meant to be captured on a wall of diplomas that others can admire. All that we have learned and every single ounce of wisdom we have gained is meant to be applied to the problems people face in ordinary and even extraordinary times. Our country has its own fair share of challenges to resolve and all of us, most especially the young, bear the sweet and noble burden of helping the nation overcome all of these hurdles,” Binay said.

He zeroed in on what makes WU-P different from many other schools – its being a Christian institution rooted in Christian values.

“John Wesley himself argued that the virtues of faith and love are meant to be practiced so that these may take root in all people across the land,” he said.

“Indeed, there are many clerics from the Methodist Church who have repeatedly stressed that participation in the community helps your faith grow and absent such involvement, you will not be equipped for mission and service to the world,” he added

He told the graduates that the challenge facing them is not only to assure their personal prosperity, but to act against poverty as well because they, as Christians, treat others not only as their fellowmen but as brethrens.

“Sa gitna ng mga suliraning ating hinaharap, hinihiling ng inyong bayan na tumulong kayo sa pagsasagawa ng mga napapanahong programa. Ngunit dahil sa inyong pinanggalingan na kasaysayan, marapat na magdala kayo ng pagbabago sa diwa ng ating sambayanan,” Binay exhorted the graduates.

“Saan man kayo makarating, nawa’y patuloy ang inyong pamumuhay ayon sa nararapat, mga kaugalian na ikinintal sa inyo ng Wesleyan University-Philippines noong kayo ay nag-aaral pa,” he said.

Batch 2012 consisted of 28 from the Graduate School and about 1,000 from the different colleges.

It was the first time the University’s graduation exercises was held outside the campus, owing to the tight schedule of Vice President Binay that caused the program to be moved from 4:00 PM to 2:00 PM. ###

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