The Xavier University Confederated Parents and Faculty Association (XUCPFA) gave tribute to college faculty members who have dedicated themselves to the holistic formation of students with the first Athena Awards held on Feb 1 at the Little Theater.

Awards were given in three categories based on years of continuous service, namely: Rookie (5 to 10 years), Junior (11 to 15 years) and Senior (16 and more years).

Higinio Barros Jr of the Chemistry Department won the Rookie award, Rogelio Lee of the Psychology Department won the Junior award, and Dr Ramona Heidi Palad of the College of Nursing won the Senior award.

In his message, XU President Fr Roberto Yap SJ referred to the faculty as the “heart of our life here in Xavier.” He called them the MVPs and the VIPs.

“Without you, we will not be as busy, energetic and lively as we are today,” he said.

Fr Yap also conveyed that one of the favorite titles of our Lord is Teacher.  “It’s important to share this vocation with our Lord, our Teacher,” he said.

In accepting the Rookie Award, Barros, who has been teaching at XU for eight years, imparted that as faculty members, they share in the same philosophy to be “teachers for the greater glory of God.”

Junior Athena Awardee Lee, who is the Assistant Chairperson of the Psychology Department and has been with XU for 12 years, said that his role as a teacher is to instill values and principles in students to help them live out their mission as they graduate from the university.

Receiving the Senior Athena Award, Palad related that “being recognized by the people we look up to and serve is, indeed, a humbling experience,” and something that inspires them to “push to greater heights.” Palad is the Dean of the College of Nursing and has been serving XU for 27 years.

The Athena Awards initiated by XUCPFA is the first of its kind at XU. The winners each received a trophy and a cash prize of P10,000, P20,000 and P50,000 for the Rookie, Junior and Senior categories, respectively. All the nominees also received a medallion and a cash incentive.

The other nominees in the Senior category were Dr Gina Itchon of the School of Medicine, Dr Linda Manalo and Dr Ma Rachel Wapaño of the College of Arts and Sciences, Danilo Miñon of the Center for Integrated Technologies, Ma Flerida Nery of the School of Education and Jessie Salon of the School of Business and Management.

For the Junior category, the other nominees were Antonio Emata of the School of Business and Management and Jessica Esparrago of the Physical Education Department. Arlita Ampola Minguez of the College of Nursing was also nominated for the Rookie category.