The Gawad Pangulo certificate was awarded to the University of the Philippines Open University (UPOU) for being one of the winners in the 4th edition of the prestigious competition.
The University of the Philippines Open University (UPOU) emerged as one of the winners in the 4th Gawad Pangulo: Award for Excellence in Public Service. UPOU’s winning initiative, #OpenFight, was one of the 15 awardees from eight University of the Philippines (UP) constituent units (CU).
The 4th Gawad Pangulo was organized by the University of the Philippines Office of the President through the Office of the Vice President for Public Affairs, Padayon Public Service Office, and TVUP. The awardees were honored in a virtual ceremony on 16 December 2021 which was streamed through various UP social media accounts, such as the TVUP YouTube channel and the Padayon Public Service Office Facebook page. Prof. Jose Wendell P. Capili, Assistant Vice President for Public Affairs of the UP System and Director of the Media and Public Relations Office, served as the host of the event. The theme of this year’s Gawad Pangulo is “Galing UP, Lingkod Bayan” as it aims to recognize initiatives that embody dangal (honor) and husay (excellence).
UP President Danilo L. Concepcion acknowledged the awardees’ outstanding projects and honored them for offering their knowledge, expertise, and time, among others, to meet the needs of our community and its citizens in the midst of a world health crisis. He shared that the fourth edition of Gawad Pangulo: Excellence in Public Service is the third to be held under his term and a testament to his administration’s commitment to uphold the University’s mandate to lead as a public service university. Mr. Concepcion also added that this year’s Gawad Pangulo is unique since it distinguishes the initiatives that sought to address the impact of COVID-19 vulnerable sectors.
Dr. Elena E. Pernia, UP System Vice President for Public Affairs, formally opened the awarding ceremony and introduced the members of the prestigious selection committee. Vice President Pernia shared that the Gawad Pangulo Award is anchored in the University’s mandate to lead as a public service university by providing good work to the community and the public as well as scholarly and technical assistance to the government, private sector, and civil society. She stressed that these public service initiatives are all exemplars of honor, excellence, and compassion. She recognized the efforts of the Padayon Public Service Office–led by Dr. Jeanette L. Yasol-Naval–and the distinguished board of judges–Professors Emeriti Jose Y. Dalisay Jr., Maria Luisa T. Camagay, and Ida Josephine M.L. Siason–for their dedication and efforts to demonstrate dangal at husay in the COVID-19 public service initiatives in UP.
#OpenFight (Open Fight Against COVID-19) is the banner program for all of UPOU’s efforts towards coping and managing resources amidst the COVID-19 pandemic. #OpenFight boasts of the following features:
- Multimodal where different forms of online activities were implemented, such as webinar sessions, online courses, and regular panel discussions like Edu-Hack
- Volunteerism where UPOU faculty and staff share their expertise and time to implement the various activities
- Partnership with different organizations and HEIs for wider reach of the initiatives
- Inclusive and Open so that everyone interested to learn the topic can participate
- Shared content which ensures that the content used in the webinar sessions and MOOCs were made available, open, and accessible
- Adaptability due to the use of the inclusive training model, which consists of the webinar session, MOOC, and development, and the implementation of Re-Entry Action Projects (ReAPro)
Dr. Melinda dela Peña Bandalaria, UPOU Chancellor, delivered a message acknowledging the Gawad Pangulo Award for Excellence in Public Service won by UPOU.
Dr. Melinda dela Peña Bandalaria, UPOU Chancellor, was grateful to the UP System for acknowledging the efforts of UPOU and supporting the university’s efforts para sa bayan. She also acknowledged the entire UPOU family for contributing to the #OpenFight program which she emphasized would not be possible without the UPOU faculty, REPS, admin and the COS.
Other winners of the 4th Gawad Pangulo: Award for Excellence in Public Service are the following:
Stop COVID Deaths Webinar Series: Clinical Management and Virtual Grand Rounds
National Institutes of Health-National Telehealth Center
University of the Philippines Manila
UP Surgical Innovation and Biotechnology Laboratory Program
College of Medicine
University of the Philippines Manila
Bayanihan Na! Operations Center
College of Medicine
University of the Philippines Manila
PGH COVID TeleGabay Program
Philippine General Hospital
University of the Philippines Manila
#OpenFight (Open Fight Against COVID-19)
University of the Philippines Open University
SAVE Food Systems
School of Management
University of the Philippines Mindanao
Establishment of the UPLB COVID-19 Molecular Diagnostic Laboratory (CMDL) under Task Force Laban ng Bayan Kontra COVID-19 (LB Kontra COVID-19)
Office of the Chancellor, Office of the Vice Chancellor for Research and Extension, Office of the Vice Chancellor for Planning and Development, Office of the Vice Chancellor for Administration, Office of the Vice Chancellor for Community Affairs, College of Engineering and Agro-Industrial Technology, UPLB COVID-19 Molecular Diagnostic Laboratory
UPLB OVCSA COVID-19 Initiatives (Lingap, Hatid, Kawingan, Kumustahan & Wellbeing Registry)
Office of the Vice Chancellor for Student Affairs University of the Philippines Los Baños
Lingap Legal sa Panahon ng Pandemya
College of Law
University of the Philippines Diliman
COVID-19 Task Force
University of the Philippines Diliman
UP College of Engineering Covid-19 Response
College of Engineering
University of the Philippines Diliman
UP Diliman Psychosocial Services (UPD PsycServ)
Office of the Chancellor
University of the Philippines Diliman
Exploratory data analysis (EDA) of Baguio City COVID-19 cases: Daily Updates
Department of Mathematics and Computer Science, College of Science Office of Public Affairs
University of the Philippines Baguio
COVID-19 Biosurveillance and Testing
Philippine Genome Center
University of the Philippines System
Production of Ethanol-based Hand Rub for Frontline Workers
School of Technology
University of the Philippines Visayas
The Gawad Pangulo Award for Excellence in Public Service supports the University’s mandate to lead as a public service university and aims “to enhance the visibility of university-based public service undertakings; advocate professionalism in their implementation; and promote best and innovative practices for dissemination, support, replication for the greater use and benefit of UP’s various stakeholders.” Its selection criteria include service orientation, impact on the community, innovation, approach, and enhancement of teaching and learning. More than 30 nominees coming from the UP constituent universities vied for the prestigious award this year.
In 2017, UPOU’s Teacher Development Program (TDP) was among the eight recipients of the University of the Philippines (UP) 2nd Gawad Pangulo: Award for Excellence in Public Service.
The 4th Gawad Pangulo virtual awarding ceremony can be viewed on the University of the Philippines Facebook page, UP Padayon Public Service Office Facebook page, and TVUP’s YouTube channel.
Written by Jaime P. Guimbao
Edited by Joane V. Serrano and Anna Cañas-Llamas