TODAY, Dr. Miriam E. Pascua, the second woman president of MMSU, will be formally inducted into her position; a position which colleagues say was tailor-made for her to occupy. Not only was she CAF’s dean, she also served in different capacities either in the field of research, extension or agribusiness. The Communication and Media Relations Office sat down with President Pascua and discussed her plans to make MMSU competitive with other universities in the country.

Communication and Media Relations (CMR):	:	What kind of MMSU do you foresee at the end of your term?
Dr. Miriam E. Pascua (Dr. MEP):		What we would like to see at the end of our term is an institution of higher learning that offers curricular programs which are accredited and with more programs recognized as centers of excellence/centers of development. I would also like to see it as a front liner in the conduct of R&D activities not only in agriculture and fisheries but also in other fields; as having strong extension services and showcasing viable income generating projects.

CMR:		What are your initiatives to make these possible?
DR. MEP:		We have created new directorates such as the Instruction Directorate, University Manpower Program, and Business Directorate. We have assigned the right people to do the job. We have competent vice presidents, directors, and chiefs of offices hence I am pretty sure we will be able to attain our goals as a team.
CMR:		How much do you need to pursue these initiatives?
DR. MEP:		We really need additional budget for infrastructure and MOOE. We still need P50M in addition to our present budget.
CMR:		So how do you move with a low budget?
DR. MEP:		We have to intensify our income generating projects. Anyway, we were assured that we could utilize this for our needs. Further, we can source out grants from other funding agencies such as CHED, DA-BAR, and other institutions. We are also intensifying our linkages with other universities here and abroad for upgrading the competencies of our faculty through faculty exchange programs. We are also looking for benevolent donors and tap our successful alumni. Further, we have submitted proposals for funding to Sen. Rodolfo Biazon and Rep. Imee Marcos for the completion of the Mangasep Building and expansion of the tissue culture laboratory and provision of scholarships.
CMR:		What do you consider as the biggest possible income/revenue generator?
DR. MEP:		As of the moment, we have the food service, rentals of facilities, piggery, and food processing as the top earners.
CMR:		What other revenue-generating projects have you lined up?
DR. MEP:		We intend to expand the canteens in the various colleges; establish a convenience store to serve the dorm residents and housing occupants and a centralized marketing center where we can display and sell our products; and commercialize viable technologies such as tissue-cultured bananas and peanut production.
CMR:		As president, what mostly occupies your time?
DR. MEP:		I am pre-occupied with acting on the requests of MMSU faculty, staff, and students as well as other agencies; representing the university in various meetings, presiding over meetings in the university; monitoring the various projects, colleges, and units; and delegating tasks to other university officials.
CMR:		How is your family doing with your new kind of work?
DR. MEP:		That’s what I’m thankful to our Almighty because He had arranged everything before I was assigned this job. My children are not with us anymore. They are living with my sister in the City of San Fernando, La Union. I just spend quality time with them during weekends to strengthen the bonding that we have.