College of Arts and Sciences – This college has changed Students’ Day history.

It surprised the MMSU community when it clinched two major awards during the Students’ Day celebration on Feb. 14 at the Teatro Ilocandia.

The CAS Student Council (2010-2011) was proclaimed Best Student Council while the Biological Circle (2010-2011) was adjudged Best Academic Organization.

Best Student Council

During the final screening held at the Office of Student Services and Development (OSSD), Prof. Ciriaco Ragual, CAS student affairs coordinator, submitted the accomplishment report of CAS SC to seven evaluators. “I did not expect that it will be declared Best SC. For almost a decade now, CAS-SC has not made any mark in the annual Students’ Day celebration. Actually, I expected nothing. So, when the result of the evaluation was released, I was in awe because CAS SC bested seven other strong student councils in the university,” he said.

Aside from the regular activities of the council, it was also able to purchase P15,000 worth of reference materials of 36 titles along various fields such as physical education, physical sciences, mathematics, biology, languages, computer science, and social sciences. Four abridged and unabridged dictionaries were also bought and all are housed at the CAS Reading Centre manned by Ragual and Prof. Myra Eugenia Castillo.

The CAS-SC Administrative Center was also renovated using money from the Student Development Fund and those generated by the SC-managed canteen. Now, CAS officers and students are more comfortable during meetings and other activities held in the said office.

The triumph of CAS-SC 2010-2011 is partly attributed to its adviser, Prof. Lorma Quibilan. “The sincere valuing of responsibility brought CAS SC 2011 to the top. It was the willingness of the officers to perform beyond their mandated duties that kept the council at the top of their game,” she said when asked about the secret of the council.

Best Academic Organization

Meanwhile, the Biological Circle, which was proclaimed third Best Academic Organization in 2009, was finally announced as the best this year. The organization initiated several extension, academic, extra, and co-curricular activities that addressed the needs of its members and the community in general.

The most notable among its accomplishments were the conduct of the annual Tuklas Talino which was participated by private and public high schools in Ilocos Norte and the Balik Alumus Program.

“The Biological Circle is the rope that binds the BS Biology students and the Department of Biology. Thanks to the feat of the Circle in 2009, the unity that I see and feel among the members of the organization, and the support of the former dean of the college, Dr. Joselito Lolinco. Those inspired us to strive harder and to reach higher. With that goal in mind, we experimented on several activities that served as opportunities for BS Biology students to showcase and discover their talents. Now, the big break is here. It is really something big for us,” said Mr. Dane  Mikhael S. Calica, Bio Circle president.