Last May 13, 2016 (Friday), the University of Santo Tomas recognized its outstanding students with the annual Student Awards Day, held at the Quadricentennial Pavilion.
Treading the road to greatness
In his welcome remarks, the Acting Rector, the Very Rev. Fr. Richard G. Ang, O.P., PhD, said that “The road a person takes in every decision he makes reveals clearly his character, values, priorities, strengths, and weaknesses.” He emphasized that “Our choices determine not only who we are but also the kind of person we will become.”
In paying homage to the awardees, Fr. Ang said that “The road to greatness is neither a reckless nor an easy path. It entails the Herculean task to make the cut to be up there with the best of the best.”
Thinking power, leadership, and delivering results
UST Junior High School alumnus and Informatics CEO Leo Riingen delivered the inspirational message for the awardees, and traced his own academic journey, saying he was not a student leader and was not necessarily an academic achiever: “In HS, I was not a student leader, nor in College. Much to my regret, I forgot about my studies.”
Riingen shared that life was filled with many mistakes and false starts, but that there was always hope and a chance to improve. “My biggest fan has always been my mom,” Riingen said, stressing that it is important to have a support system ready.
On issues of success and excellence, Riingen had these to say: “I realized I’m not a person who knows everything. [However,] I get obsessed with excellence. Excellence is something that’s not absolute. It’s something that comes from within, and everything you do, you have to do it excellently.”
Riingen, an entrepreneur and now the chairman/CEO of several companies he owns wholly or partially, said that, “If you observe people, you identify their problems, and you can provide solutions, then you can become successful.”
Three Learnings from Leo Riingen
Riingen ended his sharing by emphasizing three learnings, quoted verbatim:
- You have to be a continuous learner. You have admit to yourself that you don’t know everything. Be like a sponge, absorb everything you can, then analyze and sift through what you can handle in accordance with your own values.
- You have to be excellent in all the things that you do. You have to be dissatisfied with the status quo. What you see now is not exactly okay; there’s always a chance for improvement. Have a healthy dissatisfaction. There’s always something better. In order for you to be excellent, you have to do it for 10,000 hours. Practice to actually make things perfect. If you want to do something excellently, do it repeatedly, obsessively, and with passion.
- Keep your Christian values all the time. This is where I appreciate my upbringing in the University. There are a lot of things happening, a lot of temptations, a lot of opportunities to take the shortcut and to a point, where you will do things that are un-Christian. When you get to the decision points of your life, always look back to your Christian values, to what the Fathers of UST have taught you, what your parents have taught you. A lot of cheating is happening, in business, not just in government.
Response of Rhys Jansen Pavon
In his response, Rhys Jansen Pavon of the Faculty of Pharmacy, the Rector’s Academic Awardee who got the highest general weighted average among all the awardees, underscored the hard work and dedication that the awardees invested in order to reach where they are now.
Pavon thanked the University for the chance to excel, and called on his fellow awardees to continue the pursuit of goodness.
Rector’s Academic Achievement Award
- Sem. Kenrich Anthony Bereber (Faculty of Philosophy)
- Sem. Kimrey Pintor (Faculty of Sacred Theology),
- Vincent Edouard Anthony Gullas (Faculty Medicine and Surgery)
- Rhys Jansen Pavon (Faculty of Pharmacy)
- Zheanne Amira Dantis (Faculty of Arts and Letters)
- Masaru Nakaegawa (Faculty of Engineering)
- Joyce Nicole Anne Clemente (College of Education)
- Marck Carascal (College of Science)
- Joanne Marie Camello (College of Architecture)
- Rhic Joshua Martin Miñoza (College of Commerce and Business Administration)
- Mayden Kae Ong (Conservatory of Music)
- Augustine Beth Cortez (College of Nursing)
- Efren Louis Llanos (College of Rehabilitation Sciences)
- Louise Bianca Limjoco (College of Fine Arts and Design)
- Ariel Joseph Nipas (AMV – College of Accountancy)
- Lia Ciaris Tani (College of Tourism and Hospitality Management)
- Lance Paolo Aldeosa (Institute of Information and Computing Sciences)
Quezon Leadership Award
1) Raymond John S. Naguit – Office for Student Affairs
2) Alyssa Lorraine Arreola – Office for Student Affairs
3) Maria Yvonne V. Yap – Office for Student Affairs
4) Hazel Maye O. Reyes – Office for Student Affairs
5) Ysabelle Gabrielle B. Marasigan – Faculty of Arts and Letters
6) Jan Dominic Castro – Faculty of Arts and Letters
7) Cherish G. Aperocho – College of Education
8) Kenneth Roy V. Aranas – College of Science
Pope Leo XIII Community Development Award (Individual Category)
1) Veronica Moreno – Faculty of Arts and Letters
2) Raymond John Naguit – Office for Student Affairs
3) Patrick M. Cristobal - Office for Student Affairs
4) Katrina N. Caluya – Office for Student Affairs
Pope Leo XIII Community Development Award (Group Category)
1) UST Sociological Society – Faculty of Arts and Letters
2) Guild of Thomasian Speducators – College of Education
3) Student Volunteers of UST Graduate School Psychotrauma Clinic – Graduate School
4) Medical Missions, Inc. – Student Group – Faculty of Medicine and Surgery
5) Medical Missions, Inc. – Nursing Group – College of Nursing
6) Rotaract Club – Pharmacy Unit
7) UST Biochemical Society – Faculty of Pharmacy
8) Clinical Pharmacy Society – Faculty of Pharmacy
9) UST Central Commission on Elections – Office for Student Affairs
10) UST Unicef Volunteers – Office for Student Affairs
11) Becarios de Santo Tomas – Office for Student Affairs
12) UST Theological Society-Community Development Coordinating Council – Faculty of Sacred Theology
St. Dominic De Guzman Outstanding Teamwork Award
1) Junior Philippine Institute of Accountants – UST AMV-College of Accountancy
2) UST Architecture Network (Archinet) – College of Architecture
3) UST Community Achievers Association-Architecture Unit – College of Architecture
4) UST Asian Studies Society – Faculty of Arts and Letters
5) UST Sociological Society – Faculty of Arts and Letters
6) UST Economic Society – College of Commerce and Business Administration
7) UST Red Cross Youth Council-Pharmacy Unit – Faculty of Pharmacy
8) Becarios de Santo Tomas – Office of Student Affairs
9) UST Central Student Council – Office of Student Affairs
10) UST Central Commission on Elections – Office of Student Affairs
11) UST Theological Society – Faculty of Sacred Theology
Benavides Outstanding Achievement Award
1) Adrian Meynard G. Ang – UST-AMV College of Accountancy
2) Ma. Guadalaine A. Baay – UST-AMV College of Accountancy
3) Eloizza Marie H. Doma – UST-AMV College of Accountancy
4) Carlos Andro Vito Molina – College of Architecture
5) Jose Augustin D. Ricarte – College of Architecture
6) Jayne Kathylyn V. Abad – Faculty of Arts and Letters
7) Jan Dominic C. Castro – Faculty of Arts and Letters
8) Celso L Crisostomo Jr. – Faculty of Arts and Letters
9) Lillian Sherry F. Du – Faculty of Arts and Letters
10) Kevin B. Gamad – Faculty of Arts and Letters
11) Kiarra C. Luarca – Faculty of Arts and Letters
12) Ma. Sarah Perez – Office of Student Affairs
13) Jan Paola M. Sawit – Faculty of Arts and Letters
14) Jerome S.R. Balleser – College of Commerce and Business Administration
15) Rose Anne Joy D. Gomez – College of Commerce and Business Administration
16) Rhic Joshua Martin N. Miñoza – College of Commerce and Business Administration
17) Jessah Mae G. Fernandez – College of Education
18) Elbren B. Neri – College of Education
19) Dyren Faith L. Peñaflor – College of Education
20) Rodolfo Reyes Jr. – College of Education
21) Alexis Louise Y. Nuñez – Faculty of Engineering
22) Justin Timothy V. Vinluan – Faculty of Engineering
23) Martha Joyce D. Tomas – College of Fine Arts and Design
24) Karen Janario – Institute of Physical Education & Athletics
25) Michelle P. Loterte Institute of Physical Education & Athletics
26) Daniel Felix T. Amores – UST Junior High School
27) Christian David Dela Cruz – UST Junior High School
