SPU Manila INTER-OFFICE BULLETIN - St. Paul University Manila

SPU Manila INTER-OFFICE BULLETIN
Vol. IV No. 35 20 June 2011
LOOKING BACK …
ST. PAUL SISTERS CELEBRATE “VIA SACRA”
Last Sunday, 19 June 2011, the St. Paul Sisters celebrated their “Via Sacra,” the “first station”
in their sacred journey.
The celebration started with a Mass officiated by Fr. Michael La Guardia, SDB at 9:00
A.M. in the Chapel of the Crucified Christ. This was followed by a conference on Vocation given
by Fr. La Guardia; Eucharistic Adoration; and Luncheon.
The introduction to the Mass, given by Sr. Mary Vianney Ramirez, SPC, Vice-President for
Student Services, explains the significance of the “Via Sacra.”
Today the whole of Christendom celebrates the Solemnity of the Most Blessed Trinity, the
central mystery of our Christian faith. In union with this great celebration, we rejoice as one
Paulinian community and family of God for the continued guidance, inspiration and innumerable
blessings bestowed upon the Congregation of the Sisters of St. Paul of Chartres, particularly
here in the Philippines.
From our humble beginnings that go back to the small poor village of Levesville-la-
Chenard in the Beauce Region in France, the Triune God has been ever present and faithful to
His promise “Semper Vobiscum,” “I am always with you” (Mt. 28). This serves as an inspiration
to every Sister of St. Paul of Chartres to be faithful to God and committed to the mission
entrusted to her by virtue of her religious consecration.
Epoch-making was the arrival of the first group of Sisters in the shores of Dumaguete on
the 28 th of October 1904. It was in Dumaguete that vocations to religious life in SPC Philippines
began. In 1910 the need to bring the postulants together in a formation house became
inevitable. There was no place reserved for the formation of young Filipina ladies who sought
admission into the Congregation of the Sisters of St. Paul of Chartres.
The story of the first SPC Novitiate dates back to the year 1910 when “the need to bring
the postulants together in a formation house became inevitable. … A wooden house near the
church of San Juan del Monte was rented to bring the postulants of Dumaguete and Intramuros.
… Because the means of transportation at that time was the calesa, and because San Juan del
Monte is quite a distance from Intramuros, it was not possible for them to have a regular
schedule for meals” which were provided them by the Sisters in Intramuros where the Sisters
were administering a hospital. “To solve the problem, they looked for another house close to
Intramuros, and found a small one in Singalong. That was the second rented novitiate house.”
After one year of searching, Mother Theresa Verdier found an appropriate site for the
SPC Novitiate. She found “swampy lot near the market” in the Malate District of the city of

Manila. “According to the documents in the archives, ‘It was a market place then. The ground
at the back of the property was swampy and surrounded by trees. Poor people used to go and
catch mud-fish in the swamps. Indomitable Mother Theresa started the work of converting the
swamps into solid earth. She had them filled and fenced in to keep away the fishers of mudfish.’
The construction of a one-floor house of half-concrete was completed and blessed on June
25, 1911.” The first Clothing Ceremony was held on that same day with Monsignor Ambrose
Agius, the Apostolic Delegate, presiding” (Ten Decades of Passover, pp. 156-157).
In 1912 the parents in the Malate neighborhood requested the Sisters to open a school.
Heeding their request, the Sisters opened a Kindergarten school with six pupils. Thus was born
St. Paul Institution, now St. Paul University Manila. By 1915 the enrollment ballooned to 300
which necessitated the construction of two additional wings to the building proper. By 1928 the
enrollment had risen to 584. The Malate lot became congested with the increase in enrollment
as well as the increase in the number of Sisters under formation (Ten Decades of Passover, p.
159).
Thus began another search for a larger place to house the growing number of Sisters.
The search led the Sisters to New Manila or Quezon City which became the site of the second
Novitiate. Construction started in 1930 and the next year the Novitiate packed up for another
journey to a three-storey concrete building. The Novitiate in Quezon City experienced the same
problem of congestion when the school which opened in 1946 began to grow, thus making it
imperative for the superiors and formators to look for another place for the formation of the
Sisters. The search for a less populated and more appropriate site began. A quiet woody hilltop
in Antipolo was found. The construction of the third Novitiate and Formation House, which was
to be called Our Lady of Chartres Convent, began in 1963. The solemn blessing of Our Lady of
Chartres Convent took place on the 19 th of January 1964.
Via Sacra means “sacred way.” It refers to a sacred journey. We are celebrating today
the first official “station” so to say of the saga or “Via Sacra” of the SPC Novitiate in the
Philippines. We in St. Paul University Manila feel privileged to have been the site of the first
official Novitiate. We take pride in protecting and preserving this legacy given us by our holy
Mothers and Founders. We commit ourselves to move on, inspired by the indomitable spirit and
courage of our Sisters, who could not be discouraged nor defeated by the tragedy of war and
poverty, nor by contradictions. The remains of our glorious past are immortalized in the façade
of the Chapel of the Crucified Christ and will always remain a living witness and symbol of God’s
fidelity and generosity to the Sisters of St. Paul of Chartres.
We therefore invite you to join us in this celebration of thanksgiving and praise for the
success and growth of the “first station” of our Via Sacra. Presiding and leading us in the
celebration is Father Michael La Guardia, SDB.
PARENTS’ ORIENTATION
The Student Services Division supports the goal to extend the benefits of the quality Catholic
education offered by the institution and to acquaint all parents with the university’s visionmission,
educational objectives, services, rules, and policies. The parents’ orientation aimed to
intensify contact with them and develop collaboration through lecture-forums.

Parents of Freshmen students during registration
Sr. Lilia Thèrése L.
Tolentino, SPC gave the
welcome remarks
to the parents.
Ms. Lourna V. Tagay,
Chair for Common
Freshmen Program,
gave the orientation to
the parents regarding
CFP.
Dr. Bernard Regalado, VP for
Diagnostic Services at Asia
Pacific Medical & Diagnostic
Inc., gave the orientation
regarding substance abuse.
.

Ms. Mellisa Elsa Pizaña-Cruz,
from Center for Family
Ministries, gave the lecture
forum on “When Parents Are
Friends.”
Mr. Cruz, husband of
Ms. Melissa, also
shared in the
discussion regarding
parenting.
Parents during the open forum…

Sr. Mary Vianney Ramirez, SPC, VP for Student Services, with the resource speakers
Recruitment Day for Extra-Curricular Organizations
Contributed by Ninya Sarena C. Saquilabon
CBM Student Council President
On 10 June 2011, the Office for Student Affairs, with the
help of the Paulinian Student Government, held
Recruitment Day in the University’s Conference Lobby
during the students’ activity hour. The event was not only
for the freshmen students but for the upper year levels as
well. As a part of the Paulinian holistic formation, there
are various available extra-curricular organizations that
will develop and nurture one’s talents and skills. The
activity also served as an avenue for Paulinians to reach
their maximum potential in their respective fields aside
from their academics. There were no restrictions in the
number of organizations students could join as long as
they can balance them with their academics.
There were 21 Extra-Curricular Organizations which participated in the recruitment. For
the Performing Arts Group there were six organizations (Paulinian Dance Troupe, St. Paul
University Chorale, Tanghalang St. Paul, Paulinian Compassionate Clowns, SPU Manila Chamber
Orchestra and SPU Manila Rondalla). During the recruitment, the representatives showcased
their talents by performing live--acting, dancing, singing, and playing string instruments.
The Advocacy Groups (Paulinian Environmental Society and Paulinian Peace Builders)
came up with creative booth presentations. The Paulinian Environmental Society made use of
bamboos and other plants as part of their booth decoration, and the Paulinian Peace Builders

gave out paper windmills with quotes related to Peace. For photography aficionados, there was
Paulinian Shutters’ Club under the Hobby Groups who put up their own photo booth during the
recruitment. For the Sports Groups there were three organizations (Paulinian Lynx, Chess Club,
and Paulinian Taekwondo Club) which will have their separate auditions and try outs after the
recruitment. There was one organization under Special Service Group which is the Red Cross
Youth Council-SPU Manila Chapter. And for the Religious Organizations, there were the Campus
Ministry Student Volunteers and Student Catholic Action, whose members animated the crowd
with their joy and happiness.
The organizations under the Communication Groups (The Paulinian, Verbum et Sapientia
and Public Relations Unit) will have their separate day of recruitment, as well as the exclusive
membership group, which is International Students’ Association.
The event started with an Opening Prayer by Mr. Ram Paduit, president of the Paulinian
Environment Society, followed by welcome remarks by Ms. Oreanne Honofre, over-all in-charge
of the programs for the month of June.
There were a big number of students who came to the event. Indeed, it was a great
start of the school year. It showed that students can balance extra curricular activities with
academics, which will help them in their Paulinian holistic formation.
AND FORWARD…
PAULINIAN PRIMA BALLERINA TO MARK 50 YEARS IN BALLET
Sr. Lilia Thérèse L. Tolentino, SPC was pleased to receive this communication from the
Philippine Ballet Theatre:
The Philippine Ballet Theatre (PBl) , a resident ballet company of the
Cultural Center of the Philippines, restages the well loved classical ballet,
Romeo & Juliet, at the Main Theatre of the Cultural Center of the
Philippines from July 7 to July 10, 2011. Prima Ballerina, Maniya Barreda
will be coming from the US to direct and restage the production together
with her proteges from Atlanta Ballet and Houston Ballet to dance Romeo
and Juliet with our own PBT dancers. ,.
PBT is greatly honored that Maniya agreed to come home and celebrate
her golden anniversary as a dancer With us. Foreign guest artists visiting
to perform in ballets have become rare in the last decade or so. Manila
balletomanes will, therefore, await this event great anticipation. We are
also aware that students in the performing arts will have a rare
opportunity to watch this beautiful ballet. The shows are scheduled at 8:00 pm, on July 7, 8,
and 9 and at 3:00 pm on July 10.
In this regard, we are requesting your good office to sell tickets by block at student price and a
certain percentage from the sale shall go to the school. We would like to discuss details of this
request which will be a win-win situation for both St. Paul College and Philippine Ballet Theatre.

The invitation is most welcome to St. Paul University Manila because Maniya is a
Paulinian, known in school as Honey Barredo. She is a prima ballerina, a coach, and a teacher.
She was born in Manila on 19 November 1951. As a dancer and trainor, she was
distinctly well-defined by various critics. She was noted on her music's visible manifestations by
John Unterecker; a beautiful, a real find and has the makings of a great ballerina by Clive
Barnes; a superb artist, who could favorably compare with the greatest, the rest of the world
has to offer by National Artist Leonor Orosa-Goquingco; and the country's first prima ballerina
assoluta by Felecitas Layag-Radaic. She danced and created roles in the ballets both in the
Philippines and abroad including "The Legend of the Sarimanok", "Difficult Years", "Swan Lake",
"Cinderella", "Ali Baba", "The Sleeping Beauty", and "Romeo and Juliet". (from Wikipilipinas)
SHARING…SHARING…SHARING…
From the College of Business and Management
ST. PAUL UNIVERSITY MANILA CONGRATULATES
THE NEW PAULINIAN CERTIFIED PUBLIC ACCOUNTANTS
Contributed by Dean Celso Benaloga
The Professional Regulation Commission (PRC) has announced the results of the CPA Licensure
Examination given by the Board of Accountancy in the cities of Manila, Baguio, Cagayan de Oro,
Cebu, Davao, Iloilo, and Legazpi in May, 2011.
The PRC disclosed that 2,130 out of 5,259 examinees passed nationwide, indicating a
40.50% passing rate. St. Paul University Manila showed a passing rate of 50.00%. The
Paulinians who hurdled the CPA Board examination are:
1. Karmina T. Panganiban
2. Charlene Joyce M. Espina
3. Maria Jocelle L. Gualberto
The oath-taking ceremony of the successful examinees in the said examination, as well
as the previous ones who have not taken their oath, will be held before the Board of
Accountancy at 1:00 P.M. on Friday, 8 July 2011 at the Plenary Hall of the Philippine
International Convention Center (PICC), Roxas Boulevard, Pasay City.
From the Alumni Relations Office
Manila Doctors Hospital’s Atty. Pilar Nenuca P. Almira
awarded the prestigious CEO EXCEL Award
Contributed by Dr. Manuel Villegas Jr.
Another milestone for the Philippine hospital industry has been achieved. Atty. Pilar Nenuca P.
Almira, Manila Doctors Hospital’s Hospital Director, was recently conferred the 2011 CEO EXCEL
Award by IABC Philippines, the country chapter of the International Association of Business
Communicators. For the first time, a leader from the roster of private stock hospitals was given
this honor since IABC Philippines started the CEO EXCEL Awards in 2005. [Atty. Almira is a HS
1970, BSC 1974 graduate of St. Paul Manila,]

The Communication Excellence in Organizations or the CEO EXCEL Awards is a prestigious honor
conferred annually by the IABC Philippines on top-level Philippine-based business leaders who
masterfully and effectively champion the use of excellent communication as a business strategy.
As a CEO EXCEL awardee, Atty. Almira is
recognized to be a model of leadership in
communication excellence by initiating and
participating in ethical and effective
communication programs and creating
best practices for Manila Doctors Hospital
and the industry in 2010. [2 nd from left in
photo]
Manila Doctors Hospital has been
undergoing a stellar transformation under
the able leadership of Atty. Pilar Nenuca
Almira enhancing the organization through
a variety of mechanisms. Anchored on a
visionary leadership and strengthened by
the organization’s collective resolve to continual improvement, 2010 had been a banner year for
Manila Doctors Hospital.
Atty. Almira communicates the hospital’s commitment to utilize training and research in
continually improving its services through the annual Continual Improvement Program. A
program which the hospital director championed in 2009, the programs have resulted in
strategic gains in recognizing and improving the hospitals reputation among peers in the
industry by garnering awards from prestigious national and international award giving bodies
like the Asian Hospital Management Awards from the Hospital Management Asia, the Philippine
Society of Quality in Healthcare, the Anvil Awards from the Public Relations Society of the
Philippines and the Philippine Quill Awards from the International Association of Business
Communicators.
Atty. Almira together with eleven other awardees from various industries received their trophies
at the Atrium, Enderun Colleges, McKinley Hill, Fort Bonifacio Taguig City last June 7, 2011.Her
co-winners included Mr. Eric O. Recto, President of Petron Corporation, Mr. Roberto Aboitiz,
President of the Ramon Aboitiz Foundation, Inc., Honorable Jose Ma. Clemente S. Salceda,
Governor of Albay, Mr. Vicente Castillo, President and CEO, Philippine Dealing System Holdings
Corporation, Mr. James Velasquez, President and Country General Manager, IBM Philippines,
Inc., Ms. Rizalina Mantaring, President and CEO, Sun Life Financial Philippines, Mr. Emmanuel Y.
Go., President, AGC Flat Philippines, Mr. Peter Musngi, Vice President, DZMM- Manila Radio
Division, ABS-CBN Corporation, Mr. Ruel Maranan, Group Director for Corporate Resources,
Manila Water Company, Inc., and Mr. Leonardo Riingen, President and CEO Informatics Holdings
Philippines. The Lifetime Achievement Award was given to Dr. Emerlinda R. Roman, the
Centinnial President of the University of the Philippines System.
Manila Doctors Hospital’s President Aniceto Sobrepeña was also given this honor in 2005 when
he was the Executive Vice President and Executive Director of the Metrobank Foundation, Inc. In
2006, Manila Doctors Hospital’s Executive Committee Chairman Mr. Antonio Abacan, Jr. was also
recognized as Chairman of the Metropolitan Bank and Trust.