“We are deeply aware of the narratives achieved and lived by the alumni in the different years”
ON MARH 1, at the Manila Hotel Fiesta Pavilion, we join 49 other alumni of San Beda University, the institution of learning founded on June 17, 1901 by Spanish Benedictine monks, who are recognized in their fields of discipline.
Beyond the alphabet, we feel honored, even as we raise the institutional loyalty and feel awed by the contributions of other alumni not only on that date but in the years before when such distinctions were given.
We are privy to the school gaining distinction in producing leaders in politics, sports, media and other fields while operating under the Benedictine principle of Ora et Labora (Prayer and Work).
San Beda’s major areas of merit include its flagship department college of law, recognized for producing topnotchers and nearly always 100 percent bar passing rate, including, but not limited to, prominent politicians and legal professionals.
The school has also strong reputation for excellence in commerce, having produced CPA board topnotchers, and its arts and sciences college is known for high-quality education which has achieved Level III accreditation, driving the university’s academic reputation.
The College of Medicine and College of Nursing, established in 2002 and 2003 respectively, are key pylons in the university’s health science offerings.
Throughout its history, San Beda has consistently blended academic excellence with Benedictine values of faith, knowledge, and virtue.
We are aware of the narratives achieved and lived by the alumni in different years, which enable us to reflect on the accomplishments of our alma mater and the alumni’s “distinguished contributions.”
The Red and White Ball event at the Manila Hotel, only three weeks after the alumni homecoming at the Mendiola campus, allows us to feel the honor and the weight of responsibility to continue to serve, our modest circumstances notwithstanding, our different publics.
The Little Drummer Boy trophy for Distinguished Bedan Award in Media/Communications is not for us alone.
We are incredibly grateful to our professors – those from botany to argumentation and debate, theology, epistemology and journalism, among other required curriculum subjects then – who believed in us, our news sources who trusted us with their “not for attribution” backgrounders who kept the faith while we were chasing the deadline clock, the many people we interviewed, among others.
We acknowledge as well our researchers, photographers, VTR editors. teletype operators busy on perforator tapes, layout artists, coffee mates, often the newsroom’s unsung heroes.
The personal milestone also belongs to our readers in news agency, print, and listeners in broadcast for whom we carry a mix of gratitude and institutional celebration.
On stage we will be haunted again by the challenge we unfurled before thousands of our students who enrolled in our courses to remember, particularly in this digital age where fake news is abundant, journalism’s purpose where we learned lessons from shared field failures.
Having seen them as passionate learners, we know they will be working with well-meaning team members for the uplift of their informed stakeholders.
It also belongs to members of our family – our ancestors, parents and parents-in-law – who held fast to their persuasions with us, including the youngest in the clan, now 10, who, when with only two summers earlier, waited for his lilo for the latter’s dinner in the company of his grandma, our essential whole, while his parents were on the graveyard shift and his two brothers Hail and Mikoy then in slumberland.
And to the oldest of the Saluyot Boys, Aaron, now a journalism sophomore in the UofT, the Little Drummer Boy is also his, as much as it belongs to his parents, his auntie Army and uncle Chris.
Personally the reward endorses the opportunity to have impacted lives, shine a light on truth, and serve the public despite our circumstances, a byproduct of chasing stories – largely from the editor’s desk – and not a prize for being the best.
We acknowledge other awardees and the broader Bedan community fighting for the same causes – the award belonging to everyone who fights for truth.
In the digital age, the purpose, meaning, and significance of journalism have shifted from being the exclusive gatekeeper of information to becoming an important curator, verifier, and truth contextualizer within a drenched, often chaotic, information ecosystem.
While the medium has transitioned from print and broadcast to instantaneous, multimedia-driven digital platforms, the core mission of informing, educating, and empowering citizens remains essential.
Journalism symbolizes a necessary, objective, and ethical force in a world often dominated by algorithms and partisan noise.
We see it often acting like the “Superhero” against planet Krypton-born Clark Kent in filtering, editing and checking facts, and an antibody to misinformation, given the rapid spread of deception.
Journalism has become a “Trusted Voice” in a disjointed digital scenery, a strong, established brand symbolizing a reliable, verified source, reducing the uncertainty and noise for the audience.
Essentially, while the tools and speed of journalism have changed, the basic need for a trusted, ethical, and professional check on information remains as important as ever.
Beyond the Fiesta Pavilion bestowal stage, ut in omnibus glorificetur Deus.
