CapSU Pontevedra educ, computer dept host joint research, proposal briefers

By Jocelyn Dagudag

Research Chairperson
CapSU Pontevedra 

Education and computer science students
present their research proposals to the pool
of experts and research advisers.

The Teacher Education Department (TED) and Bachelor of Science in Computer Science (BSCS) programs of the Capiz State University Pontevedra Campus hosted the first Joint Research Orientation and Proposal Presentation on May 19, 2011 at the CapSU Pontevedra Campus in Bailan, Pontevedra, Capiz.

Led by Dr. Rebecca N. Rosano, research coordinator for CapSU Pontevedra’s College of Education, Arts and Sciences, the program included topics on the format and mechanics of university research, the roles and responsibilities of theadvisory committee and ethics in research.

Dr. Mae Dumapig, college dean, Dr. Jocelyn Dagudag, campus research chairperson, and Dr. Rebecca Rosano served as resource speakers for the briefers and orientation. 

After the BSCS and TEC students presented their research proposals before the panel of evaluators, the nomination of advisory committees followed.

CapSU, Pakisama train Pinay, Mambusao farmers on organic farming practices

By Niño Manaog

University Extension Associate

Capiz State University

The Capiz State University (CapSU) Extension Institute represented by its Training Coordinator Eduardo Navarra and University Extension Associate Niño Manaog, joined the Pambansang Kilusan ng mga Samahang Magsasaka (Pakisama), a national nongovernment organization advancing rural improvement through farmers’ empowerment, to conduct a livelihood skills training on organic farming and natural farming practices to some 20 farmers of barangay Pinay, Mambusao, Capiz on July 14, 2011 at the Pinay Barangay Hall in Pinay, Mambusao, Capiz.

Ms. Marissa Tuazon, Pakisama’s provincial coordinator for Capiz, along with Mr. Navarra, led the members of Pinay Farmers Multipurpose Cooperative (PFMPC) in learning to prepare IMO concoctions which can be used as foliar fertilizers for their farms.

After lectures on organic farming and preparation of IMO concoctions, Pinay Barangay Captain Bernardo Ponce and PFMPC President Reynaldo Cerelo led their group in making the actual concoctions. Working in groups, the farmers sourced the locally available materials from the barangay and took part in preparing Fermented Plant Juice, Fermented Fruit Juice (FFJ), Oriental Herbal Nutrient (OHN) and Fish Amino Acid (FAA).

During the workshops, Navarra stressed on the advantages of organic farming while Tuazon emphasized on the need of Pinay farmers to take stock in the concoctions they prepared for actual use in their farms. The facilitators also encouraged them to consider preparing said concoctions as their prospective means of livelihood. 


Thirty-eight-year-old Zosimo Febreo of Sitio Bating, a farmer for ten years, welcomed the idea of preparing IMOs for foliar fertilizes in his farm. He wants to try it out if it indeed lessens the cost of his agricultural input.

Reynaldo Cerelo, president of PFMPC, who has been farming since he was 19, recently started vermicomposting in his two-hectare upland farm planted to rice and corn, keeps his fingers crossed, about the benefits of organic farming, saying “Maayong panglawas kag makabulig sa aton nga gastos (It favors human health and also entails less cost).”

Medelin Caraos, 52, currently a barangay kagawad of Pinay, is optimistic about the barangay’s initiative to try organic farming. Aside from willing to try it herself, Caraos expressed full support for Barangay Captain Ponce and said the OHN and the FFJ they prepared will be accordingly distributed to farmers in different sitios.

Sixty-two-year old Vicente Lerona, a retired military who has been farming since 1997, said he would also want to experiment practicing organic farming in his 3,000-sq.m. rented land. He said he may be old but he believes he can profit from the initiative of the barangay to promote organic farming.

Farmer participants also committed to prepare more IMO in various volumes which can help more farmers in the barangays.

On the same day, Pakisama National Operations Manager Felix Zamar met with CapSU President Editha Magallanes at the latter’s office in Fuentes Drive, Roxas City to brief her on the nature and thrusts of their organization. Zamar also stressed on how Pakisama can partner with CapSU in facilitating extension mechanisms for the benefit of the community.

Among others, Zamar sought to establish initial linkage with the academe including CapSU and College of St. Anthony, and help facilitate the business trajectory for the farmers in the project areas.

In response, President Magallanes cited appreciation for Pakisama’s thrusts and committed CapSU’s full cooperation in the field of extension and similar assistance.

Operating and maintaining project areas nationwide including Capiz and Bohol in the Visayas, Pakisama is a national peasant confederation and movement dedicated to the "empowerment of the Filipino small farmers, fishers, rural women, youth, and indigenous peoples." The group also leads the advocacy and implementation of "sustainable agrarian and aquatic reform and rural development and equality of men and women, and responding to our present and historical problem of poverty and injustice."

Pakisama is funded by European Commission-Agriterra, a worldwide organization working together with some 80 rural people’s organizations in Latin America, Africa, Asia and Central and Eastern Europe and the Netherlands. Agriterra’s work “ranges from rural-tourism, the improvement of potato production, and the establishment of farmers credit banks to the penetration of new products in the market or of existing products in new markets.”

Zamar also expressed appreciation of the documentation efforts extended by CapSU during the Antique muscovado mills tour of their farmers' cooperative beneficiary in President Roxas, Capiz in April this year.

CapSU MTS graduates 28 food technologists

By Niño Manaog

University Extension Associate

Capiz State University

It’s another feather to the Cap(SU).


The Capiz State University (CapSU) Mobile Technology School (MTS) ushered in a new batch of graduates in food technology during the Graduation Exercises of the Livelihood and Skills Training on Food Technology in sitio Mahayag in barangay Malocloc Sur, Ivisan, Capiz recently.

Led by President Editha L. Magallanes, CapSU conferred certificates to some 28 graduates of cooking and food technology conducted by the MTS at the Mahayag Elementary School in the last two weeks of May 2011.

The food technology training featured the expertise of Ms. Lucia Adodoli, food technology trainer from CapSU Roxas City Campus. For two weeks, Adodoli, assisted by Extension Chairman Remar Apolinario, facilitated the food and cooking sessions to some 28 household women, housewives and teachers in the principal’s office of the said barangay school.

Adodoli maximized some 120 training hours for the participants by giving them several cooking lessons at one time, making the class cook an average of four recipes per day session. Para di masayang ang time ng mga nanay, during baking, we ask them to prepare ingredients for the next recipe, Adodoli said.

In particular, the participants were taught a number of cooking recipes from baking cakes and pies like buko pie, sponge cake, chiffon cake and chocolate crinkles to preparing native delicacies like pichi-pichi and empanada.

Adodoli also taught them how to preserve food particularly atsara (pickles) and cook desserts like kutsinta, puto cheese and yema and butterscotch, brownies and other pasalubong, among others.

The 49-year-old food technologist takes pride in having taught them cake decoration, and cites the enjoyment from the service she is able to render the University through this extension work. Adodoli considers these skills transfer useful in the way they will help the beneficiaries make income out of their recipes.

To facilitate said sessions, Adodoli provided most of the ingredients for cooking while the participants brought their own locally available ingredients like lubi (coconut), kamote (sweet potato) and other crops, wherever applicable.

In her inspirational message, CapSU President Magallanes said the livelihood initiative of MTS was targeted to help the housewives and mothers generate income for their household. According to Magallanes, the University is also geared up to undertake further initiatives for the constituents of Ivisan, Capiz. This August, for example, CapSU will launch a survey study on the need for livelihood trainings and climate change awareness among the fisherfolk living in three coastal barangays in Ivisan.

According to Dr. Emmanuel Perez, MTS project consultant, the initiative was designed to conduct competency-based skills training on food technology for out-of-school youth and interested residents. Perez said they were able to “extend our skills and assets straight to the beneficiaries.” Perez considered the initiative successful as participants were able to prepare and cook local recipes out of readily available ingredients. More important, the livelihood training sought to help the participants generate livelihood in their households and community.

For DOLE’s part, the agency vowed to assist employment and business. They will include the names of the graduates in their list for prospective employment or business opportunities and help facilitate the awarding of business startup kits in the future.

MTS is a joint project of the Capiz provincial government, the Technical Education Skills Development Authority (TESDA) Capiz, the Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) and CapSU.

The graduation rites was also witnessed by Dr. Editha Alfon, MTS project implementer; MTS project consultant; Remar Apolinario, Bachelor of Industrial Technology coordinator; Esperidion Pelaez, MTS coordinator for the province of Capiz; and Councilor Katherine San Antonio, livelihood committee chairman of Ivisan. The training initiative was supported by Malocloc Sur Barangay Captain Alfonso Villar, Jr. and Dr. Lydia Barrientos, school principal.

Participants from Malocloc Sur, Ivisan, Capiz
turned out a variety of delicacies from the recipes
taught by Ms. Lucia Adodoli, food technologist
based in CapSU Roxas City.

CapSU MIS monitors iSchools in Capiz

By Niño Manaog

University Extension Associate

Capiz State University

The Capiz State University (CapSU)’s Management Information Systems (MIS) Office led by Director Blas Bargo has initiated various activities to implement and monitor the iSchools project launched by the Commission on Information and Communications Technology (CICT) across the province of Capiz. 

Working for CICT under the Office of the President, CapSU’s CICT team composed of Project Manager Blas Bargo, Technical Training Coordinator Amel Magallanes; Open Source Technical Expert Leo Anthony Navarrosa and Laboratory Assistant Martin Diego Villaluna helped launch and install the computer networks in nine public high schools across the province of Capiz in 2010.

CapSU MIS Director Blas Bargo (first from left) leads the team
that monitors the performance, equipment and status of
 iSchools project in Basiao National High School in Ivisan, Capiz.
Here, computer laboratory custodian Zenaida Ong (center)
coordinates with Martin Villaluna on the new equipment
installed for use at the same school.

Under the iSchools project, each beneficiary was awarded one laptop, one Liquid Crystal Display (LCD) projector, one computer unit each for the use of the school library, faculty room and principal and 16 computer workstations for the use of the students. The donation also came with one air-conditioning unit for the computer laboratory, while the school recipients prepared the building and the basic fixtures and facilities as counterpart. Along with the costs incurred for the capability building activities and representation and transportation allowance, each school recipient was awarded approximately Php1M under the said project.

The iSchools project seeks to promote enhanced classroom learning and instruction in nine selected public high schools in the province. For this, CapSU virtually helps “bridge the digital divide” as it monitors the performance, equipment and status of iSchools projects given. The team also virtually helps facilitate capability building activities and initiates monitoring schemes for the performance and status of the launched iSchools.

Since last year, MIS Director Bargo’s team has launched monitoring the equipment status and performance of iSchools projects in various parts of Capiz including Basiao National High School in Ivisan and Pawa National High School in barangay Pawa, Panay, Capiz.

Sophomores Glaiden Umiten (left) and Prince Ace Billones,

II-Pearl students of Basiao National High School in sitio Looc,

Basiao, Ivisan, Capiz feel lucky and privileged

to have been the pioneer batch in their school to benefit

from the iSchools project launched last year.

In Basiao National High School in sitio Looc, Basiao, Ivisan, second-year students Glaiden Umiten and Prince Ace Billones feel lucky and privileged to have been the pioneer batch in their school to benefit from the iSchools project launched last year.

In 2010, Umiten and Billones belonged to the first batch who were taught Computer courses in their school and the first to have used the computer units awarded to their school. Billones, cartoonist for their school paper Ang Baybayon, was excited to learn computer skills and considers himself productive last year. “Marami kang magagawa at marami kang makikita (You can do and see many things),” Billones, who obtained 97% overall average in his freshman year, says of this privilege of being able to use computers

Meanwhile, fourteen-year-old Umiten shares her classmate’s privilege of using computers in their schoolwork. Umiten is grateful that she can edit pictures and enhance her school project, and even values the skills which she can use for future employment, saying, “Magagamit ko ang computer skills ko sa paghanap ng trabaho.”

Bargo’s technical team periodically monitors the performance, equipment and status of iSchools projects like these in Basiao National High School in Ivisan, Capiz. During monitoring, Bargo’s team helps troubleshoot problems of the purchased units provided for the computer workstations laboratories in the said high schools. For example, computer laboratory custodian Zenaida Ong of Basiao NHS and Rose Ann Edullantes of Pawa NHS coordinate with laboratory assistant Martin Villaluna on the new equipment installed for use at the same school.

CapSU's Martin Villaluna installs the newly purchased
UPS provided for the workstations in Basiao National
High School's computer laboratory.

Ms. Rose Ann Edullantes, computer laboratory custodian of Pawa National High School realizes the benefits of the iSchools project in their community. First, she says that at least the students become computer literate; which gives them advantage over other students without computers. iSchools also allow teachers to advance themselves. Personally she finds it as another way of improving herself. A math major herself, Edullantes considers teaching Computer subjects to her students as a challenge. She also considers it as opportunity and privilege since she has access to computer use anytime. Through the computer seminars and trainings she attends under CICT, she gains more know-how and advantage.

According to MIS Director Blas Bargo, who is also iSchools regional coordinator for monitoring and evaluation in Western Visayas, they evaluate the performance and status of the facilities because CICT is mandated to monitor the impact of the project to the communities where they have been provided. 

One of the flagship projects of Human Capital Development Group (HCDG) under the Commission on Information and Communications Technology (CICT), the iSchools project aims not only to equip public high school teachers and students with ICT literacy skills but also to “provide them access to relevant digital content and applications in education which they can use to enhance effective learning.”

CapSU promotes CICT’s iSchools project across Capiz

By Niño Manaog

University Extension Associate

Capiz State University

“Bridge the digital divide.” So goes the slogan of the iSchools project by the Commission on Information and Communications Technology (CICT) under the Office of the President of the Republic of the Philippines which is coursed through the Capiz State University (CapSU)’s Management Information Systems (MIS) Office.

Led by Director Blas Bargo, CapSU MIS has initiated various activities to implement iSchools project initiated by CICT across the province of Capiz.  CapSU’s CICT team composed of Project Manager Blas Bargo, Technical Training Coordinator Amel Magallanes; Open Source Technical Expert Leo Anthony Navarrosa and Laboratory Assistant Martin Diego Villaluna helped launch and install the computer networks in nine public high schools across the province of Capiz. The team virtually helped facilitate capability building activities and initiated monitoring schemes for the performance and status of the launched iSchools.

Computer teacher Zenaida Ong, electronics and communications engineer by profession (see photo), advises her second-year students to maximize the features of the open source software in layouting their school project in Basiao National High School (BNHS) in sitio Looc, Basiao, Ivisan, Capiz.

One of the flagship projects of Human Capital Development Group (HCDG) under the Commission on Information and Communications Technology (CICT), the iSchools project supports the efforts of the Philippine Government and the Department of Education to incorporate ICT in education in public high schools. The purpose is not only to equip all public high school teachers and students with ICT literacy skills but also to “provide the beneficiaries access to relevant digital content and applications in education which they can use to enhance effective learning.”

PC recycling training

In June 2010, Bargo’s team led a PC recycling training seminar to some 28 high school teachers from seven national high school recipients in the province of Capiz. Teachers handling general course subjects were taught skills needed for the maintenance and troubleshooting of computers donated by the CICT. In the ten-day workshop held at the San Antonio Beach Resort in Baybay, Roxas City, teacher participants had to identify the basic parts of the computer, compare the application software and the operating system and install the basic computer system units and its peripherals and troubleshoot the computer problems, among other things.

Participating schools included the Jamindan National High School; Mambusao West National High School; Dumalag Central National High School; Ramon Arnaldo High School in Banica, Roxas City; Panit-an National High School; San Nicolas National High School in Pilar and Vicente Andaya, Sr. Memorial National High School in Sigma, all of the province of Capiz.

The training allowed participants to learn basic computer skills, computer hardware and computer software installation, PC data backup and PC recycling. More important, teacher trainees were also briefed on electronic waste management and the legal terms and conditions, laws and licenses all related to computer and internet use.

Computer and Internet Literacy Courses (CILC)

To complement the launch of iSchools in the province, CapSU launched the Computer and Internet Literacy Course (CILC) in September 2010. Bargo’s technical team facilitated the techno transfer from CICT personnel to the recipients in the public high schools. For the two batches of capability building activities, CICT provided the resource person and two laboratory assistants to teach the high school teachers on the operation, maintenance and troubleshooting of the computer workstations and facilities donated. School beneficiaries included the Yating National High School in Pilar, Pawa National High School in Panay, Basiao National High School in Ivisan, Lonoy National High School in Sapian, Dao National High School in Dao and Burias National High School in Mambusao, all of Capiz.

The second batch of recipients given CILC in April 2011 consisted of the Katipunan High School and Bagong Barrio High School, both of Tapaz and Mianay High School in Sigma, Capiz. During the CILC, experts from other state universities and colleges (SUCs) lectured to teachers and selected students on computer concepts and software applications, while the CICT team led the logistics and technical assistance for said activities. More important, the CILC training allowed teacher participants to present their outputs for critique and evaluation.

The Benefits of iSchool project

Under the iSchools project, each beneficiary was awarded one laptop, one Liquid Crystal Display (LCD) projector, one computer unit each for the use of the school library, faculty room and principal and 16 workstations for the use of the students. The donation also came with one air-conditioning unit for the computer laboratory, while the school recipients prepared the building and the basic fixtures and facilities as counterpart. Along with the costs incurred for the capability building activities and representation and transportation allowance, each school recipient was awarded approximately Php1M under the said project.

According to MIS Director Blas Bargo, who is also iSchools regional coordinator for monitoring and evaluation in Western Visayas, there is a need to periodically evaluate the performance and status of the facilities; CICT is also mandated to monitor the impact of the project to the far-flung communities where it has been provided.  For Bargo, CapSU this year will lead the initiative to help the said communities for genuine accomplishment. 

BASIAO BENEFICIARIES

Under the iSchools project, MIS Dir. Blas Bargo (second row, third from left) has sought the expertise of Mr. Amel Magallanes,  technical training coordinator (on study leave); Leo Anthony Navarrosa (second row, first from left), open source technical expert and Martin Diego Villaluna (second row, second from left), computer laboratory assistant to facilitate capability building and monitor the performance and status of CICT-sponsored iSchools which have been distributed to some nine public high schools across the province of Capiz.