News & Announcements

UPOU Invites Alumni to its first-ever Congress this July

June 9, 2021

The UP Open University (UPOU) will be holding its first-ever Alumni Congress on 30-31 July 2021. All its graduates from 1997 are invited to participate. We hope that through this Alumni Congress, UPOU will be able to strengthen its ties with its alumni, as well as build a strong network among its alumni members.

The University of the Philippines Open University (UPOU) in collaboration with the UPOU Alumni Foundation Inc. (UPOUAFI) will be holding its first-ever Alumni Congress on 30-31 July 2021. All graduates of UPOU since 1997 are invited to take part in this momentous and historic event.

UPOU celebrated its 25th year in 2020 just before the pandemic disruption. In its 26th year, UPOU will gather its alumni in this 2-day event to strengthen the tie of the university with its alumni, as well as build a strong network among its alumni members. This way, the alumni will be able to contribute to the fulfillment of UPOU’s mission of providing quality higher education through open and distance elearning. The UPOU Alumni Congress carries the theme of the university “Sustainability and Agility of the UPOU Alumni Community amidst Disruptions.”

The event will be held online via Zoom. As UPOU has had students and graduates from more than 70 countries around the world, UPOU looks forward to having participants from across the globe. The event will open at 9:00 AM (Philippine Standard Time) on 30 July 2021. Separate events for the alumni of each of the three Faculty Offices will also be held, which are organized by UPOUAFI in coordination with the Chapter Officers.

The UPOU Alumni Congress 2021 is spearheaded by the UPOU Office of Public Affairs.

To register for the UPOU Alumni Congress 2021, click https://forms.gle/aQwF57XcmCQcVmcM6. Visit the UPOU Facebook Page for updates or email [email protected].

Science by Way of Art: Open Call for Participants

Are you a scientist in the Philippines who works with artists, or an artist who works with scientists? Is your background in the arts and humanities but your work in the Philippines has an impact on scientific knowledge or practice? We’d love to hear more about your work!

 A research team led by UP Open University Associate Professor Diego S. Maranan is conducting a study to map out art-science collaborations in the country. The study,  entitled Science By Way of Art, is part of a larger exploratory research project supported by the British Council that  aims to uncover and document existing contributions – as well as to propose potential and untapped contributions – that the arts and humanities research and practice can make to science research and technology innovation in the Philippines. For more information about the project, please visit https://ph.science.bywayof.art.

 This open call is for artists, scientists, philosophers, designers, inventors, engineers, and other researchers who work in the arts and humanities or in the science and technology R&D sector. If you would like to participate in our research, kindly fill out this form to tell us about your work! Deadline of submission is on 15 June 2021.

Science by Way of Art is part of The Creative Turn in the Sciences, a research project supported by the Connections through Culture program of the British Council, with additional support from the University of the Philippines Open University and Space Ecologies Art and Design (SEADS).

UP Mindanao hosts IWOMB on 09-11 June 2021

June 7, 2021

The University of the Philippines (UP) Mindanao will host the “4th International Workshop on Mathematical Biology” or IWOMB 2021, to be held online via Zoom on 09-11 June 2021 with the theme “Strengthening Decision-Support Systems for Better Public Policy through Infectious Disease Modeling.” 

Since its establishment in 2018, IWOMB has aimed to promote mathematical biology research in the Philippines and provide an opportunity for researchers to establish collaborations across the Philippines and abroad. IWOMB 2021 will gather Filipino and foreign experts working in mathematics and life sciences, including population dynamics, ecology, development biology, biophysics, physiology, and epidemiology, such as the COVID-19 pandemic, to name a few.

The IWOMB 2021 keynote speakers are Dr. Tyll Krueger of Wroclaw University of Science and Technology on Day 1 and Dr. Jomar Rabajante of the University of the Philippines Los Baños on Day 3. The plenary speakers are: Dr. Alastair Jamieson-Lane of the University of Oldenburg, Dr. Wolfgang Bock of Technische Universität Kaiserslautern, and Dr. Alejandra Herrera-Reyes of the University of Nottingham on Day 1; Dr. Aurelio de los Reyes V of the University of the Philippines-Diliman and Dr. Youcef Mammeri of the Université de Picardie Jules Verne on Day 3.

The IWOMB 2021 keynote and plenary talks on Day 1 and all of Day 3 will be open to the public via live-streaming on YouTube. Interested persons may access the Free Live Stream through the URL, “bit.ly/AMDABiDSSHealth.” Upon opening the URL, click the “Subscribe” button, click the Notification Bell icon, which will open a drop-down menu, and click “All.” On the day of IWOMB, the subscriber will receive an email from YouTube containing the link to the Live Stream.

For more information, IWOMB 2021’s official website is at http://bit.ly/IWOMB2021Website and the official Facebook page is https://www.facebook.com/IWOMB2021.

A Scientific Poster Presentation on Day 2 will feature three-minute talks by eight finalists who will communicate their scientific discoveries using popular language.  

IWOMB 2021 is designed as a workshop, or mini-course wherein selected participants are given lectures and learning materials and projects to be solved in workshop groups. The participants are expected to have learned and applied relevant mathematical modeling in solving biology-related problems by the end of the three-day event. 

The scope and instructors of IWOMB Workshop Series #1 to #6 are: “Introduction to Numerical Methods for Stochastic Models” with Dr. Herrera-Reyes & Dr. Jamieson-Lane; “From Infection to Disease Spread – Multiscale Modeling” with Dr. Alexis Erich Almocera; “Seeing you every day! Understanding Disease Dynamics using Panel Regression Approach” with UP Mindanao’s Dr. Pedro Alviola IV and Mr. Zython Paul Lachica; “Optimizing Logistical Operations in Health Services: Application of Location-allocation Models” with Dr. Rhoda Namoco; “Introduction to Mathematical Epidemiology: Ordinary Differential Equations” with Dr. Stacey Smith? and Mr. Abel Lucido; and “Spatiotemporal Pattern of Infectious Diseases” with Dr. Jayrold Arcede, Dr. Randy Caga-anan, and Dr. Mammeri.

The Center for Applied Modeling, Data Analytics, and Bioinformatics for Decision Support System in Health (AMDABiDSS-Health) is the lead organizer of IWOMB 2021. AMDABiDSS-Health is a newly-established UP Mindanao research center focused on deriving insights from patterns and correlations in health-related data using quantitative methods, data analytics, and applied mathematical modeling approaches. Its main objective is to create decision-support systems that will empower local government units and public health officials. AMDABiDSS-Health may be contacted through: [email protected].

#TatagUP Donation Drive

Greetings of Solidarity!

The COVID-19 pandemic has impacted the lives of many UP Diliman (UPD) students and their families. It has been over a year since the pandemic began, and yet the number of COVID-19 cases still continues to rise. Many UPD students are in dire need of assistance due to the heavy economic blows of COVID-19 on top of the already-difficult pandemic situation. Students’ families encounter problems such as inability to work amid the pandemic, job layoffs, home confinement prompting adjustments in balancing household resources, and unexpected expenses for medication and hospital bills. Furthermore, many UPD students continue to bear the added costs of remote learning, and the mental health toll of the crisis has necessitated medication and therapy for many.

While the Office of the Vice Chancellor for Student Affairs (OVCSA) and the Office of Scholarships and Grants (OSG) continue to dispense the university’s student financial assistance programs, guidelines for disbursement governing eligibility and coverage remain in place, and emergency funds for immediate relief due to exceptional circumstances are unavailable.

In light of the current situation, the Office of the Vice-Chancellor for Student Affairs launched the #TatagUP donation drive to provide financial assistance for UP Diliman students and families directly affected by COVID-19.

We would like to request for your assistance in reaching out to the different alumni associations in your database.

Below are links to the publicity materials we released online:

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/124008274455334/posts/1648910135298466/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/p/COw3EJPhKNb/?utm_medium=copy_link

Twitter: https://twitter.com/updilimanovcsa/status/1389122759481982981?s=21

Thank you very much!

3rd Public Service Writing Fellowship

May 12, 2021

The UP Padayon Public Service Office is once again cordially inviting you, fellow faculty members, and REPS to submit applications to the 3rd Public Service Writing Fellowship from May 7 until May 31, 2021. The application packet may be downloaded from http://bit.ly/3rdPSWF-App. 

As a regular program of UP Padayon, the Fellowship is a means to encourage UP faculty and REPS to document their public service initiatives in order to expand the scholarship of public service, especially in face of the challenges of the pandemic. A strong and healthy research culture in public service and extension will help the University fulfill its mandate and bring its services closer to its beneficiaries, institutional partners, and stakeholders. In this regard, successful Fellows will be participating in a virtual Writeshop on July 22-23, 2021 to help develop their public service and extension research.

Applications must be endorsed by your unit head, dean or vice chancellor, and the Member of the System Committee on Public Service Monitoring and Reporting for your CU. Please find attached for your perusal the official poster, the Fellowship Guidelines, and the Application Form.

For further inquiries, please do not hesitate to contact Mr. Charles Ramos via email at [email protected] or mobile phone at 0917 5718886.

National Book Development Board (NBDB) Translation Grants

May 10, 2021

Are you interested in translating your publications to regional and international languages?

NBDB are pleased to inform you that they offer translation grants to Filipino Authors and Publishers who wish to translate and publish their books to other Filipino and international languages.

This is for a total of P6.86 million grant for the National Translation Subsidy Program and International Translation Subsidy Program. Those who are interested in applying may visit https://booksphilippines.gov.ph/translation/.

Applications for the 2021 cycle are due May 30, 2021. Results will be announced on June 30, 2021.

Thank you and stay safe

2020-2021 UPAA Awards Nomination Guidelines and Forms

April 30, 2021

In view of the continuing COVID-19 pandemic protocols, compounded by the rise of reportedly even more infectious variants of the virus, the UPAA Board of Directors has decided to indefinitely postpone the 2021 UP General Alumni Homecoming (scheduled in August) – just like the 2020 Homecoming deferred last year.

Due to this latest development, the UPAA Board has also decided to integrate into just one batch the prospective 2020 and 2021 UPAA Distinguished Alumni Awardees and honor them together in a single awarding ceremony.

As this will afford the UPAA more time to conduct the selection process, we are pleased to advise you that the UPAA Secretariat will now continue to accept nominations from UPAA chapters and UP alumni until June 30, 2021.

Thank you. We wish you continuing safety and good health.

Very truly yours,

REYNALDO C. LASERNA
President and Alumni Regent

2020-2021 UPAA Awards Propectus