The University of the Philippines (UP), especially the UP Diliman – Extension Program in Pampanga and Olongapo (UPDEPPO), “will always celebrate” the life of Prof. Gerardo B. Agulto, Jr., who passed away last March 10 at the age of 79.
After retiring from service in 2007 as Associate Professor of the UP College of Business Administration, now the Virata School of Business, Agulto served as Executive Director of the UP Foundation until 2021.
“Prof. Agulto has always been known as the Father of the Master of Management Program… He recruited the best and brightest of his former students from Diliman to establish and enrich the MM program… The magic fiber of his being is most memorable: cultivating the life of the mind as well as giving heart to the UPDEPPO community,” Dr. Julieta C. Mallari, former director of UPDEPPO, wrote in a testimonial posted on the Facebook page of the UP Clark and Subic Master of Management Program. Memorial services were held from March 11 to 13 in Quezon City.
Agulto grew up in San Jose, Nueva Ecija. He earned his Bachelor’s degree in Business Administration in 1963 and his MBA in 1974, both in UP Diliman. His mother, Socorro Bautista-Agulto, was a UP BS Pharmacy alumna (1938).
Agulto worked in the private sector from the 1970s to the 80s. Initially, he worked for Coca-Cola Export Company as Management Information System Coordinator for the Pacific Region and later, as Product Manager. He also became Senior Vice President of the Philippine National Bank.
He rose through the ranks at the UP College of Business Administration (renamed Virata School of Business). He was a Project Assistant in 1968, served as an Instructor, was eventually promoted to Assistant Professor, and was Associate Professor 7 when he retired in 2007. He was Officer-in-Charge of the College from August 1, 1990, to April 30, 1992. He also served as Director of the UP MBA Alumni Society from 1997-1998.
Source: UP MPRO
