UNC to swear in its 4th president today

THE PARTNERS. UNC President Dr. Fay Lauraya (sitting, 3rd from left) with her fellow practitioners in the media pose for posterity after a brief exchange they had regarding her administration’s platforms during a press conference on Monday. Mr. Joel Crescini (4th from left) head of the university’s public information office organized the meeting. JBN/UNC

NAGA CITY --- As it journeys toward the achievement of academic leadership in the Bicol Region, the University of Nueva Caceres is celebrating today the investiture of its 4th president whose platform of administration will continuously drive the higher education institution to reach the goals it is aiming for. That is what the media practitioners here see Dr. Fay Lea Patria M. Lauraya whose 30 years in government service allowed her to earn administrative and managerial expertise that can steer the university towards excellence in academic service.

Lauraya was president of the Bicol University for 8 years where she instituted systems and procedures to ensure full delivery of major final outcomes in instruction, research, extension and resource generation through the application of total quality management system as a tool for governance that led to the university’s status as the first ISO-institutionally certified public university in the country.

“With that, BU has now become the country’s 9th biggest university, in terms of enrolment, capturing 20% of the total enrolment in the Bicol Region, and offering 118 strongly accredited curricular programs, including the Doctor of Medicine,” her resumé reveals.

Alfredo I. Ayala, who stepped down last July 30, 2018 as president, said the UNC community is “fortunate to have Fay join us at UNC, as she is an accomplished and proven leader who has a track record of engaging with and empowering both staff and students, introducing innovative new programs, and investing in employee development and a merit based promotion system.”

Ayala decided to bow out from office so that he can focus on “key strategic initiatives of AC Education, including the development of our newly acquired National Teachers College, and the merger of AC Education with iPeople, the listed education company that owns Mapua University.”

Lauraya, who served as the 7th president of the Bicol University from 2007 to 2015, is being recognized for helping the school achieve excellence on many fronts. Ayala said she transformed BU to be one of the country’s best performing SUCs in terms of licensure exams, and maintained its SUC Level IV status, the highest possible accreditation level for SUCs.

“She also grew the student population from just over 16,000 to nearly 25,000 students,” Ayala said.

Because of the triumphs that the newly-installed UNC president achieved at BU, she was invited by the Commission on Higher Education to serve as the lead for International Development and Innovation Grants, where she helped universities around the country to build their capacities for quality teaching, research and extension, especially those impacted by the K-12 transition.