In a powerful message of unity and purpose, Dr. Victor C. Cañezo, Jr., President of Biliran Province State University (BiPSU) and Chair of the Philippine Association of State Universities and Colleges (PASUC) Region VIII, underscored the strong commitment of Eastern Visayas’ academic institutions to serve Filipino learners. His remarks were delivered during the CHED Regional Office VIII Gawad Parangal 2025 held on May 27 at the Mary NGO Hall, St. Paul School of Professional Studies in Palo, Leyte.

"Thirty-one years ago, CHED opened wider doors for every Filipino learner. Today, we celebrate the people and partnerships that keep the pledge alive," Dr. Cañezo stated, addressing the CHED officials, HEI presidents, educators, scholars, and public servants.

The university president also spotlighted three BiPSU alumni who earned national recognition as top-notchers—Nova Lyzza Agustin Ejorcadas, Neña Rose Corpin, and Joshua M. Ayade, who joined him at  the event to receive awards from CHED.  

“Your medals honor your families and teachers; your next task is to take that excellence to our classrooms, public service offices, start-ups, or wherever God brings you where you can solve real problems,” added Dr. Cañezo.

Dr. Cañezo encouraged them to bring that same brilliance to real-world challenges in public service. 

The said event also marked the ceremonial release of stipends to CHED Tulong Dunong scholars and other grantees. 

Among those recognized were BiPSU’s Jyle Sabalones and Angela Balute, praised not only for their academic diligence but for their potential to "pay it forward" and continue the chain of support for future scholars.

“Use this support to finish strong, then pay it forward so the chain never breaks,” the university president emphasized. 

Moreover, Cañezo issued a powerful call to action to his fellow university presidents, "The Gawad Parangal is not a finish line. It manifests the trailhead of the next ascent. Funds may thin and storms may batter our shores, yet when we pool insight, equipment, and networks, we turn limits into levers that lift learners," he shared. 

Acknowledging the vital role of CHED RO VIII, he described the regional office as both "compass and bridge," citing its success in driving higher graduate employment rates, increased research visibility, and stronger inter-campus collaboration across Eastern Visayas.

The PASUC 8 President also shared BiPSU’s institutional values—brilliance, innovation, progress, service, and unity. Cañezo gave life to these principles through real stories of faculty and students who went beyond duty in service of others.

“I see each word wearing a human face in this hall: the scholar who tutors classmates after class—brilliance; the faculty member who rewired a broken laboratory so research could continue—innovation; the institution that shared power with a neighboring campus after the last typhoon—service and unity in one act,” he shared. 

He closed his speech with a Visayan folk tale that captured this year’s Gawad Parangal theme: “ “Many Threads, One Strong Weave.”

“A farmer once wove a sleeping mat so sturdy that neighbors wondered how a single strand could bear such weight. He smiled and answered, “I never trusted one strand; I wove many.” “Today we are on that mat—every scholar, teacher, administrator, and partner. Our weave holds because each thread holds, he concluded. 

This year’s Gawad Parangal is in celebration of the 31st Founding Anniversary of the Commission on Higher Education and the 5th Higher Education Day. 

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