BAGUIO CITY – The Commission on Higher Education officially opened the CHED Zonal Creativity Summit 2024, at the University of Baguio on Thursday, October 17.
Spearheaded by the CHED Office of Programs and Standards Development (OPSD) with the theme, “Bayang Pinagpala, Lahing Manlilikha,” the summit was conducted in honor of Philippine Creative Industries Month (PCIM) and in accordance with Republic Act No. 11904. The summit brought together CHED Regional Offices and Higher Education Institutions (HEIs) from Regions I, II, III, and the Cordillera Administrative Region (CAR).
The goal of the summit is to highlight the diverse range of creativity and innovation found in the Philippine creative sectors, highlighting its critical role in socioeconomic advancement and nation-building. This event provides a forum for showcasing the distinctive contributions of Northern Luzon educators, students, and creative professionals, encouraging partnerships that will support the expansion of the Philippine creative industry.
In a welcome message, Director IV of Commission on Higher Education – Cordillera Administrative Region Dr. Demetrio Anduyan Jr. CESO III, highlighted that the program will provide platforms for networking, sharing of ideas, and collaboration in order to promote the creative industry.
“The Higher Education Institutions are the best venues for the development of creativity among out students even to our faculty and staff, so that they can properly advance the attainment of quality education and the development of world-class skills, and the development and products and services where the Filipino ingenuity and creativity will surely shine,” Anduyan noted.
President of University of Baguio Engr. Javier Herminio Bautista expressed his joy on the opportunities that the summit presents.
“The theme “Bayang Pinagpala, Lahing Manlilikha,” speaks of the incredible creative spirit that prides across Northern Luzon and highlights the essential contributions of our artists, educators, and students to our nation’s growth,” Bautista said.
The program’s keynote speaker, Dr. J. Prospero E. De Vera III, Chairperson of the Commission on Higher Education (CHED) stressed that there is a must to ask what is needed to do in the academe to develop creative hubs in higher education institutions so that it can produce graduates who can take the lead in driving the creative economy forward.
“We need to develop stronger partnerships with industry experts, we need to engage professionals to provide insights into emerging skills requirement, our universities must reach outside their campus. Higher experts as faculty members engage with experts in the industry so that we can develop our own higher education institutions,” De Vera emphasized.
“We ensure that our educational programs incorporate real-world skills and emerging technologies such as digital marketing, user experience design, game development, animation, and data analytics,” De Vera added.
The summit features the Hugpungan Exhibit which is a showcase of creative products, cultural items, and merchandise. These exhibit booths are organized by the participating HEIs. The participating institutions are Urdaneta City University, Mariano Marcos State University, University of Northern Philippines, Central Luzon State University, Angeles University Foundation, Bulacan State University, University of the Cordilleras, Mountain Province State University, Kalinga State University, Cordillera Career Development College, Benguet State University and the host institution, University of Baguio.
Furthermore, the two-day summit consists of four plenary sessions, discussing HEIs and the Philippine Creative Industries Roadmap, Cultural Vibrancy and Economy, HEIs as Enabling Environments for Creativity and Innovation, Creative Philippine HEIs Rising, and workshops on the aforementioned topics. The top three Best Hugpungan Exhibition Entries were likewise awarded on the last day of the summit. By Heleina Taeza
