BONTOC, Mountain Province – Eighty-five students and School Paper Advisers (SPAs) from the public and private high schools in Bontoc underwent a Journalism Training for Campus Journalists on March 14-15, 2023, at the Multi-Purpose Hall, Provincial Plaza, Bontoc, Mountain Province.
The schools that joined the training are Mountain Province General Comprehensive High School (MPGCHS), ALBAGO National High School (NHS), Dalican NHS, Guina-ang NHS, Mainit NHS, Talubin NHS, Tocucan NHS, Saint Vincent’s School-High School Department, and XIJEN College-Senior High Department.
The two-day training which was conducted by the Bontoc Local Government Unit (LGU) through the Municipal Information Office aimed to equip participants with necessary skills, knowledge, and expertise, including attitudes towards effective journalism. Thus, it involved lectures from resource speakers, workshops from the participants, and critiquing of their output. These include News Writing, Feature Writing, Sports Writing, and Photo Journalism.
The resource speakers during the training are Information Officer II Valerie Jane Taguba from the Philippine Information Agency (PIA) – Mountain Province, Photographer II Juvy Lopez from the Bontoc LGU, Supervising Administrative Officer Angel Baybay, and Tourism Operations Officer II Tyronne Glenn Lawey, both from the Provincial Government of Mountain Province.
In his Welcome Message, Sangguniang Bayan member Dan Evert Sokoken who is also the Chairperson of the Committee on Education encouraged the participants to actively participate and attentively listen to the resource speakers as the activity is a great avenue for learning.
He added that the training would be of great help for the students to be responsible communicators in their respective schools and the community.
Bontoc Mayor Jerome “Chagsen” Tudlong, Jr., emphasized the importance of continuous learning to the participants and added that the skills in writing and photography are beneficial in their roles as campus journalists, and even when they finish their studies and land a job.
“Our greatest investments are not only in infrastructures but our children. I earnestly believed that this training is an avenue for you to develop your journalism skills. It is my fervent hope and prayer that you maximize your potential to become successful in the future,” the mayor remarked.
Tudlong added that continuous support for education and youth development is one of his flagship programs under Empowered Communities. This is one of the four pillars of his administration’s roadmap – “𝐄𝐍𝐋𝐀𝐍𝐆𝐀𝐊𝐇𝐀: 𝐀𝐜𝐡𝐢𝐞𝐯𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐕𝐢𝐬𝐢𝐨𝐧 𝐟𝐨𝐫 𝐚 𝐃𝐲𝐧𝐚𝐦𝐢𝐜 Bontoc”. Thus, the Bontoc LGU has allocated funds for the conduct of the training. It is to be noted that in Mountain Province, Bontoc is the only LGU that spearheads and funds the conduct of campus journalism training accommodating campus journalists from public and private schools in the municipality.
Meanwhile, SB members Jupiter Jule Kalangeg and Benedict Odsey II in their messages during the Closing Program lauded the participants for their commitment to learn and practice responsible journalism.
Campus journalism has long been implemented through the Republic Act 7079, or Campus Journalism Act of 1991, which prescribed the implementation of campus journalism in both private and public schools in the Philippines. By Alpine L. Killa-Malwagay