The UP Board of Regents elected Dr. Clement C. Camposano as the new UP Visayas Chancellor with a vote of 8-2-1, according to the Twitter account of the UP Office of the Student Regent.
Dr. Camposano, who hails from Leon, Iloilo is a faculty member of the College of Education, UP Diliman.
He earned his Ph D. in Philippine Studies (Anthropology) from the Tri-College Program of the University of the Philippines – Diliman in 2009. He holds an M.A. in Political Science from U.P Diliman (1992) and a B.A. in Political Science and History (double major) from U.P.
During the search period for the new chancellor, Camposano vowed to institute a more inclusive and democratic governance by way of a “Stakeholders’ Digital Engagement Space” that will hold consultations with various UPV sectors using different social media platforms.
“Sayang and technology, at saying ang pagiging outspoken ng mga tao sa social media. These are valuable inputs, kahit pa sabihin natin na minsan hindi natin magugustuhan ang maririnig natin. Harsh criticism is bitter medicine — pero medicine pa rin yon,” he said in an online interview posted on Facebook.
He also vowed an empathic leadership by considering the point of view of others, “especially those directly affected, before making a stand.”
“It is equally crucial to always consider how other members of your management team might see the problem and to work towards a unified stand. Ang isang bagay na dapat natin tanggapin ay ito: You cannot impose unity; you have to work your way towards it. Proseso yan.”
One mechanism he wants to can adopt is a “Quarterly Alignment Meeting” with vice-chancellors and other members of central administration where they can clarify goals and expectations, review performance milestones versus targets, jointly analyze critical issues and formulate solutions, and generate consensus on divisive issues.
Dr. Camposano also envisions a more publicly engaged UPV by using its resources for public good.
“The University is in this part of the country for a reason. Nandito tayo upang pagsilbihan ang mga pamayanan. We are a national University but we must also be locally grounded. I insist that UPV’s intellectual resources must be brought to bear on local problems and issues,” he said
One concrete way to do this is to build a “Community Partnership Center” dedicated to deepening and strengthening partnerships, including technical assistance and training programs, with local fisherfolk, fishpond operators, entrepreneurs, MSMEs, among others.
“This will facilitate sharing with the community the pool of talents in UPV, including technology and research by the academe, and to encourage the community to support the University. We have so much to offer our communities, at hindi madamot ang UP Visayas.”
PUBLISH AND FLOURISH
Universities are preoccupied with researches that take up the time of faculty members and even students. Along this line, Dr. Camposano envisions a more progressive and humane academic culture.
“I do not believe we should become a ‘publish or perish’ university. Bakit naman tayo magbabanta ng ganun? We should be more nurturing. I would rather we become a ‘publish and flourish’ university. We encourage scholarship not by the simple expedient of imposing it as a defining metric but by engendering a deep desire among faculty members to engage in scholarly work and other creative endeavors. Scholarship should grow organically within the academic community. We need a serious ‘Research and Publication Mentoring’ program for faculty members. We also need to encourage faculty members, and even our students, to join or engage scholarly organizations and networks. People can only grow if they find better models for themselves,” he said.
Dr. Camposano also vowed greater diversity and safe spaces in UPV.
He said campuses should be dynamos for generating discourse and novel cultural expressions.
“We should therefore make them zones of intellectual freedom as we aim for the greatest possible diversity in views and advocacies. We should mobilize our powerful alumni network, working especially with alumni who are strategically situated in government, to help protect students and faculty members against all forms of harassment. Our policies should also be aligned towards this overarching goal.”
Dr. Camposano will also reinvigorate campus journalism and explore ways to help students and their organizations make more effective use of digital technologies for their activities.
“Perhaps a University-supported but student-managed digital space should be created where students can engage in active digital citizenship. Ang mga espasyo ng unibersidad, offline man o online, ay dapat buhay na buhay at makulay, hindi parang desyerto,” he added.
