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For the past 17 years, The Filipino Express has provided the Filipino American community the best news, arts and entertainment coverage from around the United States and the Philippines.
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This website includes selected articles from this week's edition of the Filipino Express. Not all the stories published in the printed version appear on this site.
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15-year-old Fil-Am earns a degree in computer science;
to begin work on Ph.D.
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Filipino American Joriz De Guzman, 15, will graduate with honors and will get his diploma in computer science this Sunday at California State University (CSU), the youngest student ever to graduate from CSU.
A report from the university’s public affairs office said that De Guzman, will participate in the College of Natural Sciences ceremony at 6 p.m. on June 19, in Coussoulis Arena. De Guzman. He just turned 15 years on May 20 and lives in Grand Terrace, with his Filipino parents. The whiz kid, will study at the University of California, Santa Barbara in August to enter its renowned computer science program as a doctoral student.
The UCSB program is recognized worldwide. Following his graduation from CSUSB and before heading to Santa Barbara, De Guzman and his parents will visit the Philippines for three weeks and meet with President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo, CSU reported.
One of two students chosen as the 2004-2005 Outstanding Undergraduate for the College of Natural Sciences at Cal State San Bernardino, De Guzman has tutored many CSUSB students, including players from the university’s basketball team. He began his education at CSUSB at age 12 and has been involved in organizations such as the University Student Ambassadors and the Computer Science Club. He was also a speaker to schoolchildren about the benefits of an education, and has been a student mentor for the East Los Angeles Community Union, an organization that helps freshman attending CSUSB to decide on a major and what career goals they might pursue, CSU reported.
De Guzman is passionate about contributing his talents to the world, this motivated him to do volunteer work and to tutor students many years older than him. “Maybe to them it might be a little weird that someone younger is helping them,” said De Guzman in an article for the university’s alumni magazine two years ago. “But I tell them, ‘Help is help. It doesn’t matter who’s helping you, just as long as you’re succeeding in what you’re doing.’” De Guzman’s own success during an eight-week research project at UC Santa Barbara last summer helped the college see that his academics were strong. He had been working in bio-image informatics, a fairly new but burgeoning field, which marries biology and computer science. His work with other students from Cal State San Bernardino created a database that assisted scientists in their research on blindness, particularly macular degeneration.
Last march, he attended an hour-long meeting at UCSB to see if he could handle the pressures of graduate work, he had passed the interview with flying colors, that led to an invitation to attend the university and begin the road to a Ph.D.
De Guzman attended San Bernardino Valley College at the age of 10. He was able to maintain a 3.98 GPA. He’ll graduate in June from Cal State San Bernardino with a 3.9 GPA and high honors, CSU public affairs reported.
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Chicago, ILLINOIS --- A Filipino has joined the ranks of the maiden batch of 100 graduates of Liberal Arts education from the newest university in the newest city in Orange County in California.
Pilipino de Dios V. Navarro, 22, the first student-body president of the four-year-old Soka University at Aleso Viejo, said he found it “challenging at first to live in a Buddhist environment – and to understand the cultures of people from around the world. Alison Viejo became Orange County’s 34th city in 2001 when Soak University of America opened.
The son of Casino A. Navarro of the Office of the President of the Philippines and a former correspondent of the Manila Bulletin and Norma V. Navarro of the Philippine National Food Authority was quoted by the Orange County Register as saying, “It was difficult to put on this robe, because it means that tomorrow we are graduates. I was signing someone’s yearbook, and I couldn’t think what to write. How to sum up four years in one paragraph?”
Pil plans to sit out this summer and will look for a part-time job shortly perhaps in a law office as he prepares to take an LSAT (law student’s aptitude test) and enrol in a law school -either in Los Angeles If not, he will enrol in Canada, where holds some active grants for some masteral courses.
Pilipino is one of the 100 out of the original 120 students who started the program four years ago and who received the diploma recently from Soka ( “Is that so?” in Japanese) University of America’s first commencement ceremony.
The campus is affiliated with Soka Gakkai International and tied to its parent university in Japan that practices chanting and works toward world peace.
One of the university’s strengths is that it promises students a 9-to-1 faculty-student ratio. The campus expects to have a maximum of 1,200 students.
Many of the graduates were motivated by the pioneering efforts of being a founding class that will help establish campus traditions, create clubs and organizations.
“I wanted to help establish the university,” Navarro said. “I was at the University of the Philippines, and I was just a number. Here,I am not a number.”
Over the years, students from many countries got to know one another well. The university requires undergraduates to live on campus for their entire education.
Vincent Mapili, 25, from Zambia, said he had been led to believe he would face discrimination and racism in the United States because he’s African. “But when I came here, it was different,” Mapili said. “This was an environment that was very conducive to learning.”
(lariosa_jos@sbcglobal.net)
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CARSON --- The observance of the 107th Philippine Independence Day at the Veterans Park here has been dubbed a huge success.
Carson Mayor Jim Dear paid tribute to the contribution of Filipino-Americans to the city which have strengthened the community in bridging diversity, and that he is impressed with the unity being exhibited through occasions such as this in nation building.
Dear highlighted the occasion by witnessing with other city officials the presentation of the symbolic key to the city by Council member Julie Ruiz-Raber to Filipino award-winning actor Christopher de Leon.
De Leon graced the event with a rendition of a Rick Astley medley.
“This is indeed a historic day,” De Leon said. “I am proud to be part of this celebration.”
Council member Elito Santarina, the only Filipino-American in the Carson city council, emphasized during the occasion that Carson has a lot to offer its residents.
He pointed out that entrepreneurs and business establishments made the right decision in choosing Carson due to the opportunities available in the city.
“Carson is known as a city unlimited with opportunities,” he said.
Santarina also acknowledged the efforts exerted by members of the Philippine Independence Day Foundation, Inc. headed by Felix Acosta, with this year’s chair of events, businessman Joe Merton.
According to the event’s media coordinator, Jun Guray, the foundation’s committee members contributed a lot of their time to make the historic event a possibility.
“After months of planning, I’m elated to see an overwhelming crowd and community participation,” he said. “The foundation’s various committees and its members have done a great job.”
The occasion started with the celebration of the Holy Eucharist and was later followed with songs by Fil-Am singing sensation Joanna Cecilio, with her much-applauded rendition of “Show Me Love” and “Dahil Mahal na Mahal Kita.”
Among other performers that graced the event were the Carnegie Drill Team, Wilmington Calvary Presbyterian, Filipinas Chorale USA, Romer Valenzuela, Melody del Mundo, Hands of Friendship, Monica P., Maharlika, Sampaguita Youth Dance Troupe, Likas Filipinas, Bibak, and Carson Street Team. (MNS)
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Talisaynons, members of the Talisay (Batangas) Association USA (TAUSA), recently elected its new set of officers for fiscal year 2005-2006. It will be holding its 21st Anniversary Ball and Induction Ceremony and a special “Gabi ng Pagaalay” on August 20, 2005. It will take place at Marriott Hotel-Melville, Long Island, New York. Significantly, it will have as its Guest of Honor and Speaker for the Event, no other than the current governor of Batangas, the Honorable Armando Sanchez.
TAUSA was founded in July 1988 by a group of Talisaynons as a form of family gatherings but eventually developed into a charitable association granting college scholarships to promising but needy high school graduates from the four high schools in Talisay. The program has enduring success as nine (9) college scholars have acquired their respective bachelor’s degree and is now productive members of our community, with nine (9) more in various stages of completing their respective college degrees. Moreover, the program takes in as much as four (4) new and freshmen scholars each year.
Heading TAUSA’s new set of officers is Linda de Leon-Cabrera as President, a BEEEd graduate from Far Eastern University in Manila, holds a Master of Science degree from Columbia University in New York City. Now retired, she was a special education teacher with Vineland Public School systems in Vineland, NJ., for 30 years. A very energetic and lively lady, she now devote more attention to her residential interior decoration business which she has been running for over 33 year now, serving a great number of Filipino and American homes in the New England area. Married to Justino “Rosi” Cabrera, she has two children, namely: Rose de Leon-Tam, a practicing Dentist in Jersey City and Passaic (married to Cesar Tam, a Computer Engineer at Weichert Corporate office); and Arnel de Leon, a retired US Navy, now deceased (married to Stephanie Walker-Vda. de Leon).
TAUSA’s complete set of officers for the fiscal year 2005-2006, is as follows: PRESIDENT: Linda de Leon-Cabrera; VICE PRESIDENTS: Bert Mendoza, Romy Garcia, Roger Gonzaga, Vener Enriquez, Jose de Grano; SECRETARIES: Lilia Luna, Analiza Miranda; TREASURERS: grace Sangalang, Gloria Villanueva; AUDITORS: Arthur Buno, Veronica Gonzaga; PUBLIC RELATIONS: Luis Marasigan, Isabelita de Grano, Ferna Landicho, Jocelyn de los Santos; MARSHALS: Ben Balazon, Arnel Mendoza, Gerry Mercado; Muse: Jane Desepeda; ADVISERS: Beth Manimtim, Nestor Mendoza, Nectar Laurel, Marilou Opena, Porcing Panganiban, Alfredo Laurel, Juan Lim; BOARD OF DIRECTORS: Linda de Leon-Cabrera, Cipriano “Cip” Mercado, Rudy Suarez, Tino Mendoza, Joven Mercado, Zenaida Luna; PAST PRESIDENTS: Efren ‘Cip” Mercado, Rudy Suarez, Tino Mendoza and Joven Mercado.
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