Inquirer, AboitizPower partner up for journalism scholarships

FOR MEDIA EDUCATION Seated, from left: Abigail Tomas, AboitizPower AVP for public relations; Connie Kalagayan, Inquirer Foundation executive director; Ronald Francis Suarez, AboitizPower VP for corporate affairs; lawyer Rudyard Arbolado, Inquirer president and CEO; Standing from left: Michelle Galang, Inquirer account executive; Chiqui Rivera, AboitizPower media relations manager; Dean Fernando Paragas of UP College of Mass Communication; Bianca Kasilag-Macahilig, Inquirer corporate affairs officer; Juliet Javellana, Inquirer associate publisher; Volt Contreras, executive editor; and Robert Jaworski Abaño, managing editor. —Eugenio Araneta Jr.

MANILA, Philippines — The Inquirer Foundation and Aboitiz Power Corp. (AboitizPower) signed a memorandum of agreement (MOA) on Aug. 16 for a partnership in support of the next batch of Inquirer journalism scholars.

It marked a milestone in the Inquirer scholarship program as it reaches its 31st year. Under the MOA, three junior students will be selected from the Journalism Department of the University of the Philippines College of Mass Communication (UP-CMC), with AboitizPower extending them assistance in the next two academic years or from 2024 to 2026.

Signing the agreement were lawyer Rudyard Arbolado, Philippine Daily Inquirer (PDI) president and CEO; Connie Kalagayan, Inquirer Foundation executive director and assistant vice president (AVP) for corporate affairs; Ronald Francis Suarez, AboitizPower VP for corporate affairs; and Abigail Tomas, AboitizPower AVP for public relations.

READ: Inquirer scholars in UP graduate with top honors

The partnership provides for a semestral scholarship fund amounting to P50,000 which consists of a stipend, book allowance, Wi-Fi or communication allowance, and board and lodging allowance—for a total of P200,000 per scholar covering the two-year period.

“It’s great to partner with Inquirer and also with UP… When we learned that Inquirer had a journalism scholarship program, we were really quite excited. The only regret was it took us this long,” Suarez said during the signing held at the PDI office in Makati City.

‘Access to the truth’

Through the years, the Aboitiz Group has supported a long list of scholars mostly in technical fields but also, more recently, in media-related courses.

“Our world really needs better access to the truth, because the truth is sometimes very elusive. Hopefully, this is one way we can help,” Suarez added. “Among this partnership’s impact is being able to unlock the highest potential of individuals and bridge the lack of financial capacities.”

“For the past 31 years, we’ve had 80 scholars and 61 of them came from the UP College of Mass Communication,’’ Arbolado noted. “We are thankful and fortunate to have UP-CMC as a partner and this is our way of participating in UP’s role.”

“And we are really thankful for AboitizPower for joining us and sharing our mission,” Arbolado said. “In the real world, you have to integrate several disciplines. We hope to create that environment at Inquirer.’’

PDI and AboitizPower, he said, share the values of responsibility, teamwork, integrity and dynamism.

Also witnessing the signing were UP-CMC Dean Fernando Paragas, PDI associate publisher Juliet Javellana, executive editor Volt Contreras, managing editor Robert Jaworski Abaño, corporate affairs officer Bianca Kasilag-Macahilig, account executive Michelle Galang and AboitizPower media relations manager Chiqui Rivera.

“Many students in UP are still in need… who are smart but struggling especially during the pandemic. In this way, we can help those who are in need. Thank you very much for this initiative; we will fulfill [UP’s part with] honor and excellence,” Paragas said.

Extended period

Launched in 1993, the Inquirer Journalism Scholarship Program has selected students also from UP Los Baños, University of Santo Tomas, Ateneo de Manila University and University of the East.

For the first time, under the recently signed MOA, the program is welcoming a corporate partner and the assistance is being extended from just one academic year to two.

“[I]t is really better to start helping our scholars in the third year because then we would really be able to support them,’’ Kalagayan said.

The selection process is ongoing for the next PDI scholars out of a maximum of eight candidates from the UP-CMC. Candidates must have maintained grades of at least 1.75 and shown keen interest in journalism as a craft and career. The evaluation will also consider their family’s financial capacity as a factor.

The scholarship also comes with opportunities for internship and eventual employment in the Inquirer.