When In Manila, it is important to exude leadership, especially during one’s college years. After all, this is the period of formation that serves as a trailer of what ‘real life’ is going to be like. Last month, the Liberal Leaders Summit gathered student delegates taking up liberal arts degrees (social sciences and/or humanities) with athen aim of enjoining them in a national movement of highlighting the significance of the country’s liberal arts education and empowering them to be future liberal arts leaders.

 

Liberal Leaders Summit: The First of Many

 

The Liberal Leaders Summit (LLS), as endorsed by the Commission on Higher Education (CHED), is the  country’s very first student-organized liberal arts conference for collegiate students held at De La Salle University-Manila . It was organized by the DLSU Arts College Government and the DLSU College of Liberal Arts. Bannered by the slogan ‘Crafting the Liberal Arts Blueprint”, the Liberal Leaders Summit surely left a lasting mark on the students through the empowering talks given by its renowned set of speakers.

 

Liberal Leaders Summit

 

I was only able to attend the first day of the Liberal Leaders Summit and there were not a lot of attendees yet by late afternoon. I got word that there were still some delegates who just arrived in Manila on that day, some of which came all the way from Visayas and Mindanao. It was overwhelming and nice to know that these students were really eager to be part of an inspiring 3-day journey. 

There were four main speakers for Day 1 of the Liberal Leaders Summit: DLSU CLA’s Dean Dr. Julio Teehankee; Apprentice Asia’s first-ever winner Mr. Jonathan Yabut; Akbayan party-list rep Ms. Risa Hontiveros-Baraquiel; and Senator Pia Cayetano. Meanwhile, the intermediary talks were given by Dr. Dannug and DLSU ACG’s president, Angelo Tiglao. Seeing the set of speakers for Day 1 made me more enthusiastic to attend their session. While I wasn’t able to catch Dr. Teehankee and Ms. Cayetano’s talk, I was still able to learn lot from the remaining speakers.

 

 

I was starstruck upon seeing Jonathan Yabut seated in front of my chair. Knowing all of the drama from season 1 of Apprentice Asia and having watched his interview with Tito Boy in The Bottomline, it was an honoring experience getting ‘life tips’ straight and in-person from him at the Liberal Leaders Summit.

My personal most-liked tip from Mr. Yabut was that leaders should know when to stand back and make leaders out of his/her ‘followers’. I often see leaders who simply send out instructions without actually empowering people, and this advice would really be handy for the goal of the Liberal Leaders Summit to be achieved.

Moreover, Ms. Risa’s speech was similar to how she handled interviews during her campaign- calm and serene but poignant. I also discovered through LLS an interesting trivia that the former senator candidate had a background in theater back in college. That somehow explains her actress-like finesse and beauty.

18-year-old president of DLSU’s Arts College Government, Angelo Tiglao, also gave an elaborated discussion of the Liberal Arts Summit’s objectives. He said that he is proud that he has been a part of the journeys of his officers and he also wants the student delegates to draw their own paths and lead the future of liberal arts education in their own ways. Youth is not a hindrance in making an impact. In fact, it is an advantage as the youth can maximize the advancements there is right now, and use them as a tool of change even if they are only students.

 

Just like ACG’s VP for Activities, Angelo Verina, declared,”LLS is one of the firsts”; 2013 was the inaugural year for LLS and it will surely continue to craft paths for future liberal arts leaders in the coming years When in Manila.

 

 

Liberal Leaders Summit: The First of Many