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UP Mindanao Bulletin, 4-17 April 2020

Written by Rene Estremera. Posted in Forums

UP MINDANAO BULLETIN

4–17 April 2020

MESSAGE FROM THE CHANCELLOR

To the UP Mindanao community:

While the word quarantine initially meant “forty days” in Italian (quarantina), I fear our quarantine might not end after forty days. The city government placed the city of Davao under quarantine last 15 March 2020; hence, we will reach our fortieth day on April 23. But the quarantine will continue on for much longer as the ECQ is extended until April 26 and CQ will be reimplemented starting April 27.

Unfortunately, this is needed to “flatten the curve.” Even our own researchers from the Interdisciplinary Applied Modeling (IAM) laboratory, which is a part of the UP System’s COVID-19 Response Team, has recommended extending the quarantine as “lifting the quarantine prematurely is very risky” (https://bit.ly/3cwkava). And we hope that this extension will buy us more time to set up our proposed testing lab, which was proposed by the Philippine Genome Center (PGC) Mindanao and to be implemented in partnership with government and private sectors, to augment the current diagnostic capacity of the Davao Region.

The extension of the quarantine means two things. First, work in the university will continue to be suspended until April 26 and beyond, and previous arrangements for the skeletal work force and work-from-home arrangements will remain in place (https://bit.ly/2KgvMGI). Second, classes will remain suspended until 30 April 2020, the end of the second semester AY 2019-2020 as decided by the UP Board of Regents. The BOR has also adopted a “deferred grade” scheme for students in consideration of the current crisis, and our teaching staff are urged to prepare adjusted course requirements and to communicate these to students by 31 May 2020 (https://bit.ly/2wOmuOW).

“It was the best of times, it was the worst of times…” wrote Charles Dickens. And while he may be talking about an altogether different kind of revolution, we cannot deny that the same can also be said with the Covid-19 pandemic that has upended everything in our society.

It is indeed the worst of times. So much so that the City Government of Davao has declared “a period of mourning and vigilance in Davao City” until 31 December 2020 to commemorate the many lives lost during the pandemic and “to impress upon everyone the value of empathy for those who are suffering and will continue to suffer the after effects of the pandemic.” This will greatly impact how we operate day-to-day for the rest of the year, and this will, I imagine, also have a profound effect on the various activities we have planned in line with our year-long celebration of our 25^th Founding Anniversary.

But it can also be said the best oftimesas this pandemic has shown clearly the spirit of compassion and service of our constituents as they contribute in whatever way they can to address the challenges brought about by this pandemic. For example, as of 17 April 2020, we have amassed more than PhP 60,000 in response to our bayanihan fund drive for our security, sanitation, and nongovernment service personnel (we will be starting distribution within the week). Moreover, researchers from various units of the university have come together in response to CHED’s call for proposals to craft an initiative to produce 70% ethyl alcohol from lambanog to address shortage in supply.

For these and many other initiatives, I thank our community for your generosity, for sharing your financial resources, your time, and your expertise. Let us know by contacting the designated member of the Covid-19 response team if you have initiatives in mind that can help our university and our community. We are always open to new ideas.

But I cannot stress enough the importance of taking care of both our physical and mental health in the midst of this crisis. Hence, I invite everyone to sign up for the UP Mindanao Mental Health Helpline, which provides free mental health and psychosocial support to our constituents. This initiative is organized by our Office of Student Affairs in partnership with agencies such as the Southern Philippines Medical Center, the Philippine Mental Health Association Inc.-Davao Chapter, the Psychological Consultancy Services, and the AUPAEU – UP Mindanao Project Tambayayong. Links are given below for ease of access to interested students and employees.

STUDENTS: http://tiny.cc/UPMinMentalHealthHelpline

EMPLOYEES: http://tiny.cc/MentalHealthHelpline

Furthermore, to inform us of the health and general situation of our employees, the Human Resource and Development Office has launched the Covid-19 employees monitoring survey, available in English and Binisaya versions. I hope our employees will find the time to answer the survey as we prepare for various scenarios when the community quarantine is finally lifted.

English: https://forms.gle/nt5X1D7YTrmhtpFA6

Binisaya: https://forms.gle/v4yPj66fHrAmsejs7

To end this message, I would like to borrow the words of our colleague, Prof. Andrea Malaya Ragragio, in her response to my previous message: “In the midst of this pandemic, when almost all our norms, routines, institutions, values, hierarchies, established practices, plans and expectations, our sense of self and community are up in the air, this is precisely the time when we can subject ourselves and our taken-for-granted truths to a brutal re-examination.”

As we re-examine various facets of our lives, our institution, and our society, may we always be guided by the spirit of honor and excellence that has guided many other UP scholars in the past who have weathered many storms over the years but found the resolve to contribute to the betterment society.

Stay safe and know that we will get through this together!

—Prof. Larry N. Digal, PhD, Chancellor

UP MINDANAO COVID-19 CASE TRACKER (as of 20 April 2020)

Constituents	Respondents	Suspect Case*	Probable Case*	Confirmed Case*
Students ¹	355	0	0	0
Teaching staff ²	-	-	-	-
Non-teaching staff ²	-	-	-	-
Non-UP contractuals ² (NGS, project-based personnel, etc.)	-	-	-	-

¹ Based on Student Tracking Survey of the Office of Student Affairs (as of 17 Apr 2020)

² Based on Personnel Tracking Survey of the Human Resources and Development Office (released 21 Apr 2020)

* See note below on the new DOH classification system for COVID-19-related cases

The UP System has tasked all constituent units to report on the number of COVID-19 cases among its constituents based on the new classification system adopted by the Department of Health. Hence, we are urging students, faculty, and staff of the university to answer the appropriate survey for monitoring.

STUDENTS: https://bit.ly/2JmVQ2b?

TEACHING & NON-TEACHING STAFF AND NON-UP CONTRACTUALS:

English: https://forms.gle/nt5X1D7YTrmhtpFA6

Binisaya: https://forms.gle/v4yPj66fHrAmsejs7

*NOTE: The Department of Health has issued a new case classification based on additional epidemiological information on COVID-19, adapting certain provisions of the WHO interim guidelines on global surveyance, in its Administrative Order no. 2020-0013 (LINK: https://bit.ly/2XFPO58).

Old Classification	New Classification	Definition based on DOH AO no. 2020-013
Persons under monitoring (PUM)	Not included in new classification system	Due to evidence of local or community transmission in the country, its residents are assumed to have been exposed to the infection.
Patients under investigation (PUI)	Suspect case	- Individuals who have symptoms of severe acute respiratory infection (fever, cough, sore through, difficulty breathing, and severe pneumonia of unknown cause) - Those with influenza-like illness (symptoms include fever, cough, or sore throat) who has a history of travel to or residence in an area that reported local transmission or with contact to a confirmed or probable case - Those with symptoms of the disease who belong to the 60 years old and above age bracket, have preexisting health conditions, assessed as having high-risk pregnancy, and are employed as a health worker
Patients under investigation (PUI)	Probable case	- A suspect case who has not yet been tested or is awaiting test result - Those who received a result from a test NOT conducted at the national reference laboratory, a subnational reference laboratory, or DOH-certified laboratory testing facility
COVID-19 Positive	Confirmed case	- Any individual, whether symptomatic or asymptomatic, who was confirmed for COVID-19 at the national reference laboratory, a subnational reference laboratory, or DOH-certified laboratory testing facility

IMPORTANT REMINDERS AND NOTICES

1 May 2020 | Departments shall communicate adjusted course requirements for students under the “deferred grade” scheme

30 April 2020 | End of 2nd Semester AY 2019-2020

27 April 2020 | Re-implementation of Community Quarantine in Davao City

22 April 2020 | Submission of Work Accomplishment from 01-14 April 2020 for Admin Staff and REPS

20-26 April 2020 | Extension of Enhanced Community Quarantine in Davao Region

20-30 April 2020 | Online Training Courses for UP Staff – 2nd Batch

NEWS

17 April 2020 | “UP students given options in complying with course requirements, safety nets against failing grades.” https://bit.ly/3co8LO0

16 April 2020 | “Davao City should consider extending community quarantine beyond April 19 and conduct more tests for COVID-19—UP Mindanao Researchers” (UP System Website). https://bit.ly/2RL9Ya8

15 April 2020 | “UPMin's mathematicians recommend continuing lockdown beyond April 19" (Mindanao Times). https://bit.ly/3bl8Ku4

15 April 2020 | OSA Mental Health Pipeline (UPMin Facebook page). https://bit.ly/34Gp5a6

6 April 2020 | “UP COVID19-Related Initiatives revised 6 April 2020”: CU-involvement in COVID19-Related Research/Technology/Extension Activities (OVPPA). https://bit.ly/2RERW9F

3 April 2020 | VIDEO: “PGC UP Mindanao update on COVID-19 initiative.” https://bit.ly/3bbZXup

Online Portal of University of the Philippines CoViD-19 News and Information. https://www.up.edu.ph/index.php/covid-19-updates/

ISSUANCES

External Agencies

17 April 2020 | Davao City Executive Order No. 25: An Order to Declare a Period of Mourning and Vigilance in Davao City. https://bit.ly/3bmh90s

16 April 2020 | Davao City Executive Order No. 24: An Order Providing for the Extension of the Enhanced Community Quarantine and Other Activities Thereafter. https://bit.ly/2xAY8IV

15 April 2020 | CHED Office of the Executive Director: Submission of Reports as to the Use of SUC’s Facilities as Quarantine Areas. https://bit.ly/3bglxOz

13 April 2020 | CHED Advisory No. 6 Guidelines for the Prevention, Control, and Mitigation of the Spread of Coronavirus Disease 2019 in Higher Education Institutions. https://bit.ly/3esXj5x

6 April 2020 | CHED Memorandum from the Office of the Chairperson on the Call for Proposals for the Grant of Assistance to State Universities and Colleges (SUCs) to Combat the Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19). https://bit.ly/2Vdzx62

UP System Memoranda and Other Releases

17 April 2020 ꟾ Memorandum No. OSU 2020 01-02. Notice of Resolutions of the Board of Regents at its Special Meeting held on 16 April 2020. https://bit.ly/3bney6c

UP System Policy on the Second Semester AY 2019-2020 in the Time of COVID-19. https://bit.ly/2wOmuOW

17 April 2020 | UP System IT Online Courses for UP Staff - 2nd Batch

16 April 2020 | Office of the Staff Regent: Survey on the Work Condition of Administrative Staff and REPS during the Time of COVID-19. https://bit.ly/2VA6f0b

15 April 2020 | Memorandum No. EEP 2020-7. Additional Data to be Included in the CU-COVID-19 Report. https://bit.ly/3bjUBgS

15 April 2020 | Office of the President Memorandum No. TJH 2020-20. Redirection of Website Domain/ URL to the UP System Website. https://bit.ly/2XOFrMJ

14 April 2020 | Office of the President Memorandum No. TJH 2020-19. Guidelines for Coordinated Information Management and IT-related Efforts amid COVID-19 Pandemic. https://bit.ly/3cqT2xw

14 April 2020 | Office of the Vice President for Academic Affairs Memorandum No. 2020-48. Proposed UP System Policy on the Second Semester AY 2019-2020 and the Mid-Year in the Time of COVID-19. https://bit.ly/2Kdt4l6

10 April 2020| Office of the Faculty Regent. Survey for Faculty on Online Teaching Readiness. (sent through email). https://forms.gle/TXqvRSJZpXJmfmWS9

9 April 2020 | UP System IT: Overview of Recent Updates to Zoom (forwarded by UPMin IT Office).

7 April 2020 | UP System IT: Proper Use of University ICT Resources (email sent to all).

7 April 2020 | Memorandum No. NGY 2020-53 / Memorandum No. TJH 2020-16. Guidelines on the release of Clothing Allowance (P6,000) and Emergency Allowance (P5,000). https://bit.ly/2VEKOLL

7 April 2020 | Office of the President Memorandum No. TJH 2020-18. Half-day Work on Wednesday, 8 April 2020. https://bit.ly/3akpfoJ

5 April 2020 | Memorandum No. NGY 20-56. Submission of Work Accomplishment from 17-31 March 2020 and 01-14 April 2020. https://bit.ly/2ReP6Id

UP Mindanao Memoranda and Other Releases

17 April 2020 | Memorandum No. LND 2020-049. Extension of Work and Class Suspension as per Davao City LGU EO no. 24 and UP BOR’s Decision to End Classes. https://bit.ly/2KgvMGI

17 April 2020 | Memorandum No. LND 2020-047. Early Release of Salaries for 16-30 April 2020. https://bit.ly/2VBW5fv

16 April 2020 | Memorandum No. LND 2020-046. COVID-19 Response Team of UP Mindanao (modified). https://bit.ly/3ev9DCc

16 April 2020 | Memorandum no. ALVG 2020-016 Interim Arrangements for the Processing of Financial Transactions. https://bit.ly/3bhtzqk

14 April 2020 | Memorandum No. ALVG 2020-014. Moratorium on GSIS Loan Payments. https://bit.ly/2VeC67D

13 April 2020 | Call for nomination for CHSS Dean-Extended until further notice (emailed to all units from chair, Prof. Noreen V. Fundandor).

6 April 2020 | Memorandum No. LND 2020-043. Davao City Mayor Calls for Volunteers to serve in the Proposed PUI Centers in the Region. https://bit.ly/2z03I7V

6 April 2020 | Administrative Order No. LND 2020-043. Appointment of Prof. Maria Stella R. Salazar as Officer-in-Charge of CHSS effective 7 April 2020 until a new CHSS Dean is appointed by the BOR. https://bit.ly/3ajfW8C

5 April 2020 | Memorandum No. LND 2020-045. Request for Participation in the Consumer and Business Survey to Assess the Impact of COVID-19 and the Community Quarantine. https://bit.ly/2XIycFK

Reference Materials

UP System coronavirus advisories and prevention guidelines: https://bit.ly/2UCQS80

COVID-19 RESPONSE TEAM

Area	Lead person/s	Contact details
Overall	Prof. Larry N. Digal, PhD (Chancellor)
Instruction and academics	Prof. Nilo B. Oponda, PhD (VCAA)
Administration and finance	Prof. Aurelia Luzviminda V. Gomez, PhD (VCA)
Research and public service	Prof. Emma Ruth. V. Bayogan, PhD (CARIM Director)
Student affairs	Prof. Maria Teresa R. Escano (OSA Director)
Donations	Mr. Michael A. Gatela (Pahinungod Director)
Communications	Prof. Karen Joyce G. Cayamanda, PhD (Humanities Chair)
	Mr. Michael Noel R. Bonghanoy (Info Comm Chair)
	Mr. Rene A. Estremera (Public Relations Officer)

End of 2nd Sem AY 2019-2020

Written by Rene Estremera. Posted in Forums

UP students given options in complying with course reqs, safety nets against failing grades

April 17, 2020 | Written by Celeste Ann Castillo Llaneta (Reprinted from: https://www.up.edu.ph/up-students-given-options-in-complying-with-course-reqs-safety-nets-against-failing-grades/)

In light of the global pandemic and enhanced community quarantine declared across most of the country, the University of the Philippines has decided to end the second semester of AY 2019-2020 on April 30, 2020, instead of the original May 23, 2020.

This decision was made during a meeting of the UP Board of Regents (UP BOR) held on April 16, following deliberations and revisions of a proposal submitted by the President’s Advisory Council, a committee composed of the UP System vice presidents and the chancellors of all UP constituent units. The details of the final decision and corresponding guidelines will be issued in an official memo that will soon be made available and cascaded through proper channels.

With this decision, UP students in all constituent units are given two options. They can choose to complete their course requirements until May 31, 2021, and upon compliance shall be given a numeric grade under a “deferred grade” scheme. Instead of receiving a failing grade, students who find themselves unable to complete their course requirements by May 2021 will be considered dropped and will have to retake the course in the succeeding semester.

However, students whose circumstances allow them to work on course requirements during quarantine, can choose to complete these requirements, following the adjusted syllabus and the deadlines set by their constituent university. They will then be given a numerical grade based on faculty assessment of their performance.

Moreover, students who enrolled in a course that is a prerequisite to a higher course will be allowed to enroll in the latter for credit, despite the “deferred grade” for the prerequisite course. To help students catch up with their courses, departments, units and institutes shall offer bridging programs during the first semester of AY 2020-2021.

Departments and faculty have been urged to prepare necessary course requirements that will allow them to assess academic performance, taking into consideration the crisis conditions the students are working in. These adjusted course requirements must be communicated to the students by May 1, 2020.

For postgraduate students, their departments, units and institutions shall determine how best to proceed with the courses and how to assess students’ academic performances, in consultation with the students and in consideration of the current crisis situation.

UP is also waiving academic rules as well as policies on scholastic standing and student financial assistance.

Specifically, the deadlines for the dropping of subjects and for filing Leave of Absence for the second semester of AY 2019-2020 are lifted. As for the maximum residency rule, residence for this semester shall not be counted in the years of residence of a student.

A student who incurred a grade of incomplete (INC) during the second semester of AY 2018-2019 shall be allowed to remove the INC until first semester AY 2020-2021. Similarly, a student who incurred a grade of 4.0 during the same period shall also be allowed to remove the 4.0 until first semester AY 2020-2021.

Rules on scholastic standing (delinquency), including rules on warning, probation, dismissal and permanent disqualification, are suspended for the second semester AY 2019-2020. Policies on student financial assistance, which are tied to scholastic standing, are similarly suspended.

The University will continue to explore alternative modes of instruction, requirements and assessment methods that are consistent with its mandate as national university, and with the principles of honor and excellence, all while taking into account the extreme conditions, unequal life circumstances, and high levels of anxiety, stress and suffering that UP faculty and students are enduring.

References:

Memorandum No. LND 2020-49

A-Memorandum No. 0SU2020-01-02_Notice of BOR Resolutions at its Special Meeting held on 16 April 2020

B-Revised_UP System Policy on the Second Semester AY 2019-2020 in the Time of COVID-19

[Browse here: https://bit.ly/2KgvMGI

###

Davao City Should Consider Extending Community Quarantine Beyond April 19 and Conduct More Tests for COVID-19—UP Mindanao Researchers

A recent study by the Interdisciplinary Applied Modeling (IAM) laboratory of the University of the Philippines (UP) Mindanao recommends that “the local government should consider extending the community quarantine” beyond the April 19 end date of the community quarantine in Davao City. The IAM lab is part of the UP COVID-19 Pandemic Response Team – Bioinformatics and Modeling Group, which is mainly composed of mathematicians across the different UP campuses.

The team headed by Dr. May Anne Mata, an associate professor in applied mathematics specializing in mathematical biology, simulated a model to predict the effect of lifting the community quarantine on April 19 and July 1 based on parameter estimates obtained by fitting an epidemiological model to the cumulative confirmed cases in the Davao Region from March 15 to April 4.

The model has five population categories, namely, Susceptible (at risk to contract the disease), Exposed (infected but not infectious), Asymptomatic Infectious (without symptoms but infectious), Confirmed Cases (assumed isolated and will not infect the susceptible), and Unreported Infectious (includes only those with symptoms).

“When CQ [community quarantine] is lifted on April 19, the infected population will continue to persist . . . For instance, we see that the exposed population is stable from May to July after it peaks during the last week of March,” the study finds. “However, if we maintain CQ at the status quo’s rates of transmission and confirmation, we observe a decreasing trend in the number of exposed individuals around mid-May.”

Dr. Mata, however, cautions that the model estimates are dependent on various assumptions and only show a possible, more likely scenario. Hence, predicting the appropriate lifting date is difficult and can only be accurately obtained by increasing the number of observations and updating parameter estimates.

“Lifting the quarantine prematurely is very risky. To be safe, perhaps we can extend the community quarantine for 14 days. If we get 0 new cases and 0 new PUIs [persons under investigation] within that period, then we can lift the community quarantine,” Dr. Mata suggests.

The next phase of the study will fit the model on data within the duration of the enhanced community quarantine (ECQ) from April 4 to 19, covered by EO no. 23A series 2020, to see if the strategy is effective.

Extending the community quarantine, however, has an economic tradeoff, one that is difficult to model at this time. “We just don’t have data on logistics like total budget of Davao City government for COVID-19 response, breakdown per barangay, cost of goods distribution, budget per household, just to name a few, to do a model on this. Also, this will require a different modeling strategy.”

Using the same data, another study by the team shows the importance of testing persons under monitoring (PUMs) and persons under investigation (PUIs). “We recommend that the government should consider testing more PUMs and/or PUIs in the region for early detection of infected population so that these individuals will be isolated immediately from the susceptible pool,” the study states. This point is particularly important for asymptomatic individuals who may show no signs of disease but may freely and unknowingly spread the disease to the population.

In another study, researcher Zython Paul Lachica and other members of the IAM lab team collated available information from COVID-19 positive cases from the Department of Health within a 40-day observation period to assess the risk factors that increase a patient’s hazard rate.

The study yielded the following preliminary findings: “Male COVID-19 positive patients are estimated to face a hazard rate of 12.79 times the hazard faced by female patients. Coughing patients face a hazard that is 28.35 times the hazard of those who have no cough. Furthermore, a patient with pre-existing condition”—such as hypertension, kidney problem, and/or diabetes—“may have a hazard rate of 2,838 times the hazard rate of patient without any preexisting conditions. On the other hand, patients who are 55 to 64 years old and 65 to 74 years old face hazard rates that are less than patients who are 75 years and older.” It should be noted that these results are based on preliminary data, and the hazard estimates will be fine-tuned once more data becomes available.

Based on these findings, the study recommends prioritizing for testing patients who are 75 years and older and those with preexisting medical conditions once they experience coughing, persons under monitoring who might be asymptomatic patients, as well as those with high exposure to the COVID-19 positive patients such as health workers.

Setting up more testing centers in the different regions is vital to contain COVID-19 cases as the study shows that “having test results within 1 to 3 days after the onset of symptoms reduces hazard rates to almost 0%.” Survival rates decrease dramatically as the number of days before getting the test results increase.

The IAM lab was initiated by researchers from UP Mindanao’s Department of Mathematics, Physics, and Computer Science to help the government in making science-based decisions. The three studies by the lab were already sent for review to the UP COVID-19 Pandemic Response Team and are freely shared to local decision makers as input for strategies.

Since last March, UP Mindanao through the Philippine Genome Center (PGC) Mindanao has entered into talks with the Department of Health XI, Davao del Norte LGUs, and the private sector to establish a COVID-19 testing laboratory that will be attached to the Davao Regional Medical Center (DRMC) in order to supplement the testing capacity of the Southern Philippines Medical Center (SPMC) in the Davao Region.

UP Mindanao Bulletin, 15 March-3 April 2020

Written by Rene Estremera. Posted in Forums

UP MINDANAO BULLETIN
15 March 2020–3 April 2020

MESSAGE FROM THE CHANCELLOR

“In the past two years, we have experienced major disruptions. Last year, we had to deal with the various earthquakes that hit Mindanao. This year, we—and the rest of the world—face another threat in the form of a pandemic caused by the coronavirus disease.
“What disruptive events such as this pandemic teaches us is the importance of focusing on what really matters. And right now, during this difficult time, what the university is focusing on is taking care of its constituents, particularly our students, our teaching and nonteaching staff, and our non-UP contractual staff.”
—Prof. Larry N. Digal, PhD, Chancellor
READ FULL MESSAGE HERE: https://bit.ly/3dSW7rK

IMPORTANT REMINDERS AND NOTICES

19 April 2020 | End of extended work and class suspension unless further extended, modified, or withdrawn
8 April 2020 | Deadline for submission of work accomplishment for 17–31 March 2020
4 April 2020 | Bayanihan for our non-government service, security, and sanitation personnel (Read letter here: https://bit.ly/2xV3FcV)
30 March–15 April 2020 | Ongoing work-from-home (WFH) training for all UP Mindanao personnel

UP MINDANAO COVID-19 TRACKER

We are currently working out a system for tracking the condition of UP Mindanao constituents, particularly students (through the Office of Student Affairs) and employees (through the Human Resource and Development Office). The tracker will go live in the next volume of the bulletin.

ISSUANCES

UP System Memoranda and Other Releases

03 April 2020 | Memorandum no. NGY 20-56. Submission of Work Accomplishment from 17–31 March 2020 and 1–14 April 2020. https://bit.ly/2ReP6Id
02 April 2020 | UP System IT. Reminder on Secure Zoom Meeting Sessions. (Email sent to everyone)
25 March 2020 | Memorandum no. LGSB 2020-017. Submission of Project Proposals for UPSA Funding Request. https://bit.ly/2V4pS0i
20 March 2020 | Memorandum no. OVPAA 2020-40. Payment of Salaries of Lecturers and Teaching Assistant/Teaching Fellows up to 15 April 2020. https://bit.ly/2XcA9Kv
17 March 2020 | UP System IT. Zoom Video Conferencing Access for UP Faculty and REPS. (Email sent to everyone)
17 March 2020 | Memorandum no. OVPAA 2020-39. Addendum to Memorandum no. OVPAA 2020-38 on the Suspension of Classes in All UP Constituent Universities Except UP Open University. https://bit.ly/2JK40BW
13 March 2020 | Memorandum no. NGY 2020-44. Implementation of Alternative Work Arrangement. https://bit.ly/3e29bLM
05 March 2020 | Memorandum no. NGY 2020-33. CSC Guidelines on the Procedure of Availment of Leave Privileges for Absences Incurred in Relation to Self-Quarantine and/or Treatment of Public Sector Officials and Employees Relative to COVID-19. https://bit.ly/2wlKKI6

UP Mindanao Memoranda and Other Releases

2 April 2020 | Memorandum no. LND 2020-041. Extension of Work and Class Suspension until 19 April 2020 Unless Further Extended, Modified or Withdrawn.
https://bit.ly/3c6lSDx
1 April 2020 | Memorandum no. MTRE 2020-005. Misting/Disinfection of the City Health Office in UP Mindanao on 1 April 2020. https://bit.ly/2XeVEdE
26 March 2020 | Memorandum no. LND 2020-40. Work-from-home (WFH) training for all UP Mindanao personnel from 30 March to 15 April 2020. https://bit.ly/2X4jBUR
20 March 2020 | Memorandum no. LND 2020-034. Clarification on the Early Release of Salaries of Non-UP Contractual Personnel and Project-based Personnel. https://bit.ly/2xTyzT0
19 March 2020 | Memorandum no. LND 2020-033. Skeletal Force During Community Quarantine and Possible Lockdown Due to COVID-19 https://bit.ly/2JHL86L
18 March 2020 | Memorandum no. LND 2020-032. Work Arrangement During Community Quarantine Due to COVID-19 https://bit.ly/2X8dwH8
17 March 2020 | Memorandum no. LND 20200-031a. Early Release of Salaries of Regular and Non-UP Contractual Personnel and Project-based Personnel. https://bit.ly/2RgWbrF
17 March 2020 | Memorandum no. LND 2020-031b. Requirements for Early Release of Salaries of Non-UP Contractual Personnel and Project-based Personnel. https://bit.ly/3bVBRUO
17 March 2020 | Memorandum no. LND 2020-029. Release of P25K CNA incentive. https://bit.ly/2Rd9wkE
16 March 2020 | Memorandum no. LND 2020-028. Reiteration of the Suspension of Work and Cancellation of Classes. https://bit.ly/2UMcAqr
16 March 2020 | Memorandum no. LND 2020-27A. Clarification on Memorandum no. LND-27, “Implementation of Alternative Work Arrangement in Relation to COVID-19 Code Red Sublevel 2 and Community Quarantine in Davao City” https://bit.ly/39Seni0
15 March 2020 | Memorandum no. LND 2020-27. Implementation of alternative work arrangement in relation to COVID-19 Code Red Sublevel 2 and community quarantine in Davao City https://bit.ly/3bOvvq2
13 March 2020 | Memorandum no. NBO 2020-16. Online mode of instruction. https://bit.ly/39MCVsy

Others

02 April 2020 | SMAARDEC/PCAARRD Secretariat: 2020 Non-Degree Training Courses https://bit.ly/2UJMggv

Reference Materials

UP System Coronavirus advisories and prevention guidelines: https://bit.ly/2UCQS80

NEWS

01 April 2020 | UP Philippine General Hospital Bayanihan Na! Operations Center is launched. Dial 155200 for assistance. https://publicservice.up.edu.ph/uppgh-bayanihan-na/
28 March 2020 | “Processing and release of 2020 UPCAT results suspended due to ECQ” (Philippine Daily Inquirer) https://bit.ly/3aNXLJj
27 March 2020 | “Villanueva: State universities, colleges, need raw materials, support to continue initiatives against COVID-19” (Manila Bulletin). https://bit.ly/2JEe53o
26 March 2020 | “LGUs to support proposed laboratory" (The Mindanao Times). https://bit.ly/2UWhnV0
26 March 2020 | “Call for volunteers for COVID-19 Testing Lab” (Philippine Genome Center-Mindanao). https://bit.ly/2wWJ5Jq
26 March 2020 | UP Alumni Association Davao, Inc. has launched a donation drive to provision public health frontliners (UPMin Facebook page). https://bit.ly/2V8TZ6P
23 March 2020 | “UP Mindanao proposes diagnostic program to test for COVID-19 in Davao City” (Manila Bulletin). https://bit.ly/3aQOQXC
20–28 March 2020 | Alumni, officials, staff, and students donated food and personal necessities for students stranded at the dormitory and nearby boarding houses (UPMin Facebook page). https://bit.ly/3e8to2u; https://bit.ly/34ePV96; https://bit.ly/3bWpnME
20 March 2020 | Launch of Online Portal of University of the Philippines CoViD-19 News and Information. https://www.up.edu.ph/index.php/covid-19-updates/

CONTACT DETAILS
Rene Estremera
Public Relations Officer
Email:
Messenger: https://www.facebook.com/pg/UPMindanao/services/

Letter from the Chancellor: Bayanihan for our personnel

Written by Rene Estremera. Posted in Forums

03 April 2020

Bayanihan for Our Non-Government Service,
Security, and Sanitation Personnel

Dear UP Mindanao constituents,

The COVID-19 pandemic has affected the lives of many in our city; and with the impending implementation of the Enhanced Community Quarantine (ECQ) from 4 to 19 April 2020, all of us will be experiencing difficulty in terms of mobility and access to essentials such as food and medicine.

As government employees, whether regular or UP contractual, we are fortunate to receive financial assistance from the university and the national government to help us during this time of difficulty. However, many of our frontliners like our security and sanitation personnel, as well as our non-government service (NGS) personnel, do not qualify for these benefits.

Currently, we have a total of 79 beneficiaries, comprising of 28 security and 15 sanitation personnel—one of them cooks for our students stranded in the dorm and nearby boarding houses—and 36 non-government service (NGS) personnel (7 of whom serve as part of the skeletal force).

Hence, during its 31 March 2020 special online meeting, the Executive Committee has committed to pool funds to provide financial support for them. We are extending this initiative to all of you so we can gather more and give more to our beneficiaries on top of the funds already solicited and distributed by the All UP Academic Employees Union.

If you wish to take part in this initiative, you may drop the amount at the designated drop box at Cash Office or deposit/transfer the amount to the DBP bank account of Ms. Emma Ruth Caalaman (account name) with account number 9155457539. For your convenience, you may register your DBP payroll account to perform online banking/fund transfer at https://www.bancnetonline.com/

Periodic updates will be provided by the Vice Chancellor for Administration on the status of the fund drive.

Many of our frontliners and NGS staff have become an integral part of the UP Mindanao family. And as such, we cannot leave them behind in the midst of this pandemic. Let us join together in the spirit of bayanihan to help each and every single member of our community survive this pandemic.

Thank you for your generosity! Keep safe always!

Sincerely,

Prof. Larry N. Digal, PhD
Chancellor

Message from the Chancellor, 3 April 2020

Written by Rene Estremera. Posted in Forums

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03 April 2020

Dear UP Mindanao constituents:

In the past two years, we have experienced major disruptions. Last year, we had to deal with the various earthquakes that hit Mindanao. This year, we—and the rest of the world—face another threat in the form of a pandemic caused by the coronavirus disease.

What disruptive events such as this pandemic teaches us is the importance of focusing on what really matters. And right now, during this difficult time, what the university is focusing on is taking care of its constituents, particularly our students, our teaching and nonteaching staff, and our non-UP contractual staff.

For our students, since classes were suspended on 17 March 2020, most of our 836 students have returned to their families. However, a few remain in the campus and in nearby residences (17 in the dorm, 27 outside) due to the distance to their hometowns or their family circumstances. For those remaining in campus, the Office of Student Affairs (OSA) is looking after their physical and mental wellbeing and is in close contact with their parents for updates on their situation. And for those who have gone home, OSA has also prepared a Student Monitoring Survey to check on the condition of our students, which has received 322 responses as of 6:00 a.m. on 3 April 2020.

I would like to extend my profound thanks to our alumni and constituents who generously shared their resources, both financial and in kind, so that the university can continue to take care of these stranded students by keeping them fed. Rest assured that as soon as travel outside Davao City and to other parts of the country are permitted, the university will make the necessary arrangements and provide assistance for these students’ safe return to their families.

For our teaching and nonteaching staff, most are now working from home in compliance with directives from the city government. The personnel who continue on-campus operations are the staff of the Office of the Chancellor, Office of the Vice Chancellor for Administration, the finance offices, the Elias B. Lopez Hall dormitory, as well as our transport personnel who ferry members of the staff from their residences to our campus and our security and janitorial personnel who have quarters on campus.

Our main priority right now is for the release of salaries and benefits to personnel to ease economic hardships during these trying times. We will also undertake a donation drive to augment the limited assistance we can give for the needs of our non-government service and project-based personnel.

Our staff who continue to report to work are our front liners. They are risking their health and wellbeing in the face of this lockdown to ensure that we receive our salaries and benefits in the midst of this pandemic. We appreciate and thank them for their service. It is because of them that most of us can carry on our functions in the comfort and security of our homes.

After taking care of our own, we need to remember that our work in the university does not grind to a halt just because classes are suspended. We are, after all, not only an institution of higher learning, but a research and public service university as well. Especially during times of crisis, we need to ask ourselves: What can we do for the country?

I would like to commend the Philippine Genome Center (PGC) Mindanao for their proposal to further enhance the diagnostic capability of the Davao Region. We are now working with the private sector and local government units to have this funded. The same goes to the researchers of the Department of Math, Physics, and Computer Science who are working with the Department of Science and Technology XI and the UP Resilience Institute to predict the spread of COVID-19 in the region and in Mindanao in order to inform the government’s key strategies.

Hopefully, more of our researchers can come up with ways to use their expertise to contribute in the fight against COVID-19 even within the restrictions of the quarantine.

For now, our campus academic oval is closed. Traffic is allowed only through the north road by the military camp and the south road through the Davao City-UP Sports Complex. The City Health Office did a disinfection of buildings and grounds by mist spraying last April 1.

So, the big question is “what now?” What happens when the quarantine in Davao City is lifted on April 19 (or extended or withdrawn earlier)?

As many have pointed out, the COVID-19 pandemic is a litmus test for a country’s health care system. It is also a test for the university’s health care amenities as well.

Our internal assessments have shown our weakness when it comes to our health care infrastructure in the university: we have inadequate healthcare personnel and facilities on campus. And we have been considering different medium- and long-term solutions to address this.

But in the immediate future when work and classes resume, our focus will be on setting sanitation protocols in place in line with recommendations from the Department of Health—i.e., mist sanitation of buildings, availability of sanitizers and handwashing soap, protective masks for our healthcare and other personnel, just to name a few.

Also, as people go back to the campus, identifying persons under monitoring (PUMs) and persons under investigation (PUIs) is crucial to safeguard the health of our employees. We are now studying mechanisms for self-reporting if one of our constituents is considered a PUM or PUI without, of course, violating existing data privacy laws—as details about one’s health is considered “sensitive information” and governed by strict guidelines for data collection and reporting. We are also working on better ways that we can disseminate to the public information and policies related to this disease.

As for details about resumption of classes, these matters are all coordinated at the System level, with inputs from all the CUs, and we are still awaiting decisions from the UP Board of Regents and the Office of the Vice President for Academic Affairs. The UP Mindanao Executive Committee already held a videoconference meeting to discuss these matters last 31 March 2020, and we are working on various contingency plans depending on different scenarios. So, I urge the members of our faculty to be active in discussing these important matters with your deans.

I also appeal to our teaching staff to take seriously the “blended learning” initiatives of the university. Since 2016, the Interactive Learning Center/Learning Resource Center (ILC/LRC) has been conducting seminar-workshops to promote this pedagogical approach that combines face-to-face teaching and computer-mediated learning; however, adoption of the approach has been very limited. Please use this time during the enhanced community quarantine to look at how we can improve our coursework syllabus for online delivery.

Given the global scope of the COVID-19 pandemic, various epidemiological models suggest that even if we contain the disease in our country, future incident clusters of the disease are likely to pop up due to imported cases as borders are opened once again. Hence, it is better to be prepared for potential interruption of classes in the near future.

We are aware that some of our teaching staff and many of our students might not have devices for use in online learning or have access to personal Internet connections. The Office of the Vice Chancellor for Academic Affairs has already coordinated with the colleges to conduct a survey so we will have a better picture of the situation and is working with the Information Technology Office to come up with a plan to mitigate this situation.

The disruption of the coronavirus disease will heavily affect many aspects of our society, and global policy experts predict that the fallout for this pandemic will be with us for years to come. Now more than ever, UP Mindanao needs to rise to the challenge in understanding various issues intrinsically linked to COVID-19 and other diseases that might threaten us in the future. Here are some ideas that come to my mind:

• For conservation biologist and environmental scientists – How can we better safeguard wildlife and their habitats to avoid transmission of disease from wild animals to humans in the future?

• For food scientists and scientists working in agriculture – How can we promote practices that contribute to food security, as well as provide safe food options in times of crisis?

• For economists and management scholars – What policies can we recommend post-COVID-19? How can we reboot our economy and help vulnerable communities such as small and medium enterprises after this pandemic?

• For social scientists and culture/communication scholars — What is the socio-cultural toll of events like this pandemic, and what can we do to help communities deal with this trauma?

I am certain that our community of scholars will perhaps have answers and, more importantly, will raise better questions. But I hope that we can all come together para sa bayan!

In the coming weeks, we will be issuing memos and guidelines through different communication channels on relevant policies and action plans to guide all of us as we prepare to tackle the rest of the current academic year and the incoming one.

Keep safe!

Sincerely,

Prof. Larry N. Digal, PhD
Chancellor

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