Chancellor Murao and Prof. del Mundo at the DOST-STRAND-N ceremony

UP Mindanao Chancellor Lyre Anni Murao (in the second row, second from the right) signed a Memorandum of Agreement with the DOST – Science Education Institute (DOST-SEI) for scholarships under the Science and Technology Regional Alliance of Universities for National Development (STRAND), specifically crafted for scholars of the Niche Centers in the Regions for R&D (NICER). 

Called by the acronym STRAND-N, the scholarships aim to make higher education more accessible to S&T professionals in the regions, foster professional advancement, and contribute to progress and development throughout the country.

UPMin is an awarded NICER for R&D in Mindanao, and UPMin's full-time MS Food Science students are qualified to apply for the DOST STRAND-N. They are trained in the scientific analysis of tropical food and vegetable processing to solve Mindanao's food industry concerns in waste reduction, food safety, food security, development of new products, and the like. 

Assoc. Prof. Dann Marie del Mundo (behind Chancellor Murao), the chairperson of the UPMin Department of Food Science and Chemistry and MS Food Science coordinator, witnessed the signing. 

The MS Food Science program addresses the Sustainable Development Goals of Zero Hunger, Good Health and Well-being, Quality Education, Decent Work and Economic Growth, Responsible Consumption and Production, and others.  

DMPCS Chairperson Cinmayii G. Manliguez gives the Closing Remarks in the hybrid event

The Department of Mathematics, Physics, and Computer Science delivered four lectures in its DMPCS Lecture Series on March 13, 2024, its offering to the 29th UP Mindanao Anniversary celebration. Assistant Professor Kim Dianne Ligue-Sabio disclosed their findings from their field study of "Spatiotemporal Patterns and Risk Factors of the 2020-2021 African Swine Fever Epidemic in Region XI, Philippines." Associate Prof. Vladimer Kobayashi delivered a quick training on using machine learning in "Reading text without reading them: Topic modeling and text summarization." Assoc. Prof. Alexis Erich Almocera offered solutions to the question "What can a dynamic system tell us about the CARS-CoV-2 infection and immunity?" in his talk "The In-Host Dynamics of COVID-19 Infection." Finally, Assoc. Prof. Rommel Real shared how mathematics can save lives in his lecture on "Inverse problems and regularization: Capturing the (entirely) unknown."  Prof. Almocera welcomed the on-site student audience and the online viewers at the live hybrid event, while DMPCS department chairperson Assoc. Prof.Cinmayii Manliguez acknowledged the contributors to the success of the event in her closing remarks.

Chancellor Lyre Anni Murao and the participants of the Strategic Planning of the Technical Working Group for the Creation of the UP BDI

The Technical Working Group (TWG) for the Creation of the UP-Bangsamoro Development Institute (UP-BDI) conducted a two-day strategic planning workshop on March 4-5, 2024, at the Acacia Hotel in Davao City.

Headed by Prof. Lyre Anni E. Murao, Chairperson of the UP-BDI TWG, this session aimed to foster collaboration between UP and the Bangsamoro, focusing on co-creating opportunities and taking collective action to enhance human capital, improve socio-economic conditions, and contribute to sustainable development in the Bangsamoro.

State Auditors Joyz Albert, Helena Valdez, and Rosette Reyno

UP Mindanao unit heads and representatives and the COA auditors

UP Mindanao officials and the resident Commission on Audit team met on March 11, 2024, at the UP Mindanao Gaisano Room for an annual COA Exit Conference. The Exit Conference is held between the COA and its auditee institution at the end of every fiscal year to discuss audit observations and recommendations. The COA panel was led by State Auditor V Helena L. Valdez, Regional Supervising Auditor, and supported by State Auditor III Rosette G. Reyno, OIC Audit Team Leader, and State Auditor II Joyz Emarie S. Albert, Audit Team Member, and UPMin COA Office Staff Arnel Narisma.

The UP Mindanao delegation was composed of unit heads and representatives led by VC for Administration Leo Manuel Estana and Michelle Panis, Supply & Property Management Office's Brenda Acuna and Hazel Montecalvo, Accounting Office's Zenaida Calatrava and Jennifer Nonod, Cash Office's Emma Ruth Caalaman, Phil. Genome Center's Marian Luayon, Human Resources' Lynda Buenaobra, Campus Planning's Jean Marie Juanga and Oliver Telmo, Student Affairs' Maria Stella Salazar, and Office of Research's May Anne Mata. 

The COA team gave observations and advice on 2023 transactions, to which the UPMin team intermittently asked for clarifications and gave some explanations.