PSHS–MC bags awards in system-wide MUN summit

BY BENJAMIN JACOB

PSHS–MC holds first club fair since pandemic

BY KAT DELA RAMA & YEL DELENA

Last October 5, Philippine Science High School — Main Campus (PSHS–MC) hosted the first face-to-face club fair in two years.

The program was held in two batches: Grades 7, 8, and 11 had theirs in the morning and Grades 9, 10, and 12 had theirs in the afternoon.

Himig Agham, the school’s official glee club, officially opened the event with a performance of the national anthem.

This was followed by a message from Celver Huerte Ortiz, the club coordinating head of the student council, instructing students on the sign-up processes for their prospective clubs.

“Kamalayan’s performance definitely made its mark, showcasing the true craft and talent of their actors [and] actresses,” Erina Reyes of 8-Rosal remarked.

Dan Co of Batch 2025, one of the coordinators of Ellipsis, expressed their excitement about upcoming activities their club will be hosting: “I’m really looking forward to inspiring creativity and passion into the lower batches and [meeting] more people . . .I hope people will realize that creative arts [is] still something Pisay students can pursue despite being locked into STEM.”

Two delegates from Philippine Science High School–Main Campus (PSHS–MC) won major awards at the recently concluded PSHS System Model United Nations Youth Summit (PMUNYS) III held in Baguio City.

Ezekiel Salazar of Batch 2024 was awarded Best Position Paper representing the Republic of Iceland at the UN Environmental Programme (UNEP). Meanwhile, John Florence Dizon of Batch 2024 garnered Best Opening Speech as the delegate of Turkmenistan in the World Health Organization (WHO).

“I would have already been satisfied with being on time for the committee sessions, […], participating actively in discussions, and crafting speeches on the fly while shaking off the nerves,” Dizon commented.

However, Dizon added that finishing the conference is a victory to celebrate as the pressure is much more amplified this time around compared to the event’s online counterparts in the previous years. Thus, he felt grate- ful that he was able to win an award.

Joining Dizon and Salazar in the delegation were Julianne Earl Sales (B2024, UN Security Council (UNSC)), Paris Miguel Bereber (B2024, UNEP), Marinela Dyan Tiu (B2025, UN Women), and Anzelmei Cielo De Castro (B2024, UN Women).

Ma’am Kimberly Favor of the Social Science Unit served as the delegation’s coach.

Danielle Andrea Santos (B2023, WHO), Kevin William Castro (B2024, UNSC), and Davis Nicholo Magpantay (B2024, UN Women) also participated as members of DAIS, the student committee in charge of organizing the event.

The delegation remarked on the challenges they faced before and during the summit.

“Truth be told, the delegates of the Main Campus hurdled many struggles in the duration of the training for PMUNYS III. […] We had a few weeks of training before the summit, […] so everyone was busy. It was hard to find similar free time for the delegates,” Ma’am Favor explained.

Despite these problems, the participants considered themselves to be triumphant.

“I would say we were still lacking in preparation […] due to schedule conflicts and time constraints […] Needless to say, I am proud of the entire [PSHS-]MC delegation, […] daring greatly in doing so,” Dizon said.

The delegation hopes that events like PMUNYS III will inspire PSHS–MC students to join MUN to enhance their skills outside of STEM.

Ma’am Favor told students to not be intimidated by the club. Instead, she encourages them to take this as a challenge to learn more about the UN and international relations through researching about countries, writing position papers, and debating with other students.

“So, if you think you are up to that challenge, join PSHS-MC MUN,” she advised.

In between club presentations, question-and-answer portions were held where the audience could ask point persons about the latter’s respective clubs.

Bravura, the school’s musical ensemble club, was the first to present among the performing arts clubs.

“We’ve been practicing as dedicatedly as we can, even though there’s been some ups and downs,” said Rex Reventar, vice president of the club’s symphony orchestra. “I must say that it’s been quite the experience because the goal of music is not only to perform, but to enjoy making it.”

Many students from Batch 2027 shared that they enjoyed the performance of Kamalayan, PSHS–MC’s Filipino theater club.

However, some Batch 2024 students felt a lack of engagement from the video presentations. “[The in-person demonstrations] felt like getting to know the club on a more personal level,” one student said.

Some club officers also found the club fair draining as the preparations took a lot of time and effort.

“Though a bit messy, it wasn’t bad given that this was Pisay’s first face-toface club fair in a while,” stated Hugh Mejos of Batch 2023, varsity captain of Invictus. “[I] massively appreciate the Student Council for putting this together given the circumstances.”

Club sign-ups will open on October 10 at 7:00 p.m. through a Google Form that will be sent to students’ emails.