A THOMASIAN historian and lawyer will lead a newly established law school of a Catholic institution in Oriental Mindoro.
Asst. Prof. Edelberto Bunquin, chair of the UST Department of Legal Management, has been named founding dean of the Divine Word College of Calapan (DWCC) School of Law.
DWCC announced the appointment in a Facebook post on Tuesday, July 7.
DWCC is a private Catholic institution for basic and higher education in Calapan, Oriental Mindoro. It was established in April 1946 by the Divine Word Missionaries and is run by the Philippine Central Province of the Society of the Divine Word.
Bunquin assumed the chairmanship of the Department of Legal Management in 2025. He previously taught under the Department of History.
Bunquin received the Gawad Benavides award during the Dangal ng UST Awards in 2025.
He earned his bachelor’s degree in Secondary Education from the UST College of Education and his master’s degree in History from the UST Graduate School in 2004.
The Legal Management chair obtained his law degree from the UST Faculty of Civil Law in 2006 and passed the Bar examinations in 2007. He later earned his Master of Laws from the UST Graduate School in 2016 and his Doctor of Civil Law degree from the UST Graduate School of Law in 2021.
In his message to the first batch of applicants, Bunquin said the program is intended to form legal professionals who would serve Mindoro communities.
“By choosing to study law right here at home, you are answering a higher calling to serve your fellow Mindoreños, uplift the marginalized, and champion the rule of law in your own backyard,” he said.
As founding dean, Bunquin will oversee the development of DWCC’s first law program. F
