FORMER UST Faculty of Arts and Letters (AB) dean Prof. Magdalena Alonso-Villaba, who designed the uniform of female Artlets with the iconic lambda, died on Monday, Sept. 11.
She was 95 years old.
Villaba’s granddaughter Teta confirmed her death but declined to provide additional details.
The University of Santo Tomas mourned Villaba’s death on its official Facebook page, describing her as a “respected figure of philosophy.”
“Being a female philosopher at a time when the field was dominated by males, Dean Villaba was a role model for many students, especially females, to pursue the discipline,” it said.
Villaba was the AB assistant dean from 1972 to 1976. She then served as the faculty’s dean from 1976 to 1987. From 1987 to 1995, she was the dean of the UST Graduate School.
Villaba earned her philosophy degree at the University in 1957 and finished her doctor of philosophy in 1976 magna cum laude.
In the same year, her dissertation titled “An interpretation of the doctrine of transmigration” was published by Philippiniana Sacra, the official journal of the UST Ecclesiastical Faculties.
In 1987, the late dean became a recipient of the Pro Ecclesia et Pontifice, a Papal award that honors the outstanding service of an individual to the Catholic Church.
Some of Villaba’s prominent works include “Philosophy of the East” (1996) and “Mission of Women: A Return to their Original Role” (1975).F
