THE FACULTY secretary of the UST Faculty of Arts and Letters (AB) has been elected vice president of the Psychological Association of the Philippines (PAP).
Asst. Prof. John Manuel Kliatchko took his oath with other newly-elected PAP officers last Sunday, Sept. 24.
“It’s added responsibility because being in a position like that, it’s as if you are representing the cause of all Filipino psychologists and psychometricians,” Kliatchko told The Flame.
Kliatchko oversees PAP’s committee on career progression and specialization, which assists individuals from various professions who aim to advance in their respective fields.
Kliatchko said that while his affiliation with UST does not significantly influence his tenure in PAP, his Thomasian values are reflected in his work.
“Let’s say, for example, what are you fighting for or what are you advocating? Of course, you bring the values of the school where you came from. You carry with you what is right and just, and that’s where you can apply your knowledge,” Kliatchko said in Filipino, citing his experience with PAP’s ethics committee.
“That’s where your being a Thomasian comes in,” he added.
Kliatchko noted that his background in psychology and the PAP is beneficial for his work as faculty secretary, where he has to deal with “people of different levels.”
“I’m not saying that you’re required to be a psychologist [or the vice president of PAP] to know that. But, knowing how people think or…relate with others, helps significantly in that kind of work,” he said.
Before becoming AB faculty secretary last August, Kliatchko headed the University’s interdisciplinary studies department, consisting of the behavioral science, Asian studies and legal management programs.
Kliatchko also chaired PAPCON 2023, the organization’s 59th convention held in Legazpi City from Sept. 21 to 23, where he was elected vice president. His term will end in 2025.
He has been with PAP for about two decades. Kliatchko joined the organization’s board as secretary, serving two consecutive three-year terms from 2014 to 2020.
PAP, an integrated professional organization accredited by the Professional Regulation Commission, has promoted excellence in psychology since 1962, making it the oldest and largest association for registered psychometricians and psychologists in the country. F
