GRADUATING STUDENTS and academic staff from the UST College of Rehabilitation Sciences (CRS) briefly paused their solemn investiture rites on Friday, June 27, to offer a quiet prayer and an applause in remembrance of the late physical therapy senior Junver Toledo.
During the invocation rites, CRS regent Fr. Joaquin Valdes, O.P. told Thomasians that while the day was a joyful celebration of achievement, it was also a time to pause and honor the memory of Toledo, who had passed away just months before.
“Today is a great day for our students of the rehabilitation sciences. Let us all pause for a while in remembrance of…Mr. Toledo, that he passed just a few months ago, a few weeks ago,” Valdes said.
Toledo, 22, took his own life on May 17 after failing a subject for the second time, according to a note he had left that was posted by his father on social media. With graduation approaching then, Toledo had reportedly appealed for additional requirements to complete the course, but the request was declined.
The University released a statement three days after, expressing its condolences to his family and its readiness to provide mental health services and support to the Thomasian community.
The case, however, stirred debates online, with students, teachers and lawmakers criticizing Philippine universities’ education standards.
On June 3, the Kabataan partylist, Gabriela Women’s Party and ACT-Teachers partylist filed House Resolution No. 2305 to denounce what they claimed as the “uncritical” emphasis on quantitative standards in the Philippine education system, citing that students are burdened by “outcomes-based” standards.
“[Outcomes-based education], as currently implemented not only on UST, but also in most if not all academic institutions nationwide, often prioritizes grades and quantitative metrics over the holistic learning, mental health, and overall well-being of students, without due consideration for the heavy academic workload and the specific challenges faced by individual learners,” the resolution read.
The CRS solemn investiture rites honored a total of 272 graduates from its four programs. F
