By Adrianne Lloyd Aquino | August 09, 2024
Emmanuel “Ems” Manalastas kicks off his time as the University Student Council (USC) President with a heartfelt and powerful move, the university’s first-ever Inclusivity Walk. For Manalastas, this is more than an event; it's a way to bring every student, including the staff and faculty members closer and ensure everyone feels seen and valued.
As a Communication student at Holy Angel University (HAU), he balanced involvement in two organizations namely, the Communicators’ League and Student Council, now only focusing on USC as the newly elected President. On the other hand, in his achievements in academics, he has been a President's Lister for six semesters. He was also one of the 30 delegates in The American Chamber of Commerce of the Philippines (AmCham) Business Leadership Program last June 3, 2024, where he was nominated as Best Presenter and his team won 2nd place in Best Business Plan. He faced several challenges along the way, notably balancing time between academics and organization activities as well as losing his fire from being a student leader, and seeking validation from other people as his work was not given any appreciation.
Manalastas stated in an interview with the Nexus how he wants his journey to expand through bestowing his knowledge to newer student leaders.
“As someone na matagal na when it comes to student leadership, siguro yung priority ko talaga yung maimpart yung natutunan ko sa younger student leaders. I have always believed kasi na hindi dapat tumigil sa ‘yo yung galing, hindi dapat tumigil sa ‘yo yung natutunan mo.” Manalastas said.
The USC President also aims to bring the council closer to the student body as he found that the difficulties that the learners face happen annually. He plans to bring the councils’ services closer to the students. For example, during the super typhoon Carina, they requested academic leniency, raised the concern of wearing uniforms to the Office of Student Affairs (OSA), and offered load assistance to students who were struggling with synchronous classes.
Additionally, he mentioned that in the following planned activities that they have for the year, there will be advocacies that coincide with them. An example was the university's inaugural Inclusivity Walk, where several adjustments were made including branching out to different sectors of the community such as the Indigenous people, persons with disabilities (PWDs), and women, but still held the cause for the LGBTQIA+ community. As the spearhead of the event, he faced difficulties during the planning phase as he was in Makati for AmCham so he could not be physically present in the meetings. Furthermore, they also encountered issues with gathering participants for the event as no excuse letters were released to the students and it was only based on their availability.
For future initiatives, one of the USC's goals is to establish a solid foundation for university activities to ensure the continuity of planned events. Additionally, they have revised the constitution and are currently forming the University Student Government (USG) to better serve the student body. Lastly, during his term, Manalastas aims to emphasize the importance of character because, besides wits and excellence, he values the attitude and personality of a student leader.
Manalastas has truly embodied the title of 'student leader,' making a significant impact on the Angelite community with more to come. He excels academically while balancing his time between his studies and organizational responsibilities. In his final year of college, his legacy will last as this academic year’s USC president.
Photo courtesy of Carmela Lumanlan
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