The Union Christian College is situated in the City of San Fernando known as the “Botanical Garden of the North” and also acknowledged the Regional Center of Region I. It is ideally located on a hill overlooking a bay. The province of La Union, the immediate service area of the College is typical of the Ilocos Region. It has vast undeveloped marginal lands in the hillsides and barely tapped marine resources but with sturdy city folks. Thus, with this challenging environment, UCC, aside from its primary mission of providing quality Christian learning, orients its programs and activities to motivate, and lead a paradigm of education from a teacher-centered program to a student paradigm of development.
The Union Christian College traced her humble beginnings from the Women’s Bible Training School for deaconesses founded in November 7, 1910 by Ms. Matilde Weber, an American Missionary. This institution was the result of the merger of two (2) schools namely, the Bible Training College (formerly the Women’s Bible Training School) and the La Union Christian College (founded in November 17, 1946). The integration in April 26, 1960 gave birth to the corporate name, Union Christian College.
It is one of the eighteen (18) non-sectarian educational institutions affiliated with the United Church of Christ in the Philippines (UCCP). The blueprint of the College was born with Rev. C.C Witmer as Chair of the first Board of Trustees and Rev. Onofre G. Fonseca as the first acting president until Mr. Roman C. Villalon became the first full-time president in November 17, 1946. (All the other presidents that followed are placed in a separate listing from 1947-present) Our president at present is Rev. Dr. Filemon L. Lagon, the 12th designated President. Rev. Lagon was the former Senior minister of the United Church of Christ, Baguio City, the former president of the Northern Christian College of Laoag City from 1979-1986, then, President of Southern Christian College, Cotabato from 1986-1995 before he came to the Union Christian College.
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TheUCC President
He is the moving force behind UCC’s governance; an exemplary servant leader; a humble friend & big brother; a principled man; a God-fearing man; a fulfilled administrator; and a loving father & husband.
These aptly describe our 12th UCC President, Rev. Dr. Filemon L. Lagon. Below is his profile.
PERSONAL DATA
Place of Birth : San Fernando, La Union
Domicile Address : 41 Guerrero Ave., San Gabriel,
La Union
Bachelor of Arts : Philippine Christian Colleges
(PCU) 1959, Manila, Phil.
Bachelor of Divinity : Union Theological Seminary
1962, Manila, Phil.
1968, Indianapolis, Ind. USA
Master of Arts : Indiana University - 1969
Bloomington, Indiana, USA
Doctor of Philosophy : Centro Escolar University
1975, Manila, Phil.
As Parish Minister
Ø Parish Minister of different local churches in North Central Luzon Conf.
Ø Chaplain and Dean - College of Theology – Northern Christian College, Laoag City – 1963-1967; 1969-1971; 1976-1979
Ø Associate Minister & Interim Pastor– Cosmopolitan Church, Manila
–1971 - 1975
Ø Senior Minister – United Church of Christ – Baguio
– Baguio City 2000 - June 2002
As Educational Administrator
Ø Coordinating Dean (Equivalent to Academic Dean) Northern Christian College, Laoag City, 1977-1979
Ø Elected Third College President – Northern Christian College, 1979-1986
Ø Elected Third College President, Southern Christian College, Midsayap, Cotabato, 1986-1996
Ø Dean, Graduate School, Lorma College – San Fernando City
– 1996-98
Ø First Chairman – ACSCU-AAI
Ø First Chairman – Planning Board CREATE UCCP
Ø BOT of ACSC for more than 8 years
Ø Chairman- BOT Union Christian College –
Ø Vice Chairman – BOT & Edu’l Consultant – Osias Educational Foundation, Balaoan, La Union – 1965 to the present
Ø Elected President – Union Christian College, May 2002 to present
Ø Organizer – Non-formal and community Development Program of Northern Christian College serving 24 depressed barangays in Ilocos Norte.
Ø Organizer – D’ASI Project for children & community Development funded by the Kindernotelfe, Currimao, Ilocos Norte
Ø Chairman – Management Board – of Midsayap Water District, Cotabato, 1986 -1995
Ø BOT/Treasurer – CONCORD (Rural Development Agency/network
– 1987-1993
Ø BOT member and auditor – PANGOLU (Provincial Association of Non- Government Org. of La Union –1999-12001
Ø Member- Technical Committee of Bauang Private Power Plant Corp., 1992-1994
Ø Officer/Member of Civic Clubs
Past President – Rotary Club of Midsayap, Cotabato
Past Vice President – Kiwanis Club, Laoag City
Life Member – YMCA, Laoag City
Life Member – Free and Accepted Mason, Midsayap, Cotabato
Ø Most Outstanding Award for School Presidents/Administration
Ø Gawad Award International, July 30, 2005>Outstanding Father/Head Educator of the Philippines
Lingkod Bayan Award, Phil. Youth Association for Public Affairs, Inc. (PYAPAI), Dec. 18, 2005
Ø Outstanding Alumni Award – Union Christian College
Ø Most Outstanding Alumni Award – Philippine Christian University – 2001
Ø Award of Excellence – CREATE –UCCP
Ø Plaque of Recognition – Northern Luzon Jurisdiction, UCCP
Ø Plaque of Meritorious Service, ACSC – 1987
Ø Award for Special Field of Endeavor, Centro Escolar University
Ø Parent of the Year Award, YMCA, Laoag City
General Description of his Work Role
Ø A Pastoral Care Giver
Ø Educational Administrator and Teacher
Ø Communitarian
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A Closer Look at UCC Otterbein Building
The Otterbein Building houses the Office of the Dean of Graduate School/Academic Affairs, the Dean of School of Education, the Chair of the Office of the Instructional Materials Resources & Reproduction, the Pre-Elementary Office, Graduate School Library, Faculty Room of the School of Education and Classroom for Nursing & Education students.
One of the rooms at the right wing second floor is a Speech Laboratory room for the English majors but as of now, it has not been functional due to some mechanical provisions & gadgets not installed.
BASIC EDUCATION BUILDING
The Basic Education Building is where our elementary pupils & secondary students can be found. The classrooms, comfort rooms, library, faculty rooms & other function rooms are well-suited to the needs, height, & build of our Grades I-VI pupils & our 1st year-4th year high school students.
THE COVERED COURT
The Covered Court is adjacent to this building & it is a conducive venue for commencement exercises, symposia, for a, seminars, athletic events and many other invitational activities from public & private live-agencies of the city.
Capistrano Building
The oldest building ever erected at UCC is the Capistrano building in honor of the late former President, Mr. Samuel Capistrano who was installed to office in l961-1962. Under Mr. Capistrano’s leadership, the programs of the school were expanded such as, the College of Nursing, College of Commerce with Accounting and Banking and Finance as major subjects and new building structures were built to serve the classroom needs.
This Capistrano building today houses the Offices of the Office of the Dean of Administration and External Affairs, the College of Nursing, College of Arts and Sciences, ICT, Research Unit, Registrar’s Office, Boardroom, CAED, Hartland Office, as well as laboratories and classrooms of the undergraduate levels.
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ACADEMICS
UCC is destined to achieve a scale of greater heights as it faces the awesome challenges for the next two (2) years, its 100th Year Anniversary.
UCC has faithfully carried out its avowed educational mission since its foundation in 1910. As a Christian Institution of higher learning, UCC has, through the 98 years, formed & shaped young people who are imbued with a Christian Spirit & and they are also creative, intelligent, and productive.
At present, UCC has 7 colleges in pursuit of its mission with their corresponding Deans/Directors. They are:
Graduate School : Dr. Susie F. Saliut
College of Nursing : Mrs. Rose Merlyn M. Jubilo
College of Business Admin.Accountancy : Rev. Benjamin Alguso
College of Computing and Information Technology : Mr. Roberto A. Liwag
College of Liberal Arts: Dr. Gloria Resurrecion
Center of Alternative Education : Dir. Romeo F. Cabañero
School of Education : Dr. Cynthia Lao
Basic Education : Dir. Marilou L. Agustin
Pre-Elementary Education : Dr. Deborah B. Amoyen
UCC’s commitment to the young is manifested by its provision of a Pre-Elementary, Elementary, & Secondary Education under one (l) big Unit, the Basic Education.
The different colleges with their very able Deans/ Directors tried to sustain during the past years their capabilities and thrusts for academic excellence, financial stability, and effective teaching-learning environment and engage in research, community involvement and other production,
The Graduate School is also responsive to the needs and aspirations of the graduate students to meet the demands of the different line-agencies the national as well as global development needs. UCC is offering graduate program in Master of Arts in Teacher Education and Master of Arts in Nursing. The Master of Arts in Education Major in Teacher Education is a graduate degree that specializes in innovative teaching skills, methods and strategies as it prepares teachers to become master teachers.
UCC was ranked #1 in Nursing Exam (Category 100-300 Examinees)
The College of Nursing of Union Christian College of the City of San Fernando was ranked No.1 among Nursing schools in La Union with 100-300 examinees based on the results of the Professional Regulation Commission Nurse Licensure Examination given on November 29-30, 2008. UCC passing rate is 43% while the national passing rate is 44.51%.
UCC is one among the 6 selected, Center of Training Institutions for Teacher Education in Region 1
The Commission on Higher Education, the DepEd and the Teacher Education Council had chosen the UCC, City of San Fernando as one among the six (6) selected Centers of Training Institution for Teacher Education. The award was given to UCC by Hon. Leslie Lapuz and Commissioner Nenalyn Defensor. The 5 other institutions selected as Centers of Training Institutions are: SLC La Union, MMMSU Laoag City, Northwestern University Laoag, University of Luzon Dagupan, and UNP Ilocos Sur. UCC received this distinction because of her remarkable track record in teacher education. CHEd recognizes UCC’s commitment to provide excellent programs and her capacity to serve as a role model to other teacher education institutions in the region.
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PERFORMANCE OF LET GRADUATES
Eight (8) graduates in the School of Education of the Union Christian College, City of San Fernando hurdled the Licensure Examinations for Teachers (LET) given last April 5, 2009.
There were two (2) BEEd & six (6) BSEd passers based on the results of the Philippine Bulletin dated May 2, 2009.
UCC’s quest for quality & excellence in this institution is seen in great part on the performance of its graduates in the licensure exam given by the Professional Regulatory Commission (PRC)
It is also worth - mentioning that in the Nursing Licensure Exam in June 2004, UCC ranked the No.1 Private Higher Education Institution (HEI) in Region I; the most Outstanding Nursing School in La Union & the # 32 in the entire country; hence, the PRC acclaimed UCC as a top performing Nursing institution in the Philippines for the past five (5) years.
To all the passers, Congratulations! You deserve to be the major source of pride in our UCC, School of Education. Although we did not have top- notchers among the passers, UCC’s overall performances is better than the national average passing.
Those who passed the LET are as follows:
Marique Abuyog
Rodel Ebreo G.
Joel Ganotisi M.
Niel Pislaan A.
Maribel Soriano E.
Lenydyn Valiente
Josephine Velasco I.
Ezabel Quilop
Contributed by: Dr. Vivina Villanueva