For AY 2023-2024, the College of Arts and Sciences (CAS) honored the president of UPV PH Pub, Ms. Danielle Anleigh B. Colacion, as the CAS Most Outstanding Graduate. The award is given to the student who exemplifies the highest standards of scholarship, leadership, and community engagement.
Colacion, a Bachelor of Science in Public Health (BSPH) student, is a model student who depicts the University’s core values of honor, excellence, and public service. Graduating magna cum laude, Colacion has been a consistent honorific scholar since her first year in the University. As a student leader, she is not only the president of UPV PH Pub, but also an active member of various co-curricular, interest, and socio-civic organizations, including the UPV Clovers, UPV Badminton Club, UPV Hublag Dance Company, Impact Philippines Inc. Iloilo, and Partido sang Mainuswagon nga Bumulutho.
Standing out as the most outstanding student is no small feat because beyond her academic achievements, she has demonstrated dynamic leadership especially as the president of UPV PH Pub, a college-based organization of BSPH students committed to preventing diseases, promoting health, and protecting life with a vision of creating a #HealthierPH. She has been an officer of the organization since it won back-to-back the Most Outstanding Student Organization of CAS for AY 2021-2022 and AY 2022-2023.
Colacion has spearheaded numerous projects that champion public health programs for various stakeholders especially among her fellow students and youth. With her at the helm, the organization has continued to make significant strides in fulfilling its mission. It has implemented six (6) major events and participated in various activities encompassing various health-related initiatives. These include the yearly Snappy Hands Project that promotes proper handwashing and hygiene to prevent diseases among communities especially to children while also offering free consultation and dental services in three (3) barangays in Miagao, Iloilo. She also made sure to continue other legacy projects of the organization such as Project Búlak that promoted proper menstrual hygiene and awareness of reproductive health among teenagers in high schools across the city and province of Iloilo.
UPV PH Pub also co-organized various activities including science communication engagements, youth leadership camps, public service activities, socio-civic campaigns and mobilizations, and fundraising projects for community beneficiaries. Notably, UPV PH Pub served as a media partner in the first Iloilo International Informatics Conference held on June 20-21, 2024.
All these activities highlight the organization’s commitment to collaboration and broader community engagement. Colacion's leadership has successfully fostered camaraderie among BSPH students and secured partnerships that will ensure the sustainability and impact of the organization across sectors and communities.
According to Colacion, the comprehensive and service-learning education provided by BSPH program and the experiential learning through UPV PH Pub has been instrumental in shaping her and her peers' passion for public service.
“The BS in Public Health program holistically nurtured my problem-solving skills, ensuring that theoretical knowledge is appropriately being applied to contextualized settings in the healthcare sector. With the health field being multi-faceted in nature, the program has definitely molded my mindset to embrace diverse perspectives that is grounded on practicality in order to sustainably and effectively deliver the desired health outcomes for the public across generations,” said Colacion.
Receiving the first-ever CAS Most Outstanding Graduate Award is a testament to Colacion's remarkable leadership, academic excellence, and unwavering commitment to public health and community service as supported and promoted by the BSPH program. Her journey at UPV sets a high benchmark for future graduates and underscores the University's mission to nurture leaders dedicated to creating a healthier and more equitable and sustainable society.
Colacion’s journey exemplifies the heights that can be achieved when potential and innate skills are coupled with dedication, leadership, and a genuine intent to make a difference. Her accomplishments inspire and pave the way for future generations of UPV graduates to become scholars, leaders, and public servants.
