UP president declines offer of highest academic rank

University of the Philippines president Alfredo Pascual has declined the National College of Public Administration and Governance’s (NCPAG) offer to confer on him the highest academic rank in the premier state university. At the 118th meeting of the UP Diliman’s university council last week, Pascual said he does not need the “Professor 12" rank to effectively discharge the mandate of his office and execute his plans and programs, according to a UP statement prepared by the UP System Information Office on July 18. “I will not accept [the] appointment… now or in the future," he told the council. “You must note that by the time I finish my term as president in February 2017, I will be over the faculty retirement age of 65." Last week, Professor Solita Monsod, in her BusinessWorld column headlined “Tempest over academic rank," dwelt on whether the UP president should be automatically conferred UP’s highest professorship. Monsod said one group — who had offered Pascual with a Professor 12 title — cited Section 14 of the University Charter of 2008, or Republic Act 9500, that says: “The president of the university is the chief academic officer, head of the university, and chief executive officer of the university." However, in Monsod’s view, which she claims the majority of the academic community holds, the chief academic officer post “cannot and should not be equated with having the highest academic rank." The university council asserted that according to Pascual’s curriculum vitae he is qualified for the rank of “Assistant Professor 3" — 33 steps behind a Professor 12 title. “While an executive position is bestowed on a person who heads the institution an academic rank is earned according to specific criteria… The president of the Philippines is the commander in chief of the armed forces. But he is not given the rank of general, much less a four- or five-star general," Monsod expounded. An "unnecessary distraction" In response, Pascual pointed out that the controversy raised by Monsod in her column was an “unnecessary distraction at this time when we are trying to achieve academic excellence and administrative efficiency in the face of inadequate budget funding from the government." He clarified, though, that his refusal of the Professor 12 rank does not mean he will no longer teach in the university. “I will be happy to serve as [a] guest lecturer at NCPAG — to [which] I am thankful for the invitation to join its faculty — or any other unit of the university where my experience and expertise, particularly in development, project finance, and public-private partnership, will add value," Pascual said. Pascual was an instructor of chemistry in UP Diliman, a part-time professor at the Ateneo de Manila University, and a full-time professor at the Asian Institute of Management. “I welcome any opportunity to share knowledge with our students… I know I am considered by some of you as an outsider. Given that, I know I need to allow time for you to get to know me better. I need to earn your trust and merit it," Pascual said. Open communication lines The UP president reiterated that he will keep his office’s communication lines open to the university community. “I would love to hear your views, comments, and suggestions," he said. In the spirit of democratic governance, “we should continue consultations and I hope that my speaking to you today is the start of more productive interactions and the end to unnecessary distractions," he told the council. — With Jesse Edep/ELR/VS, GMA News