2 Alumni Named Outstanding Negrense
Two alumni of Silliman University were the recipients of the 2010 Outstanding Oriental Negrense Award for Excellence presented October 24 at the Sidlakang Negros Village, in a ceremony that culminated the two week-long celebration of Buglasan Festival.
The prestigious annual award honored Judge Rafael Cresencio Tan Jr. for Excellence in Government and Public Service and Dr. William Torillo Torres for Excellence in Science and Technology.
Judge Tan graduated from Silliman with three degrees: AB Math (1970), Bachelor of Laws (1988) and Master of Public Administration (1994). Dr. Torres, on the other hand, studied at Silliman from 1951 to 1953 towards a degree of Bachelor of Science in Mechanical Engineering.
With a remarkable performance as a public officer and a trial court judge, Judge Tan had resolved 96.31 percent of all pending criminal cases and 98.66 percent of civil cases in his court as the Municipal Trial Court Judge in Sibulan, Negros Oriental from 1999 to 2005.
During his stint in Sibulan, he received the Presidential Jose A. Reyes Award for Excellence as Outstanding Municipal Trial Court Judge of 2002; and Integrated Bar of the Philippines (IBP) Negros Oriental Chapter?s Outstanding Service Award on May 23, 2003.
Lately, Judge Tan accepted The Manila Times Dr. Jose P. Rizal Award for Excellence in public service in Manila.
Meanwhile, Dr. Torres had a gigantic role in the development of the Philippine Internet industry, by being the first Filipino to obtain the Doctor of Philosophy in Computer Sciences degree from the University of Wisconsin in 1971.
Dr. Torres led the campaign to connect the Philippines to the global internet making him the “Father of Philippine Internet.” He was the principal author of the National Information Technology Plan.
He co-founded and was President of Mosaic Communications, Inc. (MOSCOM), the largest Philippine internet service provider.
With all his endeavors, Dr. Torres have been awarded in Information Technology (IT) commitments in various capacities as president, board member, university professor, director, consultant or expert for various government or private concerns, such as the National Steel Corporation, the Development Academy of the Philippines, the prestigious regional Asia Productivity Organization, and others.
For five years, the outstanding award search has honored the achievements of Oriental Negrense leadership and contribution to the community that reflect more involvement in professional excellence, service and commitment in the field of endeavors. (Adapted from the Philippine Information Agency [Negros Oriental section / JCT] website)
