SU forum highlights Integrated Scholarship and Service Learning across disciplines
The forum, titled “How and What of Integrated Scholarship: Dissemination of Service-Learning Experiences and Findings,” was organized through a partnership between the United Board–Silliman University Integrated Scholarship Project and the Office of Community Engagement and Service-Learning (OCESL). It brought together 32 faculty participants from colleges and institutes, including Agriculture, Arts and Sciences, Education, Business Administration, Mass Communication, Nursing, Performing and Visual Arts, Rehabilitative Sciences, Laboratory Sciences, and the School of Public Administration and Governance.
The activity aimed to provide a platform for sharing service-learning experiences and research findings that integrate instruction, research, and community engagement.
Asst. Prof. Novee E. Maestrecampo Jr., OCESL director, opened the program with welcome remarks and explained the rationale of the forum, emphasizing the importance of integrated scholarship in transformative education and community impact. Dr. Lily Ann D. Bautista, vice president for Academic Affairs and Research (VPAAR), followed with a message highlighting the University’s commitment to strengthening service-learning as a scholarly and institutional practice.
Morning sessions featured discussions on the institutional framework and practice of service-learning, including a presentation by Dr. Enrique G. Oracion on the scholarship of integration using a service-learning platform. Open forums allowed participants to reflect and engage in dialogue on the topics presented.
In the afternoon, faculty members shared applied service-learning initiatives. Asst. Prof. Rehel A. Diaz discussed introducing urban gardening to school youth, while Asst. Prof. Mylah R. Bomediano presented a project supporting women in fish processing as an enterprise, illustrating how service-learning responds to community needs while producing scholarly insights.
A special segment focused on service-learning involving Physical Therapy students working with older persons. Presentations covered health and quality-of-life assessments, student learning outcomes, and service-learning experiences, delivered by Maripel M. Bulfa, Erwin F. Arapols, MPH, Alexa C. Tiu, MPH, and Roselle Franz B. Felisilda.
The forum concluded with reflections on the value of integrated scholarship in enhancing academic practice and strengthening community partnerships and reaffirmed the university’s commitment to service-learning across disciplines.
