Graduate School and Faculty of Arts and Letters faculty member Dr. Edwin S. Martin was elected president of the Association of Schools of Public Administration in the Philippines (ASPAP) during the ASPAP National Conference held at the Ateneo de Davao University last December 8 and 9, 2016. The conference, whose theme was “Making Good Governance Work,” served as a forum for presentation of various academic papers on new approaches on the teaching of theories and practice in public administration. Martin, the point person for Public Administration at the UST Graduate School, served as Panel Chair in one of the simultaneous paper presentation sessions.
The ASPAP is the only association of public administration and governance schools in the Philippines. Established in 1979, through the initiatives of the University of the Philippines Institute of Public Administration, the precursor of the UP – National College of Public Administration and Governance, its primary goal is to continuously upgrade the standard of teaching public administration in higher education institutions in the country.
There are currently more than 200 schools that offer public administration and allied courses in the Philippines. ASPAP, as an organization, provides guidance to member schools on how innovations and new modalities on imparting the theories and practice of public administration may best be shared to students and public service practitioners. Through the years, ASPAP has collaborated not only with academic institutions but also with government, civil society and international organizations.
Coinciding with the ASPAP National Conference is the General Assembly where election of new set of officers was conducted. Martin was elected president of the association from 2016 to 2019. Also elected were: Dr. Ma. Rosario Tamayo, Lyceum of the Philippines – Batangas, VP for Luzon; Dr. April Dream Rico, West Visayas State University, VP for Visayas; Dr. Arlene Cosape, Ateneo de Davao University, VP for Mindanao; Dr. Sanjay Claudio, Polytechnic University of the Philippines, VP for NCR; Prof. Juvy Lizette Gervacio, UP-Open University, Treasurer; Dr. Malu Barcillano, Ateneo de Naga University, PRO; and, Dr. Jack Isolana, Mindanao State University – Marawi, Auditor.