Miriam College

Miriam College (Tagalog: Dalubhasaang Miriam) is a non-stock, non-profit Filipino Catholic educational institution for girls and young women in Quezon City, Philippines.

It offers academic programs from pre-elementary to post-graduate and adult education levels that develop the learning and caring competencies of students and are enriched by a wide range of national, regional, and international linkages. Although primarily a women’s school, its pre-elementary, graduate, adult education, and deaf education programmes accept male students.

History

The history of Miriam College dates back to 1926 when Archbishop of Manila Michael J. O'Doherty requested the Maryknoll Sisters of St. Dominic of Ossning, New York to initiate a teacher-training program for women in the Philippines. In an old remodelled Augustinian convent in Malabon, the Malabon Normal School was established. The school moved several times until 1952, when was officially renamed to Maryknoll College, and permanently settled on the eastern edge of Diliman (now Loyola Heights) in Quezon City.

A long period of stability and growth followed. Maryknoll College expanded its programs from training teachers to the formation of women leaders, thus a liberal arts college was developed. The school grew in student population, programs, services and reputation, achieving recognition as a school where academic excellence, communication skills, competence, individuality and social responsibility were developed in its students.

Its graduates have distinguished themselves in their professions. Several have been cabinet secretaries, legislators, accomplished businesswomen, entrepreneurs, educators and leaders of government and non-governmental organizations. To date, 19 alumnae have been selected as “The Outstanding Women in the Nation’s Service” (TOWNS) awardees.

After the Second Vatican Council, the Maryknoll congregation began to evaluate its work in the light of their original apostolate as a missionary order. In the 1960s, the Maryknoll congregation saw the readiness of the Filipino laity to continue the education mission they had started. In 1977, the ownership and management of the school was turned over to lay administrators. In accordance with the agreement, the name Maryknoll was to be changed to pave the way for the promotion of the school’s unique identity, distinct although not disconnected from the identity of the Maryknoll sisters. In 1989, after a series of consultations, Maryknoll College was renamed Miriam College.

Miriam College stopped accepting male students at the collegiate level in 1999. The last batch of male students, who had entered the college in 1998, graduated in 2002, thereby making Miriam College an exclusive all-women's college.

Presidents

The first lay president and first female president of a Catholic college in the Philippines was Dr. Paz V. Adriano, who had been a student of the Maryknoll nuns. The second president was Dr. Lourdes Quisumbing, who later became the Secretary of Education under Corazon Aquino, the 11th President of the Philippines. The third was Dr. Loreta Castro; the fourth was Dr. Patricia B. Licuanan, who is currently the chairperson of the Commission on Higher Education. The current president is Dr. Rosario Oreta Lapus.

Partnerships with other institutions

To meet the challenges of the times, Miriam College has expanded its course offerings and set up five major centers for curriculum development, research, community outreach and teacher-training — the Environmental Studies Institute, the Center for Peace Education, the Institutional Network for Social Action, the Women and Gender Institute, and the Growth, Upgrading and Resource Office.

In recent years, Miriam College has responded to the growing trend and demand for international education by securing strategic academic partnership agreements with several colleges and universities in the United States of America, Australia, New Zealand, the United Kingdom, Japan, Taiwan, South Korea, and the People’s Republic of China. Joint and twinning programs, student and faculty exchange, undergraduate and post-graduate research-internship, and collaborative research projects are some of the activities that Miriam College has developed with these foreign partner institutions.

Campus facilities

Campus facilities include a modern, four-storey LEAD Residence Hall for college students and guests, the Gallery of Women's Art featuring donated works from women artists, the Marian Auditorium for institutional events, the Little Theater for smaller events, the Mini-Forest Park, a chapel, Stations of the Cross, Library Media Center, and the Child Development and Day Care Center. Visit http://www.mc.edu.ph/CampusLife.aspx for more information

Miriam College Nuvali

Miriam College Nuvali campus was opened in 2014. A coeducational campus, it is located along Diversity Avenue corner Evoliving Parkway, Nuvali, Calamba, Laguna.

Notable alumni

• Camille Abadicio - reporter for CNN Philippines
• Roxanne Barcelo - actress, singer, children's show host
• Julia Barretto - actress, model
• Iza Calzado - actress
• Nieves Confesor - dean of the Asian Institute of Management; former Secretary of Labor and Employment
• Nikki Coseteng - former senator
• Gaby Dela Merced - Formula Three race car driver, actress
• Andi Eigenmann - actress
• Juris Fernandez - former vocalist for MYMP's
• Nina Girado - pop and R&B singer, songwriter, record producer, commercial model, television and radio personality
• Alodia Gosiengfiao - model, presenter, cosplayer, recording artist
• Chin Chin Gutierrez - television and film actress, environmentalist
• Nicole Angela "Nicki" Judalena - singer, television and film actress
• Pauleen Luna - actress, model
• Maxene Magalona - actress, model
• Mariz Manalo - lawyer, newsreader for NBN-4
• Andrea Manzano (aka Andi 9, Andi Manzano) - MTV VJ, DJ, print ad model
• Margie Moran - Miss Universe 1973
• Korina Sanchez - broadcast journalist for ABS-CBN
• Karla Santos (aka Karel Marquez) - actress, former MYX VJ
• Maria Rosario "Chat" Silayan-Bailon - actress, Miss Universe 1980 Third Runner-Up
• Jannelle So - sports commentator
• Dennis Trillo - television and film actor, model

References

External links

• Official website