Dr. Romeo Sadural
Cabanilla, the second president of the Aurora State College of Technology (ASCOT) has come
to accept the fact that being a State College or University (SUC) president is his
destiny. This, however, did not play a part in his personally enriching course as a
successful administrator at the Central Luzon State University (CLSU) for most of his
educational and administrative career until, destiny comes calling in a time he least
expected. His professional life spanning 31 long years at CLSU has been highlighted by
various accomplish- ments and success stories from the simple to the most profound.
Given his satisfaction with his stewardship of the University Agribusiness Program (UAP)
and the University Business Affairs Program (UBAP) as Program Director and Vice President
for Business Affairs at CLSU, Dr. Cabanilla thought that he would be finishing a very
meaningful work span at the same institution that nurtured and made him what he is today.
But, as a welcome twist, Dr. Cabanilla was to be the newest among the growing number of
SUC presidents produced by CLSU. With the guidance of CLSU's current president and
one-time Officer-in-Charge of ASCOT, Dr. Rodolfo C. Undan and the Kingmaker himself,
Dr. Fortunato A. Battad, President Emeritus of CLSU, the accomplished educator and leader
who was born in Talabutab Norte, Gen. Natividad, Nueva Ecija assumed the presidency of the
Aurora State College of Technology on March 4, 2002.
Dr. Cabanilla accepted the job as the second president of the
College following the groundbreaking accomplishments of the first president of ASCOT, Dr.
Benny A. Palma. Dr. Palma, after almost 8 years as president of ASCOT, is now back to his
home province of Aklan as the president of Aklan State University (ASU) in Banga, Aklan.
Dr. Palma has said that Dr. Cabanilla is his personal choice to be the new leader and
administrator of ASCOT. A man who will continue to pursue their shared vision for the
College and for the Province of Aurora.
Born on November 29, 1943 to the late Ricardo E. Cabanilla,
originally of Narvacan, Ilocos Sur and the late Maria B. Sadural of Nueva Ecija, Dr.
Cabanilla did not grow up with a silver spoon in his mouth. As the third child among seven
children of a farming family, his early years were spent helping his parents and siblings
in the farm doing a range of farming jobs typical of the locals of Nueva Ecija. Poverty
had been a challenge for him and his family and, as the time-tested Dr. Cabanilla would
attest, it was not an easy road to the top. Yet, Dr. Cabanilla lived the goal-oriented
principle that "poverty is not a hindrance to success and to pursue higher
education." He remembers with pride the four difficult years after his elementary
education when he had to stop school and engaged in a variety of odd jobs from being a
Saging vendor in Rizal, Nueva Ecija to working in a vulcanizing shop in Bongabon.
Fortunately, an uncle was able to help him raise tuition fees necessary to get him to the
former Central Luzon Agricultural College (CLAC) High School Vocational Curriculum. He was
sent back to the right track of pursuing his ambition to be set free from the cudgels of
poverty and define a career that would be vested in its eradication. Dr. Cabanilla hopes
to influence the youth of the nation, particularly of the Province of Aurora, and be a
living example of what hard work and dedication can do to fight the limitations set by
poverty.
Dr. Romeo S. Cabanilla or Romy to most of his peers and friends is
not a stranger to Aurora province. Various agricultural and developmental projects under
the Department of Science and Technology (DOST) and the Consultancy on Agricultural
Productivity Enhancement Program (CAPE) and Technology Assistance and Promotions Institute
(TAPI) in the towns of Baler, San Luis, and Dipaculao have been initiated and successfully
facilitated through his initiative in the last 2 years. His earliest memory of the
unforgiving Baler-Bongabon road goes back to the early 1950s when he, together with his
late father and relatives walked back to Nueva Ecija after buying a carabao in San Luis.
The journey took days, as the road, much less developed than what it is now, became a
tough hurdle for them especially to the young Romy. But it seems that having to hurdle
that same road is destined to be a usual routine for Dr. Cabanilla. Being the new ASCOT
president means having to perpetually pass the Sierra Madre Mountain. This also meant
changing his theme song in life which now has become "Climb Every Mountain" -
really fit for a man with a mission to bring development to this side of the country. If
it takes hurdling the zigzags to spell the difference for the youth of Aurora, then Dr.
Cabanilla has committed himself to do it.
Dr. Cabanilla's educational profile started from being the
Valedictorian at Talabutab Norte Elementary School in 1955; Valedictorian in high school
at the Central Luzon Agricultural College in 1963; and top-notch College graduate of CLAC
finishing Bachelor of Science in Agricultural Education major in Agronomy in 1967. He
graduated with the third highest average of 1.83 among his peers and eventually landed a
job as a teacher at Urdaneta Community High School at the Division of Pangasinan in 1968.
He went back to CLAC already CLSU in 1970 as an Assistant Instructor. One of the
highlights of his educational achievements is his Master of Science in Seed Technology
degree at Mississippi State University in Starkville, Mississippi, U.S.A. in 1982 under a
USAID Scholarship (Technology Package). Being a consistent honor student did not escape
Dr. Cabanilla even in a well-respected University in the U.S. as he graduated with a
notable –A average. He continued to earn a Doctoral Degree at the University of the
Philippines in Los Ba�os (UPLB) on a Food and Agriculture Organization and United Nations
Development Program (FAO/UNDP) scholarship in 1991. His field of specialization is in
Agronomy Crop Production Management and Forage and Pasture (minor field: Soil).
During his College years at CLAC, Dr. Cabanilla was a very active
student leader and was a part of countless student organizations. He became the president
of the main Student Body Organization of CLAC in 1967 and was also a Student Assistant for
most of his four years in College. One thing that got him to College was his ability to
play musical instruments, particularly the tenor saxophone. CLAC awarded him a scholarship
for being selected as a member of the College musical group. This well-traveled second
president of ASCOT has visited different States in the U.S.A. including California,
Indiana, North Carolina, Georgia, and Texas on various trainings and educational
exchanges; Japan as a visiting Professor at Kyushu Tokai University in Kumamoto in 1997;
Israel for an International Course on Planning, Management and Extension of Agricultural
Project and Enterprises in 1995; Chiang Mai, Thailand in 1994 for a Conference-Workshop on
Asian Seed Technology; The Netherlands in 1972 for a training in Poultry and Swine
Husbandry. His experience traveling the world has given him multifarious ideas about the
development of the sectors of the country particularly developing agricultural provinces
like Aurora. These, he hopes will transfer into useful programs and projects that will
shape the course of his administration at ASCOT.
Blessed with a successful, albeit humble career, one of Dr.
Cabanilla's priceless gems in life is his wonderful wife, Prof. Teresita Arenas-
Cabanilla, Assistant Principal of the University Science High School, CLSU. They met while
working as Instructors at the same institution in 1970. Their beautiful and loving
relationship of more than 30 years and counting is complemented by personal growth as a
couple and as individuals pursuing their inherent calling in life. They have three
children: Romeo Jr. (married to Maria Cecilia), a registered nurse currently working in
Kingston, London, England; Robert (married to May), also a registered nurse, is employed
at Carson City, California, U.S.A.; while Rose Marie, the youngest, is finishing her
medical internship at the Veterans Memorial Hospital in Quezon City. The Cabanillas are so
fond of their two grandkids from Romeo and Robert, the new addition to their growing
family: Raymond and RJ. Dr. Cabanilla greatly values his precious time with his family and
before formally taking the invitation to apply as the next president of ASCOT, there were
initial backing down thoughts from his children concerned about his moving to the
mountains. Yet, the challenge posed by the demands of being the ASCOT president and the
prestige and responsibility it entails were able to win them over. Knowing how dedicated
and hardworking Dr. Cabanilla is, his family has accepted this new obligation as another
undertaking that will be best accomplished by no other than their pride and joy, loving
husband and father, Dr. Romeo S. Cabanilla himself.
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DR. CABANILLA'S VISION, MISSION, AND GOALS FOR THE AURORA
STATE COLLEGE OF TECHNOLOGY
PHILOSOPHY
The effectiveness of the Aurora State College of Technology
(ASCOT) as an institution of higher learning is measured by its contribution to the
development of the rural people it serves.
VISION
The Aurora State College of Technology as a reputable institution
of higher learning in polytechnical and other related fields committed to high quality
education, scientific breakthroughs, excellence in entrepreneurship endeavors, and
exemplary community service.
MISSION
The Aurora State College of Technology shall develop quality human
resources and centers of excellence responsive to the needs of the people in the province
of Aurora in particular and the country in general, in terms of food security and poverty
alleviation under the spirit of people empowerment, sustainable development and global
competitiveness.
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Dr. Cabanilla has included in his policy statements that "the
presidency is a position of trust and not for personal aggrandizements." He has
mentioned in meetings with public officials of the Province and the ASCOT community that
he will not enrich himself in his position and that service to the various clienteles of
ASCOT will be a primordial concern of his administration. There are major targets that he
wishes to accomplish during the first 100 days of his administration. Among them,
improving the communication and technology capabilities of the College; bringing the World
Wide Web to ASCOT; and establishing a center for computer literacy training not only for
ASCOT students but more importantly for the community. Of course he will not forget the
various departments of ASCOT especially the Department of Agriculture and Aquatic Science
which is close to his heart. As an administrator known throughout the country as one of
the authorities in establishing Income Generating Projects, he has started programs and
projects that would make ASCOT financially stable and self-sustaining in the coming years.
ASCOT is abuzz with the introduction of new approaches, new programs and targets that will
spell the difference in its continued growth and development. With Dr. Romeo S. Cabanilla
at the helm, ASCOT is ready to take the challenges of this new millennium, ready to grow
and make its mark this side of the country. Give way for the man who has climbed his
destiny, the second president of the Aurora State College of Technology, Dr. Romeo S.
Cabanilla.
