30 September 2022, Naga City, a webinar on student safety was livestreamed via Zoom and in the Ateneo de Naga University Office of Student Affairs (ADNU OSA) Youtube account.
This activity was conducted by the ADNU OSA, in cooperation with the Philippine Association of Practitioners of Student Affairs and Services (PAPSAS) Region 5.
As part of OSA’s Student’s Rights and Responsibilities Campaign, the webinar aims at educating the students on different student safety concerns, both in the physical and digital spaces, and providing them practical safety tips, which will help them deal with different situations, and empower them to protect themselves from the dangers that they may encounter.
More than 1000 plus live viewers from Zoom and Youtube, composed of students and student affairs practitioners across the country, attended the webinar. In his opening remarks, Rodolfo SB. Virtus Jr., the ADNU OSA Director and PAPSAS Region 5 President, highlighted the school and the individual’s roles and collective responsibility in maintaining the safety of the students on and off-campus.
The first part of the webinar addressed the event’s main topic, which centered on student safety and action plans. Two invited speakers imparted their knowledge and expertise about the students’ common threats and concerns in the physical and digital landscapes.
Renne Gumba, the Executive Director of the Naga City Public Safety Office (PSO) discussed safety in traditional or onsite settings. He asserted that public safety is not only a concern for peace and order, but it also includes an individual’s freedom from any harm affecting them. He discussed the common threats and safety concerns for students and the academe, and shared personal and household safety tips for students and recommendations on what schools should do to promote the students’ protection.
The second speaker, Joshua Martinez, ADNU Dean of the College of Computer Studies, talked about cyber safety. He presented an overview of the digital landscape in the Philippines, and expressed his concern over the growing presence of Filipinos online, which heightens their vulnerabilities to different digital threats. He delved deeper into the topic by introducing related terms, sharing common threats, and enumerating the perpetrators’ motives. He ended his discussion by offering preventive measures to counter these threats.
After the talks, the host/moderator Allysa Frances Salvino, Legal Management student, facilitated the open forum. Invited reactors, Dr. Gilda Gayle Abonal-Gomez, Naga City Councilor and ADNU faculty; PSMS Tobias Bongon III, Spokesperson of the Naga City Police Office; Sophia Ruth Maclang, ADNU SSG-CHSS Representative, and John Neil Cabalquinto, President of the Naga College Foundation Central Student Government, shared their insights and reflection to the presentation of the speakers. Some plausible case scenarios about student safety were also presented to solicit the speakers and reactors’ advice on how to deal with these situations. After this, participants’ questions were addressed.
This webinar was part of the OSAS’s continuing efforts to promote student rights, responsibilities, and safety/security in the University. OSA will sustain this advocacy on student safety in the coming semesters through activities and informative materials.
