ISUFST sets record with 615 academic awardees

BAROTAC NUEVO, Iloilo — Iloilo State University of Fisheries Science and Technology will honor 1,977 graduates from 42 undergraduate programs during its 2026 commencement exercises at 11 a.m. Friday, June 19, at Tamasak Arena.

The graduation rites will be highlighted by a record 615 academic awardees, including three summa cum laude graduates, 115 magna cum laude graduates, 313 cum laude graduates, and 184 graduates with Academic Distinction.

University officials said the number marks the highest total of Latin honor and academic distinction recipients in ISUFST’s 69-year history.

The commencement exercises carry the theme “Sovereigns of Service: Bridging Excellence and Social Justice for Nation-Building.”

This year’s rites will be especially significant as ISUFST produces its first summa cum laude graduates in 41 years, ending a distinction gap that dates back to 1985.

The Registrar’s Office said the institution’s most recent known summa cum laude graduate before this year was Artemio Violeta, who earned a degree in Fishery Education in 1985.

Violeta later built a career in education and served as the pioneering officer-in-charge of a former satellite campus of the school that is now the State University of Northern Negros in Sagay City, Negros Occidental.

Four decades later, three graduates from three ISUFST campuses have matched the feat, marking a new chapter in the university’s academic growth.

The 2026 summa cum laude graduates are Eaui Aguilar of the Bachelor of Science in Information Technology program at the ISUFST San Enrique Campus; Amira Benguan of the Bachelor of Science in Hospitality Management program at the ISUFST Main Campus–Poblacion Site; and Christine Joy Algoso of the Bachelor of Science in Hospitality Management program at the ISUFST Dingle Campus.

ISUFST President Nordy D. Siason Jr. described the achievement as a significant milestone in the university’s history.

“These honors are more than academic distinctions. They represent years of perseverance, sacrifice, discipline, and commitment to excellence. The emergence of our first Summa Cum Laude graduates in more than four decades reflects the collective efforts of students, parents, faculty members, staff, and administrators in strengthening the culture of excellence at ISUFST,” he said.

Among the campuses, Dingle Campus produced the highest number of academic awardees with 200, including one summa cum laude graduate, 49 magna cum laude graduates, 121 cum laude graduates, and 29 graduates with Academic Distinction.

San Enrique Campus followed with 136 awardees, including one summa cum laude graduate, 36 magna cum laude graduates, 73 cum laude graduates, and 26 graduates with Academic Distinction.

The Main Campus–Poblacion Site recorded 120 academic awardees, including one summa cum laude graduate, six magna cum laude graduates, 51 cum laude graduates, and 62 graduates with Academic Distinction.

The Main Campus–Tiwi Site produced 107 academic awardees, including 20 magna cum laude graduates, 42 cum laude graduates, and 45 graduates with Academic Distinction.

Dumangas Campus recorded 52 awardees, including four magna cum laude graduates, 26 cum laude graduates, and 22 graduates with Academic Distinction.

The academic awardees are part of the 1,977 candidates for graduation across the ISUFST System for Academic Year 2025–2026.

Of the total, 1,972 are graduates of baccalaureate programs from the university’s five campuses, while five completed their programs during the summer term at Dingle Campus.

Across the university, 576 students from seven undergraduate programs are expected to graduate from the Main Campus–Poblacion Site.

The Main Campus–Tiwi Site will have 304 graduates from 11 programs, while Dingle Campus will have 439 graduates from nine programs.

Dumangas Campus will have 272 graduates from nine programs, while San Enrique Campus will have 381 graduates from six programs.

Nearly one in every three graduates this year will receive academic recognition, underscoring ISUFST’s commitment to academic rigor, student success, and excellence across its campuses.

Meanwhile, the ISUFST Graduate School will confer degrees on 172 graduates during separate commencement exercises at 1 p.m. Sunday, June 28, at Diversion 21 Hotel in Mandurriao, Iloilo City.

The Graduate School honorees include 53 doctoral graduates from 10 Ph.D. programs and 119 master’s degree graduates from 15 programs.

Public Works and Highways Secretary Vivencio “Vince” B. Dizon will serve as commencement speaker for the undergraduate ceremonies on June 19.

John Arnold S. Siena, deputy director for programme and development of the Southeast Asian Ministers of Education Organization Secretariat, will speak during the Graduate School commencement on June 28.

As ISUFST prepares to confer degrees on nearly 2,000 graduates, the achievements of its 615 academic awardees — particularly its first three summa cum laude graduates since 1985 — stand as reminders that excellence, perseverance, and service remain central to the university’s mission. (PAMMCO)