Negros college now a state university

By Glazyl Y. Masculino

BACOLOD CITY – Considered as the only science and technology state college in Negros Occidental, the Northern Negros State College of Science and Technology (NONESCOST) has officially become the State University of Northern Negros (SUNN).

This, after the Commission on Higher Education (CHED) En Banc approved its conversion on January 22.

Mayor Narciso Javelosa, Jr. welcomed this development, as he lauded the faculty and staff of SUNN who took care of the rigorous process that started during the pandemic.

He also expressed his gratitude to former Congressman and now Vice Mayor Leo Rafael Cueva who started the initiative, as well as 2nd district Rep. Alfredo Marañon III for his support and help to fast-track the law to create the university.

In a statement, Javelosa assured his support to improve the quality of education in Sagay.

For his part, Cueva said that he was overjoyed with the good news that SUNN is officially a state university.

“We have been determined to make this happen,” the vice mayor said in a statement, as he expressed his gratitude to those who helped make this possible.

The school was first known as Old Sagay Barangay High School in 1970 before it became a Municipal High School in 1978.

Later, it was transformed into an extension of Iloilo State College of Fisheries (ISCOF), which is now the Iloilo State University of Fisheries Science and Technology (ISUFST).

In 1998, the late Governor Alfredo Marañon, Jr., who was a representative of the 2nd Congressional District of the province at that time, authored and sponsored Republic Act (RA) 8448 converting the ISCOF-Sagay Branch to NONESCOST. He then earned the distinction as the “Father of NONESCOST.”

In 2022, the Senate approved House Bill (HB) 10283 for its conversion from a state college to a state university.

The school offers undergraduate and graduate programs in Agriculture, Fisheries, and Allied Sciences; Arts and Sciences; Business and Management; Criminal Justice Education; Education; Information and Communications Technology and Engineering; and Nursing and Allied Health Sciences.

SUNN also has campuses in Escalante City and Calatrava town.