by Jacquilyn Avila and Leila Claire Vivien Toribio*, CBAA
Two BS Accountancy students won the top two spots in the recently concluded 13th PICPA National Accounting Quiz Showdown (NAQDown).
Ms. Shania Rose Lozano won first place and Sofia Russel Mae Suico came in second in the virtual competition held via Mentimeter (a site used to exclusively answer the questions) and Zoom (to monitor any cheating attempt) on February 13, 2021.
Jafar E. Muksan of Ateneo de Davao University came in third place; Dorothy M. Muyargas of Western Mindanao University at fourth place; and Claribelle D. Lee of Notre Dame of Marbel University at fifth spot.
The top five winners will proceed to the final round of the competition which will be held during the National Mid Year Convention.
Thirteen regions across the country from four major separate hubs: NCR, Luzon, Visayas, and Mindanao joined the competition. Twenty-seven participants comprised the Mindanao hub and 13 of it were from Region 10 and CARAGA, including Ms. Lozano and Ms. Suico who are members of the University’s local chapter of the Junior Philippine Institute of Accountants (JPIA).
The competition was composed of two rounds, Elimination and Semi-Finals, with questions divided into three categories: easy, average, and difficult.
Ms. Lozano and Ms. Suico received certificates of recognition and were given discounts (100% and 80% respectively) on their registration fees for the National Mid Year Convention.
The National Federation – Junior Philippine Institute of Accountants (NFJPIA) in partnership with SyCip Gorres Velayo and Company (SGV Co.), hosted the National Accounting Quiz Showdown or NAQDown, an annual all-board accounting subject academic competition that promotes academic excellence as well as connections and camaraderie among contestants.
MSU-IIT has joined NAQDown since 2019.
*Jacquilyn Avila is a junior student at the College of Business Administration and Accountancy taking up BS in Accountancy. Her interests include broadcasting, geography, and general facts. She is currently an undersecretary of the Training and Development Committee of the CBAA Executive Board.
Leila Toribio isa junior student at the College of Business Administration and Accountancy taking up BS in Accountancy. She is into writing and was part of the editorial team in their school newspaper back in her junior high school years. Presently, she is serving as the deputy of the Training and Development Committee of the CBAA Executive Board.
An alumnus of this university’s College of Business Administration and Accountancy (CBAA), Mr. Lope L. Bato, Jr., became the 67th national president of the Philippine Institute of Certified Public Accountants (PICPA). He is the first IIT graduate to become PICPA national president and only the 8th Mindanaoan to be elected as such.
Mr. Bato, who received his bachelor’s degree in Business Administration major in Accounting in 1986, began his term as PICPA national president in July 2020.
As a businessman, Mr. Bato organized two Mindanao-based regional auditing firms: Quilab Cabilin Bato & Co., CPAs (QBC & Co., CPAs) in June 1992, and Lope Laranjo Bato & Co., CPAs (LLB & Co., CPAs) in October 2015.
In 1996, he was the Chapter President of PICPA Cagayan de Oro – Misamis Oriental Chapter and was the youngest to assume the presidency of the said chapter.
In 2009, he served as the national Vice-President (PICPA National) for Public Practice.
He is also the Founding President of the Association of CPAs in Public Practice – Northern Mindanao Chapter.
Noted for his leadership ability and experience in a wide range of senior positions, Mr. Bato received numerous awards. The Rotary Club of Cagayan de Oro awarded him the Most Outstanding Director in 2003.
MSU-IIT conferred on him the Outstanding MSU-IIT Alumnus (TOMA) award in the field of Banking and Finance in 2009.
He was recognized as Outstanding PICPA Member in 2006 and Honorary Lifetime Member of PICPA in 2010.
CBAA Dean, Dr. Polaus M. Bari was happy to learn of the news. “I am delighted that a CBAA alumnus now sits as PICPA President. I hope this inspires the younger generation, especially the BS Accountancy students aspiring to be Certified Public Accountants in the future.”
“I expect that this feat will encourage them to work hard since diligence in anything we do will really reap the fruits of success,” Dr. Bari said.
*The writer, Jessa Mae S. Banse, is an Associate Professor at the Department of Accountancy, College of Business Administration and Accountancy. She is currently the chairperson of the said department. She holds a Bachelor’s and a Master of Science degrees in Accountancy. She specializes in financial accounting and reporting.
You can connect with Ms. Banse through linkedin.com.
CBAA faculty members recently presented their paper entitled, “Drivers of Economic Dynamism among Philippine Cities” and won 2nd place in the 2019 Cities and Municipalities Competitiveness Index (CMCI) Academic Symposium, the nationwide search for Best Research Paper on October 15, 2019 at the Philippine International Convention Center (PICC). The research team was headed by Prof. Donnavic A. Dumapias, together with her team members, namely: Dr. Maria Rizalia Y. Teves, Prof. Stephen C. Fajardo, and Prof. Lady Lou M. D’lonsod.
Research Team: Prof. Fajardo, Dr. Teves, and Prof. Dumapias, respectively
Among the 29 research entries from all over the country that were submitted to the Competitiveness Bureau, top 10 research studies were chosen (2 from Mindanao and 8 from Luzon) and were presented during the Academic Symposium at the PICC before a panel of six judges to compete for the top 3 positions.
The top 3 best papers were presented during the 7th Regional Competitiveness Summit last October 24, 2019 in Manila before a total of 1,518 participating LGUs in the country for the purpose of sharing research findings with the hope of guiding local executives in improving economic competitiveness of their respective local jurisdiction.
The recently conducted academic symposium was the first one to be organized by the Competitiveness Bureau of the DTI with the theme “CMCI: Building Blocks for National Competitiveness”, where the CMCI data must be utilized in the study.
The annual CMCI survey, along with the Philippine Local Government Units (LGUs), has been running for 6 years, and the CBAA has been the academic partner of Department of Trades and Industry (DTI) Lanao del Norte especially in gathering the data from the LGUs of the Province.
Research team together with some of the panel members
TO FACILITATE the registration of business names and the getting of business permits, the Institute’s Negosyo Center partnered with the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI)-Iligan to provide a venue where interested persons can get helpful information on the matter.
The forum on Business Name Registration and Business Permit that was held in August at the iDEYA: Center for Technopreneurship and Innovation attracted entrepreneurs from all over the Visayas and Mindanao.
Mrs. Ara Arain Amar Garay, Trade and Industry Development Specialist, gave an insight about the Business Name Registration and other agencies involved.
She also discussed the two ways of registering a business. The first one was through the traditional way and the second one was online, which was implemented on May 20.
Mrs. Judith Surmion, Business Permit Licensing Officer from the City Mayor’s Office, tackled the business process involving permits and licenses.
As part of the said forum, the entrepreneurs asked questions regarding certain issues and how to help them excel in the business world.
Prof. Joana Marie C. Edera of the College of Business Administration and Accountancy and the faculty coordinator for the Institute’s Negosyo Center helped organize the forum.
In partnership with the 28th Mindanao Business Conference, MSU-IIT’s Office of the Vice Chancellor for Research and Extension (OVCRE) organized the opening activity for MinBizCon 2019 through MSU-IIT Technology Fair last September 11, 2019 in Robinson’s Place Iligan.
Iligan City hosts this year’s Mindanao Business Conference with the theme, “Mindanao: The Emerging Investment Destination”. With this, MSU-IIT takes its part and opens the 4-day event with MSU-IIT Technology Fair – showcasing the institute’s extension programs and innovation ecosystem through booths and presentations from iDeya: CIT, FabLab Mindanao, Technology Application and Promotion Unit (TAPU), College of Engineering and Technology (COET), Go Negosyo Center, Teenpreneur 2019, Premier Research Institute of Science and Mathematics (PRISM) and Civil Society Participation in Social Enterprise Education and Development (CSO-SEED).
The last part of the program was a mentoring activity for students and teachers coming from MSU-IIT Integrated Developmental School (IDS), Masters Technological Institute of Mindanao (MTIM), Saint Michael’s College, Dalipuga National High School, Tomas Cabili National High School and Mindanao State University – Iligan Institute of Technology. Students were grouped into five and was assigned a mentor from a specific field in business. These mentors had a 10-minute talk with the students and then a question and answer portion before transferring to the next group until every student had heard from each of the mentors. The event ended successfully with hopes of creating a culture of innovation and entrepreneurship among young business students in Mindanao – for Mindanao.
The College of Business Administration and Accountancy (CBAA) triumphs over three other colleges in the city during MSU-IIT National Multi-Purpose Cooperative’s Bright Ideas: Sustainability Pitch Competition last August 24, 2019 in Pala-o, Iligan City.
The one-day competition was conducted in celebration of International Youth Day 2019 and encouraged students to focus on Solid Waste Management. CBAA, represented by a power trio – Estephanie Bucog, Allyn May Serenado, and Isabella Mozo with their coach Prof. Joana Marie C. Edera, awed the judges with their product pitch on their Project Solitile, a functional floor tile out of polystyrene plastics such as plastic bottles, plastic wrappers and styrofoams. The team aimed to “reduce and upcycle plastic wastes while providing a cheaper alternative to commercial tiles” with an advocacy to “provide livelihood opportunities to families beyond poverty line through trainings on production and selling of Solitile”.
The day was concluded with STI College in 4th place, Iligan Medical Center College (IMCC) in 3rd place, Saint Michael’s College in 2nd place and MSU-IIT’s College of Business Administration and Accountancy (CBAA) hailed as champion with one judge declaring it as, “This is the pitch we’ve been waiting for”.
