By Tyrone Jay V. Samson

The Philippine Society of Information Technology Students (PSITS) of DMC College Foundation – College of Computer Studies (CCS) recently organized the first ever Regional PSITS Information and Communication Technology (ICT) Convention held at the Zamboanga del Norte Convention Center in Dipolog City on October 9 and 10.

Heading the list of winners from DMC in the skills competition are John Woo and Kalil Rhudy. The duo was adjudged as the champions in the Visual Basic Programming contest. Placing second in the said competition is the team from Pagadian Capitol College and with Jose Rizal Memorial State College (JRMSC) – Dapitan campus placing third.

Other results are as follows; Quiz Bowl Champion is the team from Andres Bonifacio College (ABC), second is St. Columban College, and third Zamboanga del Sur Maritime Institute of Technology (ZSMIT); in the PC Building Category, champion team is ABC followed by JRMSC Siocon and JRMSC Dapitan; in the Web-Based Programming, champion is Kyle Sy of ABC, followed by Ifur Salimbagat of DMC and Joseph del Rosario of JRMSC Dapitan;  in the Electronic Poster Making category, champion is Elmer Aprecio of JRMSC Dapitan, followed Deborah Hampac of DMC and Ronie Apostol of ABC; in the Networking category, champion is JRMSC Dapitan, followed by Jecs Cagas of DMC with the Pagadian Capitol College (PCC) placing third; in the Gimmick Presentation category, champion is ABC; and the Mr. and Ms. ICT 2009 are from ZSMIT with the ABC duo placing first runner-up with PCC taking third place.

“In behalf of the PSITS chapter of DMC College of Computer Studies, we are very thankful to our teachers who were very supportive to our endeavor. We would also like to thank our fellow DMC CCS students who gave their all-out support. And finally, we would also like express our gratitude to our school officials especially to our dean, Dr. Gerald Concha, for giving us the green light to pursue this event,” Vale said. “Despite some minor setbacks and miscalculations, I’m happy to announce that the regional event was successful.”

Among those who graced the event are Dipolog City Vice Mayor Senen Angeles; DMC CCS dean, Dr. Gerald Concha; Philippine Society of Information Technology Educators (PSITE) Region IX president and DMC CCS faculty Jovanie Talaroc; PSITE National Board Member and DMC CCS Vice Dean Anthony Harvey Dalmacio; PSITS DMC Chapter President Kim Therese Vale; among others.

The convention drew a total of 483 participants from all over the region. Students from Pagadian, Siocon, Katipunan and Dipolog arrived to participate in the convention. Among the schools that participated are DMC; ABC; PCC; JRMSC –Katipunan, Siocon, and Dapitan campuses; EMCOTECH, ZSMIT, Pagadian Technical and Marine Science; St. Columban College; and ZSAT – Western Mindanao State University.

Moreover, with the opening program and day activities of the event held at the Convention Center, the DMC school also pledged the use of the DMC Auditorium for the entertainment show on the night of October 9 and the closing ceremonies on October 10. The school will also offer the use of the DMC bus for transportation of the delegates to and from the Convention Center.

“It was all about the students. The event was a brain-child of our active and creative batch of DMC CCS students, who I am practically very proud of. I’m very pleased with such a well-planned activity. Although there was some hitch on the schedule of giving snacks and some other minor problems, still all-in-all, it was a great learning experience not just for them, but also for us as their mentors,” Dalmacio disclosed

And in his speech, Dr. Concha reiterated such expression of pride for the DMC students, particularly identifying PSITS President Vale and PSITS Consultant Olasiman. “I see that our current batch of PSITS officers is headed by a very competent leader in their President, Kim Therese Vale. We also have former President Olah Olasiman to give her a lending hand. I hope that you will put into good use the knowledge you absorbed in this two-day activity. About what’s new and current ICT trends and issues; about future career opportunities in IT after graduation; with regard in-demand skills required by the IT Industry and many more,” Concha said.