TACLOBAN CITY – House Committee on Higher and Technical Education Chairperson Rep. Jude Acidre of the Tingog party-list group has called on Catholic higher education institutions to take a more active role in shaping reforms and addressing emerging challenges in Philippine higher education.
Speaking at the CEAP Vision Forum 2026 held at Saint Louis University on Friday, May 22, Acidre emphasized the continuing importance of Catholic universities in addressing inequality in education, rapid technological change, declining public trust, and social fragmentation.
“The future of Philippine higher education needs the Catholic contribution,” he said, stressing the need to balance faith and reason, excellence and compassion, and innovation with conscience.
The forum, organized by the Catholic Educational Association of the Philippines, gathered education leaders nationwide under the theme “Barriers and Breakthroughs: Pushing Back Against the Limits.”
Acidre also reminded educators that higher education should remain centered on the human person amid the rise of artificial intelligence and digital transformation, warning against reducing universities to mere job-training institutions.
He urged Catholic schools to continue forming graduates who can rebuild communities, strengthen democracy, and promote ethical leadership.
He ended his message by describing education as “an act of hope” and called on universities to become “homes of wisdom and communities of service.”
(LIZBETH ANN A. ABELLA)
