National U merges state-of-the-art facilities and design

MANILA, Philippines - National University recently celebrated its 109th foundation day with the inauguration of its new eight-story building, a milestone in the school’s long history in providing academic excellence for many Filipinos. The event also coincided with its Alumni Homecoming and the 365-day countdown for the 110th founding anniversary in 2010.

SM founder and chairman Henry Sy Sr. led the unveiling of the marker for the new building. National U officials chairman emeritus Pacita Jhocson Ocampo, chairman Hans Sy, president and CEO Teodoro J. Ocampo, Alumni Foundation president Governor Rafael P. Nantes, as well as Manila Bishop Bernardino Cortes, joined him.

National U also held its alumni homecoming that same evening, making the event a truly historic occasion. Nantes led the celebration, which had the theme “Balik Tanaw . . . Tuloy, Tuloy Nationalian.” Former President Fidel V. Ramos, himself an alumnus from National U’s College of Engineering, graced this special occasion.

The new building, which started construction in October 2008 and was completed on June 1, has a neo-classical design and a total area of 13,700 square meters. It houses the Colleges of Hotel and Restaurant Management, Computer Studies and Nursing, in addition to other courses offered by the university. 

It includes 48 fully air-conditioned classrooms (16 on each floor), kitchen laboratories, facilities for modern nursing skills, a lab and mini-hospital, computer rooms, plus student facilities like a cafeteria, multi-purpose student area and Wi-Fi zones.

The ground floor has two escalators, making National U the only school in the country with these facilities, and four elevators. The second floor is the Grand Reception Area, where the monument of the school’s founder, Don Mariano Fortunato Jhocson, is displayed.

Classrooms are on the third floor; the school’s administrative offices and computer laboratories are located on the fourth floor; with more classrooms on the fifth and sixth floors. On the seventh floor are the Chemistry and Physics labs, kitchens and an HRM bar and restaurant area, where students can have an on-the-job experience with an actual hotel room. There are also two audio-visual rooms and a mini-hospital for students. 

The eighth floor has sports facilities like an NBA standard basketball court, a volleyball court, two badminton courts, as well as a 150-meter jogging oval on its upper side.

The new building’s design team is comprised of architects Jose Siao Ling and Associates, general contractors New Golden City Builders and project manager DA Abcede and Associates.

The new building highlights the commitment of the SM Group, which acquired the majority ownership of National University in August 2008, to give its all-out support in strengthening the university as an institution with new infrastructure, equipment, and a focus on academic excellence.

Don Mariano Fortunato Jhocson founded National University on Aug. 1, 1900 as Colegio Filipino. It was the first private, non-sectarian school in the country. Five years later, in response to the need for business subjects, Commerce and Accounting courses were added, changing the name of the school to Colegio Mercantile.

In 1913, English replaced Spanish as the medium of instruction and in accordance with Public Instruction Act 1459, Colegio Mercantile became one of the first private schools incorporated and authorized to award diplomas to its graduates.

Intensely nationalistic and conscious of the country’s need to train more leaders towards self-government, Don Mariano Fortunato Jhocson, in collaboration with the Lacson brothers, established the Philippine Law School in 1915. This later became the College of Law.

The board of trustees renamed Colegio Mercantile National Academy and on Aug. 1, 1916, the College of Liberal Arts was organized to blaze a trail toward the professional school. In line with this, the College of Education and College of Commerce were established in 1921, Pharmacy and Dentistry in 1922, Engineering in 1925, and the Normal School in 1930.

On Jan. 17, 1921, the Department of Public Instruction approved the change from National Academy to National University, with Camilo Osias as its first president.

The National University remained closed during the Japanese occupation and reopened in early 1945. Its facilities have continuously been expanded since. The School of Graduate Studies was organized in the early 1950s, and the School of Architecture and Arts was made a college in 1967.

National University is a founding member of the University Athletic Association of the Philippines (UAAP) and is a pioneer of the Philippine Association of Colleges and Universities (PACU). Its international affiliations and memberships include the Association of Southeast Asia Higher Institutions of Learning (ASAHIL) and the International Associations of Universities (IAU).

National University is located at 551 MF Jhocson St., Sampaloc, Manila. For inquiries, contact 743-7951, 742-6245 or visit http://www.national-u.edu.ph.