Recently appointed by President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo as the new secretary general of the UNESCO National Commission of the Philippines (UNACOM), educator Dr. Preciosa Soliven was recently feted by her family, friends, colleagues and admirers at a reception at the Ristorante La Dolce Fontana in Greenhills, San Juan.
The dinner was hosted by her proud husband, Philippine STAR and PEOPLE Asia publisher Max Soliven. Among those who who came to share in the Solivens’ pride were top government officials led by Education Secretary Raul Roco, members of the diplomatic corps, titans of business, the academe and the culturati.
Mrs. Soliven, who replaces Ambassador Rosario Manalo, is quite familiar with the prestigious UNESCO post. She represented the Philippines in the UNESCO Paris Executive Board from 1986 to 1987. She also served as an active member of the UNACOM Education Committee from 1990 to 2001.
Because of her track record in championing the rights of the child, Dr. Soliven was appointed one of two NGO representatives in the official delegation to the United Nations’ Convention on the Rights of the Child in Geneva in 1995. To implement this treaty, the Philippine government established the Council for the Welfare of Children as the primary government agency to undertake children’s concerns. Recently, Dr. Soliven was inducted as its newest member representing the NGO sector.
Dr. Soliven is the founder, president and chief executive officer of the 35-year old Operation Brotherhood Montessori Center. She has persisted in protecting the Montessori System, which is often plagiarized by merely putting a signboard in a preschool. Thus, she established the OB Montessori College offering a baccalaureate degree in Early Childhood Education (for those with a Baccalaureate Degree), as well as a four-year Bachelor’s degree in Food Service. In addition she is president of the Federation of Philippine Montessori Schools (FPMSI). Since 1987, she has been the founding member and vice president of CONCEP, an accrediting agency to raise the standards of all preschools in the country.
Dr. Soliven re-programmed the Montessori preschools to be made affordable in eight urban laborers’ districts (OB Montessori Pagsasarili Preschools) and established a post literacy course for village mothers (OB Montessori Mothercraft program). Known as the OB Montessori Pagsasarili Literacy Twin Project, this program won the 1993 UNESCO International Literacy Award in New Delhi, India.
At present, Dr. Soliven writes a weekly Thursday column, "A Point of Awareness" for The Philippine STAR. Since 1990, she has focused its theme on education, social behavior, culinary arts and travel. She has also authored two books, Half a Millennium of Philippine History and the UNESCO-sponsored CONCEP Manuel: Planning the Young Child’s Education.