Hope and Learning Rise in the Hills with MSUN’s SAPNAY 2025
In the misty uplands of Naawan, where chalk dust drifts with mountain wind and hope hums between the trees, the children of Lubilan Integrated School (LIS) stood proud, not merely as students, but as testaments to resilience. On October 1, 2025, the Mindanao State University at Naawan (MSUN), through its College of Education and Social Sciences (CESS), carried learning beyond the classroom walls and into the heart of the highlands. The occasion: the culmination of SAPNAY 2025 — Strengthening the Academic Performance and Nurturing the Abilities of the Youth — a program that has, since 2022, kindled both literacy and aspiration among the indigenous youth of Misamis Oriental. The SAPNAY initiative has been spearheaded by its program leader, Dr. Arlene A. Castillo.
The fourth-year culmination at Lubilan Integrated School gathered nearly a hundred voices including students, parents, teachers, barangay officials, and university extensionists — all bound by a shared vision: that education must reach even the farthest child. Beneath a modest room and a wide blue sky, the day unfolded like a festival of successes. Children’s class performances were presented, parents shared stories, and teachers stood as proud witnesses to transformation.
SAPNAY began three years ago as CESS’s flagship literacy intervention program. Its mission is simple yet profound — to bridge the learning divide in Geographically Isolated and Disadvantaged Areas (GIDAs) through mentoring in English, Mathematics, and Science. The 2025 cycle focused on Grade 9 students including Higaonon learners which provided contextualized lessons that wove together culture, confidence, and curriculum.
The morning opened with messages of gratitude and inspiration from Dr. Emmylou A. Emperador, Dean of the College of Education and Social Science, Hon. Marcelo Z. Canion, Barangay Lubilan Chairman, and Sir Jake G. Conog, LIS School Head, followed by the presentation of learning outputs by the subject experts: Dr. Arlene A. Castillo (English), Jan Cleo D. Canoy (Mathematics), and Rizza Paz S. Onganiza (Science). Their mentees, once timid, now performed with certainty. It is a proof that literacy, when rooted in empathy, grows into courage. The intermission number from the students also echoed the same theme: that education is not memorized, it is lived, it is performed.
The Recognition Ceremony that followed was tender and triumphant. Deserving students walked to the front as their names were called. Their eyes were bright even if their hands were trembling. Their parents were also silently cheering. “SAPNAY gave our children not just lessons, but the confidence to dream big,” a parent said tearfully, as applause rolled through the crowd.
The afternoon turned reflective. Focus group discussions and community interviews gathered insights from students, parents, and barangay leaders. The conversations revealed measurable gains such as improved English proficiency, stronger Numeracy, and a better grasp of Science, all with heightened motivation, and yet, laid bare the challenges: limited materials, sporadic attendance during bad weather, and the need for continued collaboration. These voices, earnest and unfiltered, became the data that would shape SAPNAY’s next chapter.
In her closing remarks, Dr. Aida D. Perpetua, Director for DARES Center, spoke with conviction: “As reflected in the results of the interventions, the SAPNAY Literacy Program has significantly enhanced the students’ academic performance. I strongly believe that there is a great need to sustain and continue this program.” As the sun dipped behind Naawan’s green ridges, laughter mingled with the sound of cameras clicking and shared meals being passed around. Participants slowly picked up their things, extensionists carefully folded the streamer, teachers turned off the projector, but the spirit of SAPNAY remained—alive in every learner who now dares to dream beyond the hills.
For in these mountains, MSUN did more than teach.
It proved that learning, when carried with compassion, can climb any heights.
Indeed, MSUN is a university for the community.
