Magandang hapon sa ating lahat! Good evening, and welcome to our annual celebration of service and success — the Pasidungog: Weaving Excellence, Rising As One 2025.

To our BOR Members, Faculty Regent Dr., DOST Regional Director Engr. Rolando N. Paluga, Noel Ajoc, CHED Regional Director Dr. Nelia Alibin, DepDev Regional Director Gemina Olam, CSC Regional Director Atty Winston Plaza, our stakeholders,

To our VPs, Dr. Jeffrey T. Dellosa, VP for Research and Development, Innovation, and Extension, and Chairperson of the PRAISE Committee ; to our esteemed Vice Presidents, Campus Directors, Division Chiefs, Units Heads, faculty, staff, our honorees, and everyone who makes up the heart of Caraga State University: It is an honor to stand before you tonight.

“Pasidungog” is more than just an event; it is our institution’s profound expression of gratitude and respect. It is our way of saying, “We see you. We value you. We thank you.” Tonight, we celebrate the pillars of CSU—you, our dedicated faculty and staff.

You have consistently displayed an unwavering commitment to excellence that underpins everything we do. We honor those who have reached significant milestones through the Loyalty Award and the Retiree Award, thanking you for the years—or decades—you have dedicated to our mission.

Tonight’s awards reflect the full spectrum of our institutional mandate, affirming that excellence is woven into every function.

We recognize not only long-standing service but also the spirit of innovation and purpose that defines us as a transformative university.

• For our Academics: We recognize the best in teaching with the Best Employee for Teaching Award and honor those who contribute to scholarly knowledge with the Book Writing Award and Publication Award.
• For our Operations: We celebrate the efficiency and stewardship shown through the Cost Economy Measure Award and the exemplary service of our support staff with the Best Employee for Non-Teaching Award. Furthermore, we acknowledge the
  dedication to civil service excellence through the PRIME-HRM Maturity Level II Recognition.
• For our Research and Outreach: We recognize the vital role of innovation in nation-building by conferring the Best Research and Development Project Award, Innovation and Patent Award, Best Extension Service Award, and the Outstanding Extension Personnel Award.

And tonight, we also recognize the very framework driving our strategic future: the LIKHA Agenda.

The LIKHA Awards are born from this framework, which aims to make CSU a LaunchPad of Global Talents and Innovators , a model of Interdependence and High-Impact Coalitions , a hub for Knowledge Co-Creation and Commercialization , an anchor of Academic Excellence and Innovation , and a leader in Accelerated Administrative Systems and Digital Transformation. These pillars propel us towards Hiraya 2028.

Later tonight, as we unveil the recipients of the 2025 LIKHA Awards, you will hear stories of truly exceptional performance:

• We will celebrate the unit that is a true LaunchPad of global talents , for their record-breaking research productivity, including the highest number of journal publications among all units , and their contribution of 59 Scopus-indexed publications in 2024.
• We will honor the college that embodies Interdependence , cultivating strategic, ethical, and high-impact partnerships with industry and LGUs for science-based solutions.
• We will recognize the unit that serves as our engine of knowledge co-creation and commercialization , pioneering studies that inform evidence-based policy and transforming knowledge into viable technologies and consultancies.
• We will commend the department that nurtures a student-centered and ethical culture , consistently delivering academic outcomes that reflect global standards of excellence in engineering education.
• And finally, we will celebrate the LIKHA Champion Awardee , a unit that has shown unparalleled performance across all five pillars of the LIKHA Agenda , fostering an ecosystem of collaboration and embodying the very vision of our university.

Each award is a testament to the fact that CSU’s success is a collective achievement, built on the daily dedication of every individual in this room. To all our awardees: you are the embodiment of what it means to “LIKHA“—to create, collaborate, and contribute to a sustainable future.

Your individual excellence has translated into collective institutional triumph. As we celebrate tonight, we are filled with pride over our recent achievement—our recognition in the QS World University Rankings 2026.

• Being recognized as the 18th among Philippine Higher Education Institutions.
• Achieving the 223rd spot in South-Eastern Asia.
• And being placed Within the 1401-1500 bracket for Asia.

This significant milestone is not the result of a single person or a single department; it is the direct result of the unwavering service and excellence we are honoring tonight. It is proofthat when we commit to our core values, we truly do Rise As One.

My deepest gratitude to all the awardees. May your recognition tonight serve not as an ending, but as a powerful fuel for the journey ahead. Let us continue to strive for greater heights, driven by the knowledge that our collective excellence is the engine of Caraga State University’s transformation.

Mabuhay ang CSU! Mabuhay tayong lahat!