NONESCOST - Northern Negros State College of Science and Technology

NONESCOST - Northern Negros State College of Science and Technology
NONESCOST

Our Brief History

Our Brief History

The Northern Negros State College of Science and Technology has a humble beginning. What now stands as the only state college in Northern Negros and the only science and technology state college in the Province of Negros Occidental was once the Old Sagay Barangay High (OSBS) that started to operate in 1970. Its foundation was made possible by then Municipal Mayor, Alfredo G. Marañon, Jr., Brgy. Capt. Pedro G. Katalbas and Mr. Leopoldo Fernandez, who became its first Principal. Its pioneer graduates included ten students.

In 1978, OSBHS was converted into a Municipal High School with Mrs. Priscilla L. Amar as the head-designate. In that same year, Mayor Alfredo G. Marañon, Jr. and Dr. Elpidio M. Icamina, President of the Iloilo State College of Fisheries (ISCOF), Barotac Nuevo, Iloilo signed the historical Memorandum of Agreement that transformed OSBHS into an extension campus of ISCOF. This major development in the school’s history was also made possible with the help of Congressman Narciso Monfort. This was also the year when the government of Osterholt, West Germany donated books, equipment and an eight-classroom building that added to the limited facilities of the school. In the succeeding years, the same government has continued granting aids to the school with an additional donation of a fishing boat and a five-hectare brackish-water fishpond located at Tabunan, Brgy. Taba-ao, Sagay City, Negros Occidental.

Five years later, the passage of B.P. 359 on March, 3, 1983, which was authored and sponsored by then Assemblyman Alfredo G. Marañon, Jr. converted the Municipal High School into the Iloilo State College of Fisheries-Sagay Branch. Prof. Pepito B. Bedia became its first designated Officer-in-Charge. In 1985, the College offered a technical course in fisheries, the Diploma in Fishery Technology. There were ten pioneering students who took their classes in the evening. Four years later, under the officership of Mr. Artmeio A. Violeta, baccalaureate courses were offered, such as, B.S. in Secondary education major in Biology and General Science, and B.S. in Fisheries major in Aquaculture. A year after, additional major fields of specialization, such as Fish Processing Technology, Marine Fisheries and Coastal Resource Management, were added to the degree B.S. in Fisheries. This time, the College was under the leadership of Mrs. Wynne S. Silva who was appointed as Office-in-Charge in 1990.

To further boost the development of the College and make it more responsive to the academic demands of the area, a Graduate Program offering Master of Arts in Educational Management major in Vocational Productivity and Master in Public Administration was started in the Second Semester of School year 1994-1995. This was a consortium program between the ISCOF Graduate Studies and the Aklan State College of Agriculture (ASCA). Mr. Alberto A. Silva served as the coordinator of the ISCOF-ASCA Graduate Studies Consortium Program. However, the College offered its own graduate program for Master in Fisheries Technology major in Aquaculture. The same school year also gave birth to a new baccalaureate degree, the Bachelor of Science in Marine Transportation, which was made possible through the effort of then Congressman Manuel H. Puey and College President Dr. Elpidio A. Locsin, Jr.

The ISCOF-ASCA Graduate Studies Consortium Program was however terminated in 1996, but continued by the College as one of its programs. Two years later, a post-graduate program, Doctor in Rural Development with different fields of specialization was offered.

1998 made a special mark on the history of the College. On January 9, Republic Act 8448 became a law converting the Iloilo State College of Fisheries-Sagay Branch into the Northern Negros State College of Science and Technology. The historical law was authored and sponsored by Hon. Alfredo G. Marañon, Jr., Representative of the Second Congressional District of the Province of Negros Occidental. This earned for the Congressman the distinction the “Father of NONESCOST”. Those who worked with him for the passage of the law where Hon. Joseph G. Marañon, City Mayor of Sagay, Dr. Elpidio A. Locsin, Jr., President of ISCOF, and the men and women who were already then a part of the College.

Now that it has become an independent state college, its management has since then been under its own Board of Trustees and College President. Dr. Ephraim R. Estacion, jr. became its first Officer-in-Charge who was designated on July 1998. Dr. Manuel R. Penachos, Jr. who was appointed as officer-in-Charge on June 1999 and eventually became its First President months later succeeded him. However, due to health reasons, he had to tender his resignation eleven months after. His resignation paved the way for the succession of Mac Arthur D. Beldia, Ph. D., who was Vice President for Administration of the Panay State Polytechnic College, Pontevedra, Capiz prior to his designation as Officer-in-Charge on October 25, 2000. On January, 2001, the Search Committee for the Presidency (SCP) was convened. There was a total of seven candidates who submitted themselves to the process. On January 25, 2001, the SCP submitted four (4) finalists to the Board of Trustees, which on that day was holding its 9thRegular Board Meeting. After deliberation, the Board of Trustees unanimously voted Dr. Beldia as the Second President of the College. His appointment took effect that day, January 25, 2002.

Dr. Beldia took oath as College President on April 17, 2001 before Chairman Esther Albano-Garcia of the Commission of Higher Education in her Office at DAP Building, San Miguel Avenue, Ortigas Center, Pasig City. On July 18, 2001, in a simple ceremony, the Second President was installed in investiture rites in the college quadrangle. The ceremony was attended by the Members of the Board of Trustees of the College, Presidents of the various SUCs in the region, local government officials and heads of government agencies.

The year 2001 has been very meaningful for the College. It was blest to receive from the City Government of Sagay a seven-hectare lot situated at Sitio Tan-ao, Barangay Poblacion 2, Sagay City. The Deed of Donation was finally signed by Hon. Fortunato S. Javelosa, City Mayor of Sagay, and Dr. Mac Arthur D. Beldia, President of the College, in a simple ceremony held last November 29, 2001 at the College Ground. The ceremony was witnessed by the Members of the Board of Trustees, City Officials, Members of the Sangguniang Panlungsod, Members of the Faculty and Staff, and students.

This donated lot will serve as an additional school site of the College. As envisioned by the College President, it shall be the site for the Agriculture and Information Technology Departments, and the Research, Development and Extension (RD&E) Center of the College. On August 24, 2002, Dr. Victor E. Navarra from the Commission on Higher Education, Regional Office 6 was designated by the Board of Trustees as Officer-in-Charge, Office of the College President, due to the suspension of the College President.

On January 1, 2004, Rogelio T. Artajo took over as the third president of the college. His eight years administration has succeeded in opening the way for the accreditation of most of the college’s program, in forging a consortium with the Cebu State College of Science and Technology which affords the college faculty a convenient opportunity to pursue masteral and doctoral degrees, establishing the only school of nursing in Northern Negros and the only government school of nursing in Negros island, renovating the administration building and holding the first Tripartite forum which gave the students a chance to air their gripes against the faculty and the administration. During his term the following new programs were offered by the College: Doctor in Technology Management (Ph.D.TM), Master in Nursing (MN), Master in Information Technology (MIT), Master in Agricultural Technology (MAT), Bachelor of Science in Nursing (BSN), Bachelor of Science in Criminology (BSCrim), AB English, and Bachelor of Management Technology (BMT). Also, during his term, the College was known for its good standing in the PRC licensure examinations of its Nursing and Criminology programs, research and development programs and community extension services.

Right from the start of his administration, Dr. Rogelio T. Artajo’s battlecry for quality education and accreditation has come to its realization. Dr. Artajo’s presidency is distinctive for its vigorous effort to establish cooperative relation with government agencies and fellow state colleges and universities. This effort paved the way for the College to raise its SUC Level from Level 0 to Level II. He also realized his dream that the College would become the only ISO 9001:2008 certified state college in the province.

On June 25, 2012, Dr. Romulo T. Sisno took over as the 4th president of the college. The major mission of his administration is to put light on the NONESCOST Road to 2016. This mission is anchored to the following tasks: rationalizing the academic programs and instructional methods, enhancing a good learning environment, employing strategies to increase enrolment of some courses, improving the percentage of passers in the licensure examination of some courses, expanding research and extension programs, enhancing human resource management system, expanding student services, expanding the landholdings of the College for future development, and generating more resources to further improve the services of the College to its clienteles.

On July10, 2020 Renante A. Egcas, Ph.D was appointed as the fifth president of the College. Under his administration, President Egcas envisioned to make NONESCOST in the next five years a glocalized University offering distinctively-niched academic programs engaged in dynamic quality and excellent instruction, research, extension and governance, producing viable graduates imbued with local-mindedness, global competitiveness, innovativeness, resilience and entrepreneurial skills. The articulation of his roadmap lives in the ideals of an UPGRADEd NONESCOST. UPGRADEd means: U for University, P for People, G for Governance, Production and Resource Generation, R for Research, Technology and Innovation, A for Academic Excellence, D for Development and Improvement of Sites and Facilities and E for Extension, Linkages and Internationalization.

As NONESCOST takes it up a notch, Dr. Egcas along with the men and women who have been harmoniously working on towards that attainment of the College Mission and Vision clearly shared the same intention to produce students possessed with dynamic character; to shape workers to have utmost commitment and love for education and the institution; and to build stronger, more passionate community prepared to experience the higher education landscape in the next century.

Since history is still being written by those who continuously pass under the portals of the College, more is yet to come and the College can still prove its worth, realize its vision, fulfil its mandate and attain its objectives, only for the highest ideals of education.