Trivia about the Silliman University

Silliman University

Silliman University was founded as Silliman Institute, an elementary school on August 28, 1901, by the Board of Foreign Missions of the Presbyterian Church in the U.S.A. under the terms of a gift from Dr. Horace Brinsmade Silliman, a philanthropist of Cohoes, New York. Its first president was Dr. David S. Hibbard.

Silliman University

ln 1910 Silliman Institute was awarded government recognition and the right to grant a degree. ln the same year it was incorporated under the laws of the Philippines. ln l921 the Silliman Bible School (later to become the College of Theology) was established in cooperation with the American Board of Commissioners for Foreign Missions, representing the Congregational Churches of the United States.

The History of Silliman is a story of steady growth consistent with high standards. ln its early years it was a single college with various departments, some of which developed into colleges. ln 1935 the articles of incorporation of Silliman University were approved by the Board of Trustees and filed with the Philippine government. ln 1936 the Philippine National Assembly passed a law establishing requirements from institutions to qualify for university status. Silliman won full recognition as a university in 1938. Celebrating its First Centennial in August 2001, Silliman University through the years has grown to be one of the leading institutions of quality Christian higher education in the Philippines and Asia. It offers 46 degree programs at the undergraduate and graduate levels. ln the last five years college enrollment averaged 6,810. The teaching force is 398-strong (305 full time, 93 part-time). The main campus (“Silliman Beside the Sea”) occupies 33 hectares in the heart of Dumaguete City.

Silliman rapidly Filipinized in the early fifties. Leopoldo Ruiz became the first Filipino president in April 1953. ln the same decade, the United Board for Christian Higher Education in Asia, an interdenominational group. assumed responsibility for channeling all church aid to Silliman. The Board gave grants for land, building, and equipment.

Some prominent graduates were: Former President Carlos P. Garcia, Sen. Lorenzo Teves, Speaker Cornelio Villareal, BIR Commissioner Tomas Toledo and Benjamin Tabios, Former DENR Secretary Angel C. Alcala, National Treasurer Leonor Briones, Cong. James L. Chiongbian, Cong. Edelmiro Amante, etc.

Stamps featuring the Silliman University

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