By Christian George F. Acevedo

Director, Public Relations and Publication

Amidst a throng of some of the most promising journalists in the region, Dr. Charess Joy dela Cruz, an English faculty member at the Roxas City Main Campus, emerged as one of the stellar personalities of the College Press Conference and Awards (COPRE) last December 21, 2022 as she received the Hall of Fame Award as Outstanding School Paper Adviser in Western Visayas. The COPRE is Philippine Information Agency Region 6’s biggest annual event, gathering together Western Visayas’ top writers and journalists to bestow the most prized awards in campus journalism.

Ma’am Cha has been the Adviser of The Quest, the official student publication of the Roxas City Main Campus since 2016. At first reluctant to take the helm of the school publication, she remembered: “In my first year of being appointed as the publication adviser, I remember having these gloomy days of contemplation and light resentment (as you may say), as to why this colleague of mine voted me as the next Student Publication Adviser?” She hesitated because she lacked the journalistic background. While she is an English instructor, she found journalism to be an entirely different field.

Despite this, she persisted and learned the ropes of school paper advising. “In my first year of being appointed as the publication adviser, I remember having these gloomy days of contemplation and light resentment (as you may say), as to why this colleague of mine voted me as the next Student Publication Adviser?,” she shared to her fellow school paper advisers during her acceptance speech .

She admitted that it was not an easy journey to manage and advise student-journalists.  Among others, she had to deal with measly articles, late article submissions, aesthetically challenged and confusing lay-outs  and constantly absent writers, “whose AWOL record reached the end of your patience.” 

But she had to find both the wits and the patience to make sense of the chaos. She started by nurturing a welcoming environment and establishing a healthy relationship in The Quest office. “Eventually, you won’t even take those overwhelming real-time job difficulty, rather, you will take it as part of your lifestyle,” she shared.

“And these stubborn but unfortunately gifted kids, they become your family. And in this family, you become the head. Some may stick to calling you ma’am or sir, but some would also call you tatay, or nanay instead. In my case, they call me mother. You will see, that the moment that you start taking good care of this family, it will also take care of you and the organization. Then the job becomes easy with free willing members who would want to do their best for the organization.”

Her willingness to go the extra mile and touch the affective side of her student writers have proven effective in pushing The Quest to succeed in various endeavors. Year after year, the organization has scored wins in the annual COPRE. On the other hand, Ma’am Cha has also scored successive wins as Outstanding School Paper Adviser from the Philippine Information Agency for the past three years. Her three—peat victory qualified her to receive the Hall of Fame Award in 2022.

“As an adviser, it is fulfilling to develop a responsible student journalist, but what is more fulfilling is when these kids, even after their graduation from the group, would remember and come back and help the new members so the group won’t dwindle from its responsibility. ” This is when you know that you did a great job with them. ” she told her fellow advisers and student journalists after she received the award.

Ma’am Cha knew how to make the best of circumstances, no doubt.