Consulate ready to aid international students from PH amid uncertainty
FILE – People walk between buildings, Dec. 17, 2024, on the campus of Harvard University in Cambridge, Mass. (AP Photo/Steven Senne, File)
CAMBRIDGE, Mass. – The Philippine Consulate General in New York has reaffirmed support for international students from the Philippines at an event honoring 46 Filipino and Filipino American graduates of Harvard University this week in Cambridge, Massachusetts.
During the 8th Annual Harvard Club of the Philippines Pinoy Graduation, held Tuesday at Harvest Restaurant in Cambridge, Consul General Senen Mangalile acknowledged the “shifting realities” in higher education in the US and said the Consulate continues to support Filipino students as they navigate uncertainty.
Harvard graduates celebrated commencement on Thursday at a pivotal time for the Ivy League school, currently in the midst of legal battles with the Trump administration.
Lawyers from Harvard and the Trump administration were in a courtroom in Boston on Thursday for a hearing on the administration’s efforts to revoke the school’s ability to enroll students on international visas.
The Harvard Club of the Philippines Pinoy Graduation celebrated the achievements of Filipino and Filipino American students from Harvard’s undergraduate, graduate and professional programs.
This year’s cohort completed degrees in education, law, business, neuroscience, public health, public administration and the sciences.
“Just as we gather in the fall to welcome new Filipino students, we gather in the spring to send off our graduates with pride, with hope and with a strong sense of community that will travel with you wherever life takes you,” said Geraldine Acuña-Sunshine, vice chair of the Harvard Board of Overseers and a longtime advocate for Filipino students at Harvard, in her speech.
Philippine Consul General in New York Senen T. Mangalile (left) and Geraldine Acuña-Sunshine deliver remarks reflecting on Filipino identity, gratitude and the responsibility that comes with achievement. Photos by Sherlyn Roxas
In his keynote message, Mangalile reminded the graduates that their achievements are rooted not only in personal perseverance, but also in many stories shaped by sacrifice.
“Your success is not separate from your story. It is shaped by it,” he said. “Sometime, somewhere in the Philippines, somebody sacrificed something so that you could be here today.”
Mangalile highlighted the contributions of Acuña-Sunshine and Myrish Cadapan Antonio, whose leadership and mentorship have supported generations of Filipino and Filipino American students at Harvard.
Representatives from various Harvard schools and fields of study shared brief messages during the program. Among them was Marc A. Mapalo, the first Filipino to earn a doctorate from Harvard University. He received a Doctor of Philosophy in Organismic and Evolutionary Biology. He spoke about the value of public engagement and the importance of representing the Philippines in global academic spaces.
Marc A. Mapalo (standing) reflects on his six-year doctoral journey. Photo by Sherlyn Roxas
“Over the course of my PhD, I learned how enriching it is to share science with the public,” he said. “It made me more empathetic, more grounded.”
He recalled being the only Filipino in many classrooms and using every opportunity he could find to speak about the Philippines, its biodiversity, languages and people.
“I hope that by sharing our stories and our science, more people will be inspired to support research, value knowledge and believe in what Filipinos can contribute,” he added.
