Ilocos Sur Polytechnic State College to University

Conversion, Integration, and Naming

The Ilocos Sur Polytechnic State College (ISPSC) located in the Municipality of Sta. Maria, Province of Ilocos Sur, including its campuses in Narvacan, Tagudin, Santiago, Cervantes, and the City of Candon, is converted into a state university.
The North Luzon Philippine State College (NLPSC) located in the City of Candon, Province of Ilocos Sur is integrated with the ISPSC.
The resulting institution is named the University of Ilocos Philippines (UIP), with its main campus in the City of Candon, Province of Ilocos Sur.
Additional campuses to be created prior to the effectivity of the Act are covered within the conversion/integration.
Upon effectivity, notwithstanding compliance with CHED requirements for university status, the NLPSC is immediately integrated into the existing ISPSC as a regular campus known as “ISPSC a Main Campus.”

University Mandate and Programs

The UIP shall primarily provide: advance education, higher professional and technological instruction, and technical and vocational education and training.
The UIP shall offer instruction in humanities, engineering, science and technology, agriculture, business and entrepreneurship, and other relevant fields of study.
The UIP shall undertake research and extension services and production activities to support the socioeconomic development of the Province of Ilocos Sur and Region I.
The UIP shall offer short-term technical-vocational, undergraduate, graduate courses, and post-graduate programs within its competency and areas of specialization.
The UIP may offer relevant degree programs, including those in agriculture, education, business administration, culture and arts, technology, engineering, architecture, health sciences, criminal justice education, and other degree courses deemed necessary by the Board of Regents (Board).
The UIP shall respond to human resource development needs of the Province of Ilocos Sur and Region I.

Special School Continuity and TESDA Programs

The existing reasonably-sized laboratory junior high school shall continue to operate under the supervision of the College of Education of the UIP to serve in-campus student requirements.
Existing and future technical-vocational courses or programs under TESDA supervision shall continue to be offered in the UIP.

Governance Structure and Board Composition

The UIP has the general powers of a corporation under Republic Act No. 11232 (Revised Corporation Code of the Philippines).
The UIP’s corporate powers are exercised exclusively by the Board and the President of the UIP.
The governing body is the Board, chaired and co-chaired by: the Chairperson of the CHED and the President of the UIP, respectively.
The Board members are:
- (a) Chairperson of the Committee on Higher, Technical and Vocational Education of the Senate
- (b) Chairperson of the Committee on Higher and Technical Education of the House of Representatives
- (c) Regional Director of the National Economic and Development Authority
- (d) Regional Director of the Department of Science and Technology
- (e) Regional Director of the Department of Agriculture
- (f) Regional Director of the TESDA
- (g) President of the federation of faculty associations of the UIP
- (h) President of the federation of student councils of the UIP
- (i) President of the federation of alumni associations of the UIP
- (j) Two (2) prominent citizens from the private sector distinguished in their professions or fields of specialization
The Board appoints the two (2) prominent citizens from a list of at least five (5) qualified persons recommended by a search committee constituted by the President of the UIP, in consultation with the Chairperson of the CHED and other Board members.
The prominent citizens serve for a term of two (2) years from appointment.
The representatives of faculty associations, student councils, and alumni associations sit in the Board coterminously with their terms under their constitutions and bylaws.

Board Powers, Duties, and Financial Rules

The Board shall promulgate and implement policies consistent with:
- declared state education policies;
- relevant constitutional education/agriculture/science and technology provisions; and
- CHED policies, standards, and thrusts under Republic Act No. 7722 (Higher Education Act of 1994).
The Board shall approve the curricula, instructional programs, and student discipline rules drawn by the Administrative and Academic Councils.
The Board shall appoint, upon recommendation of the President, the vice presidents, deans, directors, campus heads, faculty members, and other UIP officials and employees.
The Board shall fix and adjust salaries of faculty, administrative officials and employees, subject to the Revised Compensation and Position Classification System and pertinent budget/compensation laws, including rules on leaves and removal for cause with due process of law.
The Board shall fix and adjust tuition fees and other necessary school charges, including matriculation fees, graduation fees, and laboratory fees, after due consultation with concerned sectors.
Tuition fees and other charges, including government subsidies and other UIP income, constitute the UIP’s special trust funds and must be deposited in an authorized government depository bank; all interest accrues to the same funds.
Income generated by the UIP from tuition fees and other charges, and from the operation of auxiliary services and land grants, is retained by the UIP and may be disbursed by the Board for instruction, research, extension services, or other UIP programs and projects.
Fiduciary fees must be disbursed for the specific purposes for which they are collected.
If the UIP cannot pursue any appropriated and allocated project for reasons beyond its control, the Board may authorize the use of such funds for any reasonable purpose necessary and urgent to attain UIP objectives and goals.
The Board shall adopt and implement a socialized scheme of tuition and other school fees for greater access of poor but deserving students under Republic Act No. 10931 (Universal Access to Quality Tertiary Education Act).
The Board shall establish professional chairs, provide fellowships to qualified faculty members, and scholarships to deserving students.
The Board shall receive sums provided by law and other sums determined by the Board to carry out UIP purposes and functions.
The Board sets policies on admission and graduation, may award honorary degrees, and may authorize certificates of completion of nondegree and nontraditional courses.
The Board shall establish research and extension centers, and develop academic arrangements for institutional capability building with public/private/local/foreign institutions and agencies, including appointing consultants and visiting/exchange professors, scholars, or researchers.
The Board shall adopt modern and innovative knowledge transmission modes, including information technology, dual training system, open distance learning, and community laboratory.
The Board may collaborate with other state universities and colleges within Ilocos Sur and Region I under CHED supervision and in consultation with DBM, to restructure the UIP to be efficient, relevant, productive, and competitive.
The Board may absorb non-chartered tertiary institutions in Ilocos Sur and Region I as branches, extension or external centers, in coordination with CHED and in consultation with DBM, and offer programs/courses to fulfill the constitutional equal access mandate.
The Board may authorize an external management audit financed by CHED subject to COA rules and regulations, and institute reforms based on audit results and recommendations.
The Board shall develop consortia and other economic linkages with LGUs and public/private/local/foreign institutions and agencies to further UIP objectives.
The Board may import economic, technical, and cultural books and publications.
The Board may enter into joint ventures with business and industry for profitable development and management of economic assets, with proceeds used for UIP development and strengthening.
The Board may receive in trust legacies, gifts, and donations of real and personal properties of all kinds, administer and dispose of them when necessary for UIP benefit, subject to donor limitations and directions.
The Board may extend the term of the President beyond the retirement age but not beyond seventy (70), based on Board guidelines, qualifications, and standards; extension requires an outstanding performance rating and a unanimous recommendation decided by the search committee.
The Board may delegate powers and duties to the President and other UIP officials to expedite administration.
The Board may establish policy guidelines and procedures for participative and transparent decision-making.
Where most advantageous, the Board may privatize management of nonacademic services such as health, food, building, grounds or property maintenance, and similar activities.
The Board may authorize construction or repair of buildings, machinery, equipment, and facilities; and purchase/acquire real property and necessary supplies/materials/equipment.
The Board must promulgate rules and regulations necessary to carry out UIP purposes and functions.

Board Meetings, Quorum, and Compensation

The Board convenes once every three (3) months.
The Chairperson may call a special meeting whenever necessary, provided members receive written notice at least three (3) days before the meeting.
Quorum consists of a majority of all Board members holding office at the time of the meeting, with the condition that the Chairperson of the Board or the President of the UIP must be present.
If the Chairperson of CHED cannot attend, a duly assigned CHED Commissioner representative attends with all rights and responsibilities of a regular member.
During meetings, the President of the UIP, as Vice Chairperson, acts as the presiding officer.
The Chairperson of CHED may designate a CHED Commissioner as regular Chairperson, in which case the CHED Commissioner acts as presiding officer.
If the Chairperson of the Senate Committee on Higher, Technical and Vocational Education and the House Committee on Higher and Technical Education cannot attend, they may designate representatives with the same rights and responsibilities as regular members.
Board members receive no salary but are entitled to reimbursement of actual and necessary expenses for meeting attendance or other official business authorized by Board resolutions, subject to existing laws and regulations.

President and University Officers

The UIP is headed by a President appointed by the Board subject to Board guidelines, qualifications, and standards based on the recommendation of a search committee constituted for selecting the President.
The President must render full-time service and has a term of four (4) years, renewable for another term.
To ensure smooth transition, the incumbent President of the ISPSC, if qualified, serves as the first President of the UIP.
The Board constitutes the search committee for the Presidency within six (6) months before the expiration of the incumbent President’s term.
The President performs powers and duties usually pertaining to similar university presidents and those delegated by the Board.
The President’s salary is based on Republic Act No. 11466 (Salary Standardization Law of 2019) and future amendatory laws, and must be comparable to presidents of similar educational institutions.
The Board designates an Officer-in-Charge if the Office of the President becomes vacant due to death, compulsory retirement, resignation, removal for cause, or incapacity, pending appointment of a new President; the Officer-in-Charge serves only for the unexpired portion of the term.
The President is assigned vice presidents: Vice President for Academic Affairs, Vice President for Administration, and Vice President for Research and Development, Extension, Services and Training, all appointed by the Board upon recommendation of the President.

Secretary, Treasurer, and Councils

The Board appoints a Secretary who serves for both the Board and the UIP, keeps all records and proceedings of Board meetings, and serves notices of Board meetings to each Board member.
The Treasurer of the Philippine is the ex officio Treasurer of the UIP.
The Administrative Council consists of the President (as chairperson) and the vice presidents, deans, directors, and other officials of equal rank, and it reviews and recommends to the Board policies governing administration, management, and development planning.
The Academic Council formulates academic policies and is composed of the President (as chairperson) and all academic staff with rank of at least assistant professor.
The Academic Council reviews and recommends curricular offerings and student discipline rules, subject to Board approval.
The Academic Council fixes requirements for admission, graduation, and conferment of degrees, subject to Board review/approval through the President.
The Academic Council exercises disciplinary power over students of the UIP and formulates discipline rules and regulations subject to Board approval.

Campus Heads and Faculty Rights

Campus Directors serve as heads/administrators of UIP campuses and render full-time service.
Campus Directors are appointed or designated by the Board upon recommendation of a search committee and the President, subject to Board guidelines, qualifications, and standards.
Upon effectivity, incumbent Campus Directors of the existing ISPSC campuses continue to serve as such.
Faculty appointment in the UIP is prohibited from inquiry based on political belief, gender preference, cultural/community affiliation, ethnic origin, or religious opinion/affiliation.
Faculty appointment remains subject to Board guidelines, qualifications, and standards.
No faculty member shall teach for or against any particular church or religious sect.

Academic Freedom and Institutional Autonomy

The UIP enjoys academic freedom and institutional autonomy pursuant to paragraph 2, Section 5 of Article XIV of the Constitution.

Scholarships and Student Admission Guarantees

The UIP provides a scholarship program and other affirmative action programs to assist poor but deserving students who qualify for admission.
No student is denied admission to the University by reason of gender, religion, cultural or community affiliation, or ethnic origin.

Loans, Transfers, and Personnel Detail

Heads of national government bureaus and offices are authorized, upon request of the UIP President, to loan or transfer apparatus, equipment, or supplies needed by the UIP.
Heads of national government bureaus and offices are authorized to detail employees for duty in the UIP when their services can be spared without serious detriment to public service.
Detailed employees perform duties required by the UIP President, and the time employed is counted as part of their regular service.

Transfer of Assets, Liabilities, and Personnel

All assets, real and personal, personnel, records, liabilities, and obligations of the ISPSC and NLPSC are transferred to the UIP.
Faculty members and personnel employed under existing laws retain their positions, rights, and security of tenure.
Incumbents occupying positions remain in the same status until otherwise provided for by the Board.
The UIP upgrades or increases its human resources component as deemed appropriate by the Board.
All parcels of land belonging to the government occupied by the ISPSC and NLPSC and their campuses are declared property of the UIP and must be titled under the UIP name.
If the UIP ceases to exist or is abolished, or if the parcels are no longer needed by the UIP, the land reverts to the concerned LGU or to the Republic of the Philippines, as applicable.

Tax Exemption and Research Centers

The UIP’s importation of economic, technical, and cultural books or publications for economic, technical, vocational, scientific, philosophical, historical, or cultural purposes is exempt from customs duties upon CHED certification under Republic Act No. 10863 (Customs Modernization and Tariff Act (CMTA)).
Grants, bequests, endowments, donations, and contributions made to and used actually, directly, and exclusively for educational purposes by the UIP are exempt from donor’s tax and allowed as allowable deductions from the donor’s gross income for computing taxable income under the National Internal Revenue Code of 1997, as amended.
The UIP establishes the following research facilities:
- (a) Fisheries and Aquamarine Resources Research Center focused on knowledge and technologies for responsible use and protection of aquamarine resources;
- (b) Forest Advancement and Resources Management Research Center focused on protection, preservation, and creation of research-based policies for preserving local flora and forest resources;
- (c) UIP Center for Rural Health Research, Reform and Policy focused on knowledge, policies, innovation, and technologies benefiting local, national, and global health communities;
- (d) Animal Research Center focused on knowledge and technologies promoting effective generation and management of veterinary resources;
- (e) Tobacco and Agricultural Research Center focused on technologies enhancing the tobacco industry and agriculture generally for benefit of tobacco growers and farmers;
- (f) Indigenous People Education Research Center focused on preservation and protection of indigenous peoples and communities through studies and activities;
- (g) Public Administration and Governance Policy Research Center focused on knowledge and policy creation to improve the public service sector.
Whenever necessary, the UIP creates consortia to expand operation scope and ensure a bigger community of research center beneficiaries.

CHED Compliance, Development Plan, and Reporting

Conversion into a state university becomes effective only upon CHED determination and declaration, based on a recommendation of a panel of experts, that the institution complied with university status requirements under CHED Memorandum Order No. 46, series of 2012.
The panel may recommend university status when the ISPSC substantially complied with requirements for the grant of university status.
University operational requirements set by CHED must be complied with, including:
- full-time, permanent faculty with relevant degrees and participation in research and development evidenced by refereed publications and scholarly outputs;
- comprehensive range of degree programs from basic post-secondary to doctoral programs;
- viable research programs producing new knowledge evidenced by refereed publications, citations, inventions, and patents;
- comprehensive learning resources and support structures including libraries, practicum laboratories, relevant educational resources, and linkages enabling students to explore knowledge across basic, advanced, and cutting-edge levels;
- maintenance of linkages/affiliations with other research institutions worldwide to meet current global standards.
The ISPSC retains its status as a state college prior to the effectivity of the conversion until it complies with required CHED requirements.
Within 120 days after approval of the Act, the UIP must:
- (a) submit a five (5)-year development plan, including program and budget, to CHED for recommendation to DBM;
- (b) set up its organizational, administrative, and academic structure, including appointment of key officials; and
- (c) undergo a management audit in coordination with CHED.
On or before the 15th day of the second month after opening of regular classes each year, the Board files with the Office of the President of the Philippines through the Chairperson of CHED, and with both Houses of Congress, a detailed report on UIP progress, conditions, and needs.

Charter Provisions, Parity, Appropriations, IRR

Republic Act No. 8292 (Higher Education Modernization Act of 1997) is an integral part of the UIP governing charter.
All powers, functions, privileges, responsibilities, and limitations under existing laws that apply to state universities and their officials are deemed granted to, or imposed upon, the UIP and its officials whenever appropriate.
Necessary funds to carry out the Act are charged against the current year’s appropriations of the ISPSC and NLPSC.
Afterward, funds necessary for continued UIP operation and maintenance are included in the annual General Appropriations Act.
Within 60 days from effectivity, the Board, in consultation with CHED, formulates the rules and regulations to implement the Act.

Separability, Repeal, and Transitory Effectivity

If any part or provision of the Act is declared invalid or unconstitutional, the remaining parts remain in full force and effect.
All laws, presidential decrees, executive orders, rules, and regulations contrary to or inconsistent with the Act are repealed or modified accordingly.