Mapúa University names new president

MANILA, Philippines — Mapúa University has announced the appointment of longtime administrator and chemical engineer Dodjie Maestrecampo as its new president and chief executive officer.

Maestrecampo succeeded Reynaldo Vea, who capped his 23-year tenure as head of the university last June.

Prior to his new appointment, Maestrecampo was president of Mapúa Malayan Colleges in Laguna and Mindanao, which he will continue to hold in concurrent capacity.

He served in various capacities, including as executive vice president for academic affairs and dean of the chemical engineering and chemistry department of the then Mapúa Institute of Technology.

He was a member of the university’s Board of Trustees since 2014.

“In today’s rapidly changing world, it is more important than ever for Mapúa to be at the forefront of education. We must equip our students with the knowledge, skills and values they need to succeed in an extremely agile workforce,” he said.

Maestrecampo graduated from Mapúa with a bachelor’s degree in chemical engineering in 1986, placing fifth during that year’s board examination. He also has master’s degrees in chemical engineering from Mapúa and chemistry from De La Salle University (DLSU).

He obtained his doctorate in educational leadership and management from DLSU.

During a recent roundtable, Maestrecampo said he wants Mapúa to be a leader in digital transformation and sustainable development.

“We are aware of the pressing need for us to push for sustainable development practices and activities. We would like to be at the forefront of that as well. We are planning to do this by incorporating sustainable development in our curriculum, research… and operations,” he said.

Maestrecampo said they will further develop their faculty to be experts in new technologies, including cloud computing, artificial intelligence, big data and analytics.

He bared plans to leverage their expertise in technology as they plan to offer new programs, including nursing.