The Student Samaritans

MANILA, Philippines - Busy as today’s students may be with schoolwork and extracurricular activities, many find time to be active in causes ranging from the environment to political issues. Other students take time to help their co-students, like Pammy Panganiban, a member of the In-Christ Thrust for University Students (ICTUS) of the University of the Philippines.

Founded in 1981, ICTUS aims to help less fortunate students by having fellow students teach and sponsor them. The group was consecrated to Mother Mary in December 1982 and was among the top ten finalists in the search for the 2004 Ten Accomplished Youth Organizations (TAYO) in the NCR.

Before joining the group, Panganiban, a fourth year Broadcast Communications major, said that she was having a hard time adjusting to a new environment.

“When I entered UP, it was a different environment from where I grew up. We were very sheltered in Poveda,” Panganiban said. “The people here come from different backgrounds. I wasn’t used to that because in my school it was the same group.”

Things changed when she decided to join ICTUS. “When a classmate told me what they were doing, I was encouraged to join because it’s what I did back in my school,” she said.

According to Panganiban, the group is divided into four apostolates; catechism, tutorials, children’s literacy and community service.

“In catechism, we teach Grade 5 students about religion. For tutorials, we help Balara students with their studies every day. For the children’s literacy apostolate, we teach Reading and Math to kindergarten up to Grade 6 students. For the community service apostolate, we hold play therapy sessions with children from the Philippine Children’s Medical Center,” Panganiban said.

But it’s not just teaching that the group is busy with. They also sponsor students who cannot afford to go to school. In fact, they currently have seven scholars in UP and other schools, selected based on their grades and the financial difficulties of the student. “We sponsor them from high school until they graduate. But we don’t want to leave them just like that after they are finished. We check up on them every now and then to see if they have concerns.”

To be able to carry out their scholarship program, Panganiban said that they have various fundraisers such as rummage sales and fun runs. They also seek help from their alumni members and also donate from their own pockets.

But a major challenge is time management, since being students, their primary responsibility is their schooling. “It’s hard because you have to balance the organization with your studies,” Panganiban said.

But she’s not complaining, and in fact welcomes the responsibility. Seeing the students’ achievements is more than enough reward for their efforts and commitment.

In return, they ask their scholars for a commitment as well: “We just want them (scholars) not only to finish their education but be good citizens and give back as they have the opportunity to do so.”

Together, scholars and mentors join in the effort to build a brighter future for the country.