October 30, 2024
by Denise Angelica Clave
Welcome Our New Head of Student Affairs!
Shortly after a new Head of Student Affairs arrived as promised by a few passing announcements, I might have made him bide his time as I thought of when to issue an interview with him. Schedules are as tight as ever as we start the weekdays, but we have plenty of spare time on Thursday and Friday before the next classes.
The actual interview—or at least a prologue—started on a Friday when he noticed how jumpy I was as I met him. He did not mind that, though, and even offered to send me a written response when it was made clear that my speech faltered as we went. However, we exchanged a few fun facts about ourselves, including one where he used to be part of a choir. In fact, he himself is said to be interested in forming a chorale, alluding to his role in a certain club…
Now that this intro is nearing an end let’s learn more about our new Office of Student Affairs coordinator, Sir John Paul D. Olea!
The Basics
Starting from Sir Paul’s background, one can tell that he has been equipped with as many skills as he gathered throughout his life to establish himself as a leading example to the students of the Asian International School of Aeronautics and Technology (AISAT).
He received a Bachelor of Arts in Philosophy and Mass Communication from the Saint Paul Seminary Foundation in Cavite. He went on to work as a grade school and high school teacher for subjects including science, music, arts, and history, as an instructor for digital arts and music composition (with an emphasis on playing the piano), as well as an assistant manager in the American International Assurance Company (AIA Philippines) and a supervisor in SM Retail, Inc.
As rich and varied as his educational and work experience has entailed, he concluded his document with a short list of his passions: choral singing, teaching music, reading classical books, and creative writing. In our short interview together, I realized how much we had in common, and I appreciated how patient he had been as we went about our banter, spanning topics from music tastes to the rise and fall of Motorola—as random a topic as it was to conclude a fleeting interview in the middle of a three-hour break.
The Takeaways
While the semi-final exam week was coming to a close, he delivered plenty of highlights that served as a sneak peek of what was to come:
“As the new Head of Student Affairs, I envision a holistic program anchored in Christian virtues that cultivates not only skilled aviators/design professionals but also compassionate, well-disciplined, and spiritually grounded individuals.”
Thus, read an excerpt from his follow-up to our interview, which was sent around a week after we called it a day. Introduced as an alter Christus, he has dedicated his vision for the Asian International School of Aeronautics and Technology (AISAT) to a Christ-centered approach, aligning with that of AISAT and its graduate attributes.
By nurturing students’ artistic talents and spiritual lives, we aim to enhance their character, compassion, empathy, and leadership skills, all of which are essential for success in any industry.
In his first few weeks of leading AISAT to a new age, he emphasizes improving certain aspects of its students, with most involving their character and how they face the world around them to find success wherever they find themselves.
“We are what we repeatedly do. Excellence, then, is not an act but a habit.”
As he quoted from Aristotle highlighted the cycle of our actions influencing who we are and what we can do. He will bring about activities and programs in his action plan, dedicated to encouraging healthy, positive habits and discipline for students to improve their physical and mental health while keeping their sense of responsibility at bay.
In short, he aims to make students positively impact the world with the knowledge, skills, and virtues they gain as they discover and find purpose in their lives with a Christ-centered perspective.
His leadership may be a few weeks in, but let us await his contributions and changes to our experiences in AISAT!