makadto

43 years ago, my mother graduated from Central Philippine University (CPU), a school founded in 1905 by American Missionaries in Jaro, Iloilo.

My mother in the picture was reminiscing her classroom days at Valentine Hall. Reverend William Valentine is the founding father of CPU

CPU is just one of the many institutions in the country founded by the Americans. The structures in the campus are just some of the many structures built or architecturally influenced by the Americans during their time.

University of the Philippines, my alma mater, exists because of American colonization, which makes education as my favorite Americanization in the country.

It was late afternoon when I accompanied my mother in her visit, hence the reason for the dusky look in all snapshots

Today, July 4, 2014, is a big day in USA, and the reason why I thought about CPU and the kanonization* of our education system.

*Kanonization is the term I used for Americanization in a local way. I do have that good book by Scott Garceau titled “Kano-nization: More Secrets from the X-Pat Files”. It’s about Filipino way of life that’s something of a bewilderment or humorous in the eyes of an American.