Dr. Joane V. Serrano was formally invested as the 5th Chancellor of the University of the Philippines Open University (UPOU) on 30 July 2025 in a ceremony held at the International Convention Center, UPOU Headquarters, Los Baños, Laguna. It was attended by university officials, faculty members, staff, student representatives, alumni, partners, and other guests.
The program officially began with a procession of the academic community. After the placement of the maces of the Chancellor of UPOU and the President of the University of the Philippines System on stage, the UP Rural High School Glee Club led the singing of the national anthem and doxology.
Messages of congratulations and support were presented from the university’s sectoral representatives. These included Gina Roa, President, All UP Workers’ Union – UPOU Chapter; Alvie Simonette Alip, Vice President for REPS, All UP Academic Employees Union – UPOU Chapter; Jana Denise Tomacruz, Chairperson, University Student Council; Tanya Capuli, President, UPOU Alumni Association, Inc. (UPOUAAI); and Asst. Prof. Queenie R. Ridulme, President, All UP Academic Employees Union – UPOU Chapter.
UP President and Co-Chair of the UP Board of Regents, Honorable Angelo A. Jimenez, served as the Presiding Officer of the Investiture Ceremony. By virtue of the authority vested in him by law, he formally invested Dr. Joane Serrano as the 5th Chancellor of UPOU. He presented her the Chancellor’s medallion, which is a symbol of UP’s honor and great tradition of excellence.
UP President Atty. Angelo A. Jimenez formally invests Dr. Joane V. Serrano as the fifth Chancellor of UP Open University.
President Jimenez handed over the mace to Chancellor Serrano as a symbol of authority of the Office of the Chancellor, as well the prerogatives and responsibilities that come with it. Upon receiving the mace, Chancellor Serrano pledged to devote herself to advancing the University’s mission and upholding the University’s academic excellence.
Dr. Serrano acknowledges the honor, responsibility, and accountability of receiving the UP Mace and Medallion as the 5th Chancellor of UPOU.
In her investiture message, Chancellor Serrano highlighted the importance of open and distance education as a form of social justice. She explained, “I believe that UP must do more than uphold academic excellence, it must ensure that excellence is accessible.”
She emphasized that education is lifelong and life-wide. “It does not begin and end with a diploma. It is not confined within the brick and mortar walls. At UPOU, anyone, anywhere, at any point in their life—can be a learner.” Reflecting on UPOU’s journey, she added, ”UPOU stands today as a respected institution, not just within the UP System but in national and global conversations.”
Chancellor Joane V. Serrano delivers her investiture speech.
“In these times of uncertainty, complexity, and endless transition,” she asked,”What does it mean to lead an open university?”
She shared her vision of UPOU as a “Transformative University of the Future,” built of four interrelated components: a Learning University, where lifelong learning is embraced as a way of life; a Healthy University where well-being is a shared responsibility; a Sustainable and Resilient University where decisions are guided by a future-oriented perspective; and Intrapreneurial University where community members are both scholars and solution-builders.
In closing, she called on the UPOU community to “honor the past by shaping the future—with integrity, with intention, and with imagination.”
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