More than 80 UPOU faculty and staff members attended the 3rd RTD on AI held on 2 June 2025 at the UPOU CCDL Auditorium.
The University of the Philippines Open University (UPOU) Office of the Vice Chancellor for Academic Affairs (OVCAA) held the third Roundtable Discussion (RTD) on Artificial Intelligence (AI) on 2 June 2025 at the UPOU CCDL Auditorium, UPOU Headquarters in Los Baños, Laguna and via conferencing platform. The third part of the RTD series is titled “Revisiting Academic Policies on the Use of AI in Teaching and Learning.”
Approximately 80 participants from the faculties of studies and units in the university attended the event. UPOU Chancellor Dr. Joane Serrano gave the opening remarks and emphasized the importance of the RTD and the opportunity for UPOU to be at the forefront of the AI discourse.
Asst. Prof. Leo Mendel Rosario provided a summary of the first two UPOU Roundtable Discussions Series on AI.
Dr. Leo Mendel Rosario, Assistant to the Vice Chancellor for Academic Affairs (A2VCAA) for Instruction and Assistant Professor from the Faculty of Management and Development Studies (FMDS) served as the first speaker. He provided a summary of the first two UPOU Roundtable Discussions Series on AI. The first RTD, held on 13 June 2024, was titled “AI in Education: Exploring Potential, Ethics, and Impact on ODeL Institutions.” The second RTD, titled “Use of AI in Transforming Teaching, Learning, and Administration,” was held on 8 July 2024. Dr. Rosario presented key points previously covered in past RTDs, including UP and UPOU guidelines on AI in teaching and learning, an overview of Generative AI, and the AI utilization in instructional materials development and administrative tasks. Both RTDs highlight the experiences, challenges, and strategies of UPOU faculty members that reflect the ongoing consolidation of current UPOU policies and practices. Dr. Rosario concluded his presentation by asserting the need to be proactive in developing AI-driven courses.
Dr. Juvy Lizette Gervacio (center) receives the certification of appreciation from UPOU Chancellor Joane V. Serrano (left) and A2VCAA Leo Mendel Rosario (right).
The second speaker was Dr. Juvy Lizette Gervacio, Director of the UPOU Center for Open and Digital Teaching and Learning (CODTL) and Associate Professor of FMDS. She outlined some policy insights on crafting rules on AI, drawing from international and national perspectives based on a research survey, and provided relevant insights for UPOU. She ended her presentation with Fei Fei Li’s statement: “AI won’t replace humans, but humans who use AI will replace humans that don’t.”
Chancellor Serrano (left) and A2VCAA Rosario (right) presents the certificate of appreciation to Dr. Ria Borromeo (center).
The last speaker, Dr. Ria Mae Borromeo, Assistant to the Chancellor for Institutional Analytics and Insights and Associate Professor from the Faculty of Information and Communication Studies (FICS), discussed the university’s experiences with AI and AI policies. She presented UPOU initiatives on AI utilization over the years with helpdesk systems, chatbots for online inquiries, and commonly used tools and platforms for teaching and learning. She ended her presentation with a challenge to the participants of the RTD by saying that “AI Policy? Let’s not ask ChatGPT.”
Dr. Reinald Adrian Pugoy, ICTDO Director, expresses his take in AI during the open forum.
A one-hour open forum took place shortly after the three presentations, moderated by the event host, Asst. Prof. Raz dela Torre from FICS. Participants shared their reflections, challenges, and experiences in response to the questions and concerns raised. Dr. Rosario synthesized and summarized the main points that emerged from the open forum: (1) proposal for a sustainability policy on the implications of AI in carbon emissions, (2) reliability of Turnitin for AI checking, (3) proposal for university-wide guideline on the declaration of student’ use of AI in their course requirements, (4) proposal for guidelines on the process of student sanctions for unethical use of AI in the student manual, and (5) additional consultations with students and other stakeholders for the incremental policy revisions on AI for teaching and learning.
After the open forum, Chancellor Serrano and A2VCAA Rosario awarded certificates to the event’s speakers and moderator. To formally conclude and end the program. Dr. Myra D. Oruga, A2VCAA for Research and Publication and Associate Professor of FMDS, delivered her closing remarks.
Written by Carren Urcia | Edited by Primo G. Garcia, Anna Cañas-Llamas, Alvie Simonette Alip and Dr. Leo Mendel Rosario| Photo by Anthea Faye Peredo
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