The UPCC Story

The University of the Philippines Cebu College has been home to Zeta Omega for a quarter of a century. UP Cebu’s history and evolution is as rich and colorful as APO and Zeta Omega’s.

UP Cebu’s history began with a petition filed by the Governor of Cebu on April 30, 1918 for the establishment of a branch of U.P. in Cebu. The petition was favored by the University’s Board of Regents and took only 3 days for the Junior College of Liberal Arts, as it was then called, to open on 3 May, 1918. The desire of Cebuanos for an opportunity to a UP education had been fulfilled. Classes officially started on July 1,1918 in one of the buildings of the old Warwick Barracks on Leon Kilat street in the Ermita district.

During it’s growth, the College has had as many name changes as it was relocated.

Former names of the College:

1. Junior College of Liberal Arts- 1918
2. Junior College of the University of the Philippines- 1921
3. Cebu Junior College of Liberal Arts of the University of the Philippines- 1941
4. Cebu College, University of the Philippines- 1947
5. U.P. Cebu Graduate School- 1963
6. U.P. School in Cebu- 1966
7. University of the Philippines in Cebu- 1967
8. U.P. College Cebu- 1975
9. U.P. in the Visayas Cebu College- Present Name

Former Locations of the College:

1. Old Warwick Barracks, Leon Kilat street, Ermita district- 1918
2. Corner Colon and Norte America (now D. Jakosalem) streets, Pari-an- 1921
3. Old Spanish Fort San Pedro, Port area- 1925
4. Escario St., Lahug- 1929 to Present

UP Cebu also experienced closure several times.; first during the Japanese and American occupation in the 1940’s and from 1950-1960, when the College’s appropriations was omitted by the University’s 1950-1951 Appropriation Act.

During the 1970’s and 1980’s, UP Cebu found itself struggling with the University (Diliman) for more support in terms of leadership, salaries, equipment and facilities. Peace returned to the campus when the University assigned an Acting Dean to oversee the College plus expansion funds provided by the University in cooperation with the Cebu government.

In the early 1990’s UP Cebu was absorbed into the UP in the Visayas unit.

UP Cebu has gone a long way from a small extension of the University to a full fledged U.P. unit. Many prominent figures in Cebu hail from this humble college and will continue to produce quality citizens for the future generations.

Read more of UP Cebu’s history here »

The U.P. Oblation

No symbol is more closely identified with the University of the Philippines than the statue of the Oblation. The naked figure of a young man in a symbolic gesture of sacrificial offering of service to country and humanity has become a landmark in every campus of the University. For the hundreds of thousands of UP Alumni, the Oblation has become their major symbolic link with Alma Mater. The Oblation is also the major rallying point for all kinds of dissent, protest actions, and social criticism, as well as expressions of public service, nationalism, and patriotism. For the autonomous units and all the campuses of the University of the Philippines, the Oblation is the enduring symbol of their unity in mission, vision and traditions. Read More »