09/07/2026
A SECOND CHANCE🌻
Before earning one of the highest academic honors at UP Diliman, Colene Anne R. Santos first had to return to the education she was forced to leave behind.
Colene Anne, a Bachelor of Arts in Philosophy graduate, was named among UP Diliman’s candidates for summa cm laude for 2026.
Her story did not begin with a straight path through school. After a difficult childhood forced her to pause her formal education for several years, she found her way back through the Department of Education’s Alternative Learning System, which gave her another chance to continue learning outside the traditional classroom.
She later passed the Philippine Educational Placement Test, allowing her to move forward in place of the traditional junior high school curriculum.
At UP Diliman, Colene Anne became active beyond the classroom. She served in UP Kabataang Pilosopo Tasyo and earned several recognitions in the Emmanuel Q. Fernando Philosophy Undergraduate Conference, including awards in Applied Ethics and the Ethics Bowl Team Competition.
Her story is a reminder that education does not always begin, continue, or end in the same way for everyone. For some learners, the road back is longer and more difficult, but it can still lead to places they once thought were beyond reach.
Pagbati, Colene Anne. Isang karangalan ang iyong tagumpay, hindi lamang para sa sarili mong pangarap, kundi para rin sa maraming kabataang patuloy na naghahanap ng daan pabalik sa edukasyon.
