Teachancement 2015: Speakers

TEACHANCEMENT 2015

MARISSA J HARTWIG is an educator, an author, a Reiki master, and a peace seeker. She has been an early childhood educator for 18 years, and also trains and mentors teachers. Believing that dance mirrors life, she wrote her memoir titled Life Is A Dance: Reflections on Defining My Truth, infusing it with her poetry. She also edited and published her father's autobiography, The Mountain and the Metropolis. Ms Hartwig received a grant from AMS (American Montessori Society) to establish peace education through a ‘Healing Garden’ for the child victims of typhoon Haiyan in Iloilo, Philippines. That experience has inspired her to help cultivate peace through what she refers to as ‘the healing art of teaching.’ Ms Hartwig presents in workshops and seminars on education, addressing and focussing on nurturing the spirit of the child.

The author of K-12, ISAGANI R CRUZ earned his bachelor’s degree from UP Diliman in 1965, his MA in English Literature from the Ateneo de Manila University in 1970, and his PhD in English Literature from the University of Maryland in 1976. In 1972 and 2003, Dr Cruz received a Fulbright grant to study in the United States. He is a Don Carlos Palanca Memorial member of the Palanca Hall of Fame in 2004 for his plays, essays, and short stories. He also won the SEAWRITE Award in 1991, the Centennial Literary Contest Award in 1998, and the Gawad Balagtas Award in 1999.  As an educator, Dr Cruz worked with the De La Salle University, the Ateneo de Manila University, and the University of Santo Tomas. He was an Assistant Professor at the UP Diliman and a director of the Teachers Academy at Far Eastern University. He also became a professor at universities in the United States, Japan, and Taiwan. He became a Visiting Fellow at St Antony's College in Oxford University. A former DepEd’s undersecretary, he was the president of the Philippine Fulbright Scholars Association. He writes a column for Philippine Star and blogs at www.isagnicruz.com.

LEONCIO P DERIADA has a BA English (cum laude) from the Ateneo de Davao University in 1959, an MA in English from Xavier University in 1970, and a PhD in English and Literature (creative writing) from Silliman University in 1981, where he before long served as professor and chairperson of the English Department. A language champion, he’s produced works in English, Filipino, Hiligaynon, Kinaray-a, and Cebuano. His thirteen Palanca awards include works in English, Filipino and Hiligaynon. He became a Palanca Hall of Famer on 1 September 2001. Aside from his Palanca awards, he has garnered other prestigious awards such as the Gawad Pambansang Alagad ni Balagtas, Asiaweek, Gawad CCP, Graphic, Focus, Yuhum (Iloilo), and Blue Knight Award from Ateneo de Davao for Outstanding Achievement in Literature. In 2002, he was one of Metrobank's Outstanding Teachers. He’s a UP professor emeritus.