Pamantasan ng Lungsod ng Maynila
The Pamantasan ng Lungsod ng Maynila, also officially known as the University of the City of Manila, is a municipal public university in Intramuros, Manila, Philippines. It is funded by the city government of Manila. The university was established on June 19, 1965, and opened on July 17, 1967, to 556 scholars, all coming from the top ten percent of graduates of Manila's public high schools.
PLM is the first tertiary-level institution in the country to offer tuition-free education, the first university funded solely by a city government, and the first institution of higher learning in the country to have its official name in Filipino.
From its first enrollment record of 556 freshman scholars coming from the top ten percent of the graduating classes of Manila's twenty-nine public high schools, total semestral enrollment has grown to an average of 10,000. The college has expanded from a single college to twelve colleges, seven graduate schools, two professional schools, and a score of research and specialized centers, including a teaching hospital, an entrepreneurial center, and an integrated learning center for toddlers. It maintains a comprehensive distance education and open university program for thousands of community health workers and public administrators in different regions nationwide, with affiliations and recognition from various national and international organizations and institutions.
History
Geographical history
The site where the PLM campus in Intramuros is situated used to be occupied by the Colegio de Manila, which was the first school in the Philippines.. Aside from Colegio de Manila, there were other structures that were built on the site, such as Iglesia Santa Ana, the first stone church in the Philippines. Upon expulsion of the Jesuits from the Spanish Philippines, the buildings were transformed into military headquarters called Cuartel del Rey, the same place where José Rizal was placed on trial for sedition here on December 26, 1896.Image:PLM GPA.jpg|thumb|250px|Don Pepe Atienza Hall, the building where most of the PLM graduate schools are situated
During the American occupation, the buildings and the whole premises served as military headquarters for the 31st Infantry of the United States Army until 1941. Its Quonset Gym held one of the first games played by member schools of the NCAA. In World War II, General Douglas MacArthur held a command post here, but the entire area was later destroyed by the ongoing military conflict.
In the early 1960s, the site was rehabilitated by the city government, and a building was constructed at General Luna Street to house the students of Manila High School. However, on April 24, 1965, President Diosdado Macapagal issued Proclamation No. 392-A, giving the proposed city university the lot being occupied by Manila High School. On February 26, 1967, the new complex along Victoria Street was inaugurated, and the students of Manila High School were transferred there. On July 17, 1967, the first batch of PLM scholars began their studies.
Establishment
PLM was conceived during the administration of Manila Mayor Arsenio H. Lacson, when he approved Ordinance No. 4202 on January 13, 1960, which appropriated PhP 1 million for the construction of the university. After Lacson died of a heart attack, he was succeeded by Vice Mayor Antonio Villegas, who continued with his plan.On February 13, 1963, Villegas issued Executive Order No. 7 s-1963, creating a Planning and Working Committee, chaired by Benito F. Reyes, to draw up a plan to establish a city university.
Due to an impasse impeding the legislative action of the city council to formally create the university, Villegas interceded for the help of then-Congressman Justo Albert of the fourth congressional district of the City of Manila to sponsor a bill in the Congress seeking to create the university, which was passed by the House of Representatives in 1964 as House Bill No. 8349. The Senate version of the bill was spearheaded by senators Gil Puyat and Camilo Osías, which was passed by the Philippine Senate in 1965. The consolidation of the two bills was tackled during the Fourth Session of the Fifth Congress, which began and was held in Manila on January 25, 1965. The consolidated bill was thereafter passed by the joint Congress and was signed by Senate President Ferdinand E. Marcos and House Speaker Cornelio T. Villareal with Regino S. Eustaquio, Secretary of the Senate, and Inocencio B. Pareja, Secretary of the House of Representatives.
On June 19, 1965, the final bill, An Act Authorizing the City of Manila to Establish and Operate the University of the City of Manila and for Other Purposes, was signed into law by President Diosdado P. Macapagal in a ceremony in Malacañang Palace. The event was witnessed by Villegas, Congressman Ramon Mitra, Jr., de Leon, and its main sponsor in the House of Representatives, Congressman Justo Albert. The law was captioned as Republic Act No. 4196, which now serves as the university charter.
The Board of Regents, which is the governing body of the university, was formally organized in the same year as Villegas appointed the member thereof. The university regents were sworn into office during the historic day of January 9, 1967, and they conducted an election of officers on February 23, 1967. The members of the first Board of Regents were Atty. Carlos Moran Sison, chairman; Benito F. Reyes, vice chairman; Emilio Abello, Roman F. Lorenzo, Jose S. Roldan, and Primo L. Tongko, members; Fructuoso R. Yanson served as an ex-officio member, and Jose F. Sugay as its secretary. Reyes was chosen as PLM's first president.
In 1967, PLM started with a college for an associate in arts, and about a year later, a graduate institute for teachers and an institute for extramural studies were formed. Reyes aggressively expanded the PLM curriculum to include professional studies in arts and sciences, engineering, architecture, nursing, criminology, and government.
21st century
Growth and expansion
At the turn of the 21st century, PLM admitted students from outside Manila on paying schemes for the first time. Many changes were made, and the university continued with its affiliations and consortium agreements with various educational institutions in the world.Additional funds were made available for the university's physical development; many new facilities were built at the main campus, and the different departments, colleges, and schools were restructured. The university established a number of research units and made research consortium agreements with other institutions.
In 2000, the Pamantasang Limbagan ng Maynila was launched, the Development Center for Women Studies and Services was inaugurated, and the Manila Studies program was revived under the new Sentro ng Araling Manileno.
From 2001 to 2003, the PLM Board of Regents expanded the PLM curriculum to include professional studies in tourism, hotel and travel industry management, and physical education and recreational sports; supported the separation of the Department of Architecture from the College of Engineering and Technology; separated the Colleges of Arts and Sciences and the College of Public and Business Administration into new colleges: the College of Mass Communication, the College of Science, the College of Liberal Arts, the College of Accountancy and Economics, and the College of Management and Entrepreneurship; and merged the departments of social work, education, and psychology into the College of Human Development.
In 2001, Mayor Lito Atienza authorized the opening of three district colleges under the city government's university system. At about the same time, the integrated learning center for toddlers commenced through the initiative of the Center for University Extension Services. A year later, the PLM Open University increased its off-campus and distance learning programs to more qualified individuals throughout the country. It installed a general education curriculum and visiting professors agreement with its sister schools in Saudi Arabia and Thailand to allow overseas Filipinos to pursue their college education.
Campaign for Student Regency
In 2001, the Supreme Student Council, the university's student governing body, led the campaign for student representation at the PLM Board of Regents and made the PLM community cognisant of the issue. On January 15, 2002, Senator Francis Pangilinan filed Senate Bill No. 1967, or an act amending certain provisions of Republic Act No. 4196, which sought student representation on the Board of Regents.English Proficiency Program
In July 2004, Mayor Lito Atienza spearheaded the development and implementation of the English Proficiency Program in all schools being funded by the city government. A committee on the use of English was formed a week after the directive was passed, headed by PLM President Benjamin Tayabas. A few weeks later, the English as a Second Language Center was established at PLM before the program's full implementation on September 1. Initially, the city's campaign was derided by some critics and groups but later lauded and even followed by other institutions. Two years later, the American Chamber of Commerce in the Philippines and the European Chamber of Commerce in the Philippines began taking part in a massive English retooling effort among private and government schools in partnership with the Department of Education.Continuing development
PLM continued refurbishing its facilities, including the repair of the school gymnasium and the creation of a faculty lounge and a health and wellness center.In 2007, the President Ramon Magsaysay Entrepreneurial Center, and the University Activity Center were built through grants from the Philippine Congress. About two years later, two buildings, namely, Gusaling Intramuros and Bahay Maynila, were added. During the same period, PLM allocated PhP 2-3 million for the establishment of a restaurant near Baluarte de San Diego Gardens, operated by the College of Tourism, Hotel and Travel Industry Management.
Image:PLM EC.jpg|thumb|President Ramon Magsaysay Entrepreneurial Center, a venue for creative enterprise
Under the leadership of Adel Tamano, the administration increased the collection of PLM libraries and allotted PhP 5 million to purchase new books for 2008. Tamano also instituted reforms at PLM, such as implementing stricter admission and retention policies, providing tenures of office for deans of each school, upgrading the wage and non-wage benefits of employees, and enforcing zero tolerance on corruption, such as placing measures that would keep bidding and contract awarding transparent and open to scrutiny.
Towards the end of Tamano's presidency, the administration created an integrated communications network within the campus. Aside from restoring the PLM website and intensifying the university-wide Wi-Fi access, the university partnered with Smart Communications for the PLM School SIM and InfoBoard, which is a multi-module information medium and mobile gateway for the PLM community, and for the wireless engineering laboratory and operation GSM base station within the campus. It also collaborated with Microsoft for the activation of the official PLM Live@edu email address and online learning tools for its stakeholders.