Post-Event

13,000 freshmen parade through historic arch

More than 13,000 freshmen passed through the University of Santo Tomas
(UST) Arch of the Centuries in the traditional Thomasian Welcome Walk last
July 11, joining the ranks of prominent Thomasian alumni Jose Rizal and
Manuel L. Quezon.

UST Secretary General Fr. Winston Cabading, O.P. personally welcomed the
13,575 new members of the Thomasian family by escorting them through the
historic entryway.

The annual welcome parade allows freshmen to have a sense of connection
with the Thomasian community and the thousand of alumni who also passed
through the arch.

Originally located at the UST campus when it was still in Intramuros, the Arch
of the Centuries was transferred piece-by-piece and reconstructed in the
present campus. Its original structure faces the Main Building, while its replica
faces Espaa Boulevard.

The Arch of the Centuries was declared by the National Museum in 2010 as
one of the four National Cultural Treasures located in UST.

This years welcome rites were conducted in two separate groupsat 9 a.m.
and at 3 p.m.thus, the two parade sessions and Eucharistic celebrations.

In his homily, UST Rector Rev. Fr. Herminio V. Dagohoy, O.P. said that UST
does not only form the mind but also the heart.

For you to become competent individuals, you should not only be armed
with theoretical and practical knowledge but also with the experience of the
living God," the Rector said. Jesus should be part of your experience here in
the University.

The Rector encouraged Thomasians to be of service to others by saying that
compassion is love in action, not merely an idea.

In their stay in UST, the Rector said that freshmen must commit to excellence.

But commitment is a promise for a committed person is a persevering
person. Perseverance is a grace from God and we must realize that sheer
human effort is not enough, he said.

The Masses of the Holy Spirit at the Quadricentennial Pavilion, led by the
Rector, was concelebrated with faculty and college regents and the UST
Fathers.

Love offerings during the Mass will be given to the victims of the typhoon in
the Visayan region through the UST Simbahayan Tulong Tomasino project.

The number of freshmen is as follows: Accountancy (1,073), Architecture (537),
Arts and Letters (1,376), Civil Law (309), Commerce and Business
Administration (1,093), Ecclesiastical Faculties (170), Education (515),
Engineering (2,210), Fine Arts and Design (738), Graduate School (1,425),
Medicine and Surgery (537), Music (176), Nursing (494), Pharmacy (949),
Physical Education and Athletics (189), Rehabilitation Sciences (312), Science
(908), Tourism and Hospitality Management (538), #AV