UNC’s Captain and Commander-in-Chief
Dr. Fay Lea Patria M. Lauraya is a masterful educator, academic achiever, seasoned researcher, brilliant communicator, exceptional leader, the two-term President of Bicol University, and the fourth President of the University of Nueva Caceres. She relishes the singular honor to have led two premier institutions: in the past, the first state university, and at present the first private University in Bicol.
President Fay was born on April 13, 1958 in Daraga Albay. She finished Magna Cum Laude in Bachelor of Science in Economics at the Aquinas University in 1980. She earned her Master’s Degree in Management in 1989 and Ph.D. in Development Management in 1998 in Bicol University. She was an American Field Scholar in Gendive, Montana, USA.
Dr. Lauraya is rightfully esteemed as a towering figure in institutional educational management. Recently, she was elected Vice President of the Bicol Foundation for Higher Education (BFHE), the regional association of all Higher Education Institutions, both public and private Colleges and Universities in Bicol. She was President of BFHE from 2008 to 2015 until the end of her term as BU President. Earlier, she served as the Lead Person for the Institutional Development and Innovation Grants CHED K-12 Transition Program Management Unit (2016–2018).
A Lady Leader and Difference-Maker
As the 7th President of Bicol University (2007- 2015), Dr. Lauraya steered the University towards unprecedented excellence and maintaining the highest level of performance for SUCs. She blazed the trail in establishing the BU College of Medicine, the Institute of Architecture, and pioneered programs such as the BS in Meteorology, BS Mining Engineering, BS in Geodetic Engineering, and BS Industrial Design. According to Dr. Lauraya, a President’s task is a highly demanding job that requires you to be physically and mentally at the prime of your life. President Lauraya became the youngest President of BU as she rose from the ranks as Instructor, Program Head, Dean, and Vice-President before she was elected to the Presidency.
With massive leadership achievements, Dr. Lauraya functioned in the following significant capacities: President, Bicol Foundation for Higher Education (BFHE); Chairperson, Bicol Consortium for Agriculture Resources, Research and Development (BCARRD); Regional Coordinator, Philippine Association of Tertiary Level Educational Institutions in Environmental Protection and Management (PATLEPAM); and Chairperson, Regional Research Development Coordinating Council.
Propelling UNC as a Top University of Choice
Taking the Chief Executive Post of UNC in 2018, Dr. Fay Lea Patria M. Lauraya took cognizance of the significance of UNC among the family of academic institutions of Bicol. As the first University in the region, President Lauraya is committed to propelling UNC as a top University of Choice, a reputation it rightly deserves. She has spearheaded the crafting of the road map to transform UNC into a University of the Future, aspiring to be an autonomous University.
Seeing the need to invigorate UNC’s new direction, Dr. Lauraya has mobilized a participatory process to craft and launch UNC’s new vision in 2021: “To be the top University of Choice for Bicolanos everywhere. We will nurture our students through empowering outcome-based education to help them become purposeful, productive, and future-ready human beings who will contribute to the sustainable development of Bicol and better tomorrows for all.”
