Dr. Ruth A. Ortega-Dela Cruz, an affiliate faculty member of the Faculty of Education (FEd), University of the Philippines Open University (UPOU) is the newly designated Program Chair of the Bachelor of Education Studies (BES) undergraduate program effective 1 March 2020.
She holds a Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) in Agricultural Education Minor in Development Communication, a Master in Public Affairs (MPAf) Major in Education Management both from the University of the Philippines Los Baños (UPLB), and a Bachelor of Science in Secondary Education Major in English and Literature Minor in Mass Communication from the University of Perpetual Help Dalta System. Aside from these, she also finished a post-doctoral study at the BOKU-University of Natural Resources and Life Sciences in Vienna, Austria.
Currently, she is an Associate Professor at the Institute for Governance and Rural Development at the College of Public Affairs and Development (CPAf) of UPLB, where she teaches courses such as curriculum development and evaluation, education management, educational leadership, as well as principles and strategies of teaching, to name a few. She started with UPOU in 2019 as an affiliate professor and is presently involved in the course development for PhD in Education program.
Dr. Ortega-Dela Cruz has published notable papers on the fields of agricultural education, educational and organizational management, and student persistence and retention. She also attended and presented at both local and international conferences.
Being in the teaching profession since 2005, she has received several awards, the most recent one being the 2020 CPAf UPLB Outstanding Teacher Award (OTA).
As the new BES program chair, Dr. Ortega-Dela Cruz will be in charge of addressing student concerns particularly on academic advising and support. She will also be assisting the incumbent FEd Dean, Dr. Ricardo T. Bagarinao, in program-related matters such as the management and development of courses. Most importantly, her appointment will contribute to the BES program’s pursuit of providing quality education and lifelong learning for all.
TLQUILNAT