My last article for The LaSallian was published on August 22, 2017, and I graduated from De La Salle University a year later in June 2018. I’ve stepped back on campus intermittently since then – to claim some documents, or perhaps to visit a friend – and I was surprised at how different the University looked in some respects.
The Tori Box on the second floor of One Archer’s Place where we had so many lunch breaks was no longer there. Professors and admin staff who had been mainstays during my college life were retired. Maybe most interestingly, they had erected cellphone stands, similar to tripods, on the Henry Sy grounds so students could film themselves doing Tiktok dances.
Of course, things had changed. And as the University changes, so too do the institutions that steward it, and The LaSallian is no different. After all, how else is the organization supposed to stay true to its mantra of being ‘The Bastion of Issue-Oriented Critical Thinking’ if not to adapt to these shifting sands?
When the COVID-19 pandemic enveloped the globe, bringing the world to a standstill, the publication took advantage of its steady online presence, grown so diligently by my predecessors. This allowed the team to cover the latest updates as they transpired, from the administration’s measures to the students’ response, and to give the community updates at a time when it was most scared and isolated.
As social media continues to transform, the organization has striven to transform with it. In an increasingly digital age, where reels and shorts dominate the media we consume, the organization has launched a new section that utilizes short-form video to deliver content to the student body. By doing so, the publication attempts to transcend the boundaries of print media and establish itself as both a traditional and modern news and media outlet.
All these are examples of how The LaSallian has tried to evolve with the times, and it does so because the people behind it work tirelessly to keep the gears turning. I do not know the current organization members personally, but I imagine that they are similar to the students in my time – writers, photographers, and artists with passion and grit.
The students I worked with in my four years in the organization were diverse, to say the least – economics majors and liberal arts majors, board game geeks and basketball aficionados, hip-hop dancers and bakers – but all of them student journalists, devoting time to this mandate for nothing else than a desire to learn, to grow, and to serve the greater student body.
Reflecting on my last stroll through the grounds of De La Salle University, I realize that as much as the halls and the students who reside within them seem to have changed, so many
key parts remain the same. The Tori Box may have moved, but my favorite stall in Agno and its rosemary chicken was still there (albeit pricier than before). Some professors and staff had left, but the offices and departments they represented stood firm. And the students nowadays may flock to the Henry Sy grounds to record Tiktok dances, but – much like the previous batches – they will also gather to protest, demonstrate, and let their voices be heard against the corruption and injustice that plague our country to this day.
And much as the University’s core spirit has remained unchanged through the years, I have no doubt that the same will be true for The LaSallian. It will continue to be an avenue for learning and friendship for its members, who may falter along the way, but who will continue to grow and strive to improve. It will keep pushing the envelope, looking for new ways to innovate and cover the ever-evolving story of the Lasallian community.
Maybe most importantly, it will remain to be a voice by the students and for the students, a voice that is unafraid to challenge norms and to spark ideas – a bastion of issue-oriented critical thinking.
Happy anniversary, TLS. To greater heights!
EDITOR’S NOTE:
This is an unedited submission from a former executive editor of The LaSallian, discussing the changes he has observed since his stay in DLSU, while stressing that the spirit of both the University and The LaSallian remains the same.
Wilhelm Tan served as the Editor-in-Chief of The LaSallian in AY 2016-2017, Menagerie Editor in AY 2015-2016, and Training & Development Manager in AY 2014-2015.
He graduated from De La Salle University with a double degree in Applied Economics and Accountancy.
He is currently a Corporate Finance Manager for FTI Consulting Philippines, and spends his days writing reports, manipulating Excel spreadsheets, and, in his spare time, finding the perfect build for his Elden Ring character.
