BBFI and Diwa Learning Systems receive 2007 Gold Quill Excellence Award

Bato Balani Foundation Inc (BBFI) and Diwa Learning Systems Inc (DLSI) once again received an Excellence Award for A Tribute to Teachers in the 2007 Philippine Gold Quill awards by the International Association of Business Communicators (IABC) held last 14 November 2007 at the Mandarin Oriental Hotel in Makati City. The Gold Quill awards are given by the IABC to recognize outstanding public relations and corporate communications efforts in the country.

Started in 2004, A Tribute to Teachers is the largest and most anticipated annual gathering of teachers and school administrators in the country. Its last gathering on 01 September 2007 in Araneta Coliseum brought together approximately 16,000 educators from all over the country. 

Diwa and BBFI have won several public relations and corporate communications awards in the past. In 2006, IABC gave a Merit Award to The Many Faces of the Teacher and an Excellence Award to A Tribute to Teachers while the Public Relations Society of the Philippines (PRSP) in the 42^nd Anvil Awards gave an Excellence Award to A Tribute to Teachers and a Merit Award to The Many Faces of the Teacher. In 2005, A Tribute to Teachers won the Anvil Award of Merit and, with The Many Faces of the Teacher, the Gold Quill Award of Merit.  DLSI and BBFI also won an Anvil Citation for Best Special Publication (1996) for World Youth Day ‘95: The Manila Phenomenon; an Anvil Award of Merit (1996) for the program How to be a Highly Effective Teacher; an  Anvil Award of Excellence (1997) for its newsletter Directline; an Anvil Award of Merit (1997) for the program Tulong sa Paaralan, Tulay sa Kaunlaran; an Anvil Award of Excellence (1998) for trade and professional publication for the magazine Quality Teacher; and an Anvil Award of Merit (2003) for Sulong sa Edukasyon. 

Diwa and BBFI are partners in developing teacher training and research on Philippine education issues.

Training for QC Librarians

The Bato Balani Foundation Inc. in partnership with Toddlers Unlimited and the Quezon City Government organized a storytelling training program for the City’s librarians. Sixty librarians will be trained in the basics of storytelling including the use of various methods in effective storytelling for kids. The libraries of Quezon City are regularly visited by the children in communities and schools in the area. By engaging in a storytelling program the children are encouraged to visit the libraries more often, thereby inculcating a love for books and reading. The Bato Balani Foundation regularly donates books and educational magazines to the Quezon City libraries.

The effort was spearheaded by the Bato Balani Foundation and the Quezon City Government through Rose Ann Belmonte and Josefina Belmonte Alimurung. Gabby Roa-Limjoco, an expert in Early Childhood Education from Toddlers Unlimited, conducted the training.

The first batch of the program was held on 6 November 2007, with a second batch to be conducted on 23 November 2007. The participants of the first batch also participated in a workshop wherein they presented their own versions of the various methods of storytelling.

For more information on the program you may email bbfi@diwamail.com.