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{{Short description|Filipino educator and author}}
{{More citations needed|date=May 2019}}
'''Felixberto Cangco Sta. Maria''' (22 August 1922, in Pampanga, Philippines – 30 December 2006) was a noted Filipino educator and author. He advanced the quality of higher education in the Philippines by improving the accreditation process of educational institutions. He introduced modern practices, changed the auditing method, and incorporated discipline as a part of the culture.
==Education==
He was educated at the [[University of the Philippines]] (BSE, [[cum laude]]) 1948; [[Stanford University]] ([[Master's degrees|MA]]); and [[Michigan State University]] ([[Doctoral degrees|PhD]]) 1962, Sta. Maria joined the University of the Philippines (UP) as instructor right after graduation from college. He was one of the first if not the first Filipino to obtain a doctorate in [[Communication]].
== UP Baguio ==
He became dean of the UP College of Baguio, where his own "college education" began. During his tenure, he put up a replica of the university's [[U.P. Oblation|Oblation]], a life-size statue of a naked man by [[National Artists of the Philippines|Philippine National Artist]] Guillermo Tolentino.<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.ncca.gov.ph/about-ncca/org-awards/viual-arts/guillermo_tolentino.php |title=National Artists of the Philippines |access-date=2009-08-03 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090813164830/http://www.ncca.gov.ph/about-ncca/org-awards/viual-arts/guillermo_tolentino.php |archive-date=2009-08-13 |url-status=dead }}</ref> He started [http://www.upd.edu.ph/~pcca/baguio/baguio_fest_1.html national art festivals] that later became traditions in [[Baguio]]. He was eventually reassigned to the main campus in Quezon City and was appointed dean of the College of Education in 1967.
== UP Diliman, College of Education ==
Two years after his appointment, he was transferred without due process by then UP President [[Salvador P. Lopez]] and the Board of Regents. The transfer was a measure to placate the [https://www.josephscalice.com/2020/11/lessons-of-the-1969-student-strikes-in-the-philippines/ 1969 Student Strikes] gripping UP Diliman.
=== Philippine Supreme Court - Labor Law Precedent ===
Sta. Maria sued the university officials in the Supreme Court for the illegal transfer and won. [http://www.lawphil.net/judjuris/juri1970/feb1970/gr_30773_1970.html Sta. Maria v. Lopez, G.R. No. L-30773, (February 18, 1970)] established labor case law precedents that regularly appear as questions in the Philippine Bar exams. He was reinstated. Then, he retired immediately after to join the [[Ateneo de Manila University]], a [[Jesuit]] school, as professor of English and Communication. He opted to teach freshman English courses because he felt he could help the students more that way.
== Ateneo de Manila University ==
Two years after joining Ateneo, [[Ateneo de Manila University#Late 20th century|Rev. Fr. Pacifico Ortiz, SJ]], then the president, requested him to establish the [[Ateneo de Manila University Press|Ateneo's university press]], now a leading scholarly publishing house in the country.
== Far Eastern University ==
Sta. Maria's last position before retirement was president of the [[Far Eastern University]]<ref>{{Cite web|title=Asia Finest Discussion Forum > What Are the Top 10 Universities|url=http://www.asiafinest.com/forum/lofiversion/index.php/t41606.html|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090306195027/http://www.asiafinest.com/forum/lofiversion/index.php/t41606.html|archive-date=2009-03-06|access-date=2009-08-03}}</ref> where he upgraded the standards of the private institution, and established the President's Committee on Culture (now called FEU Center for the Arts).
== Contributions to the quality of Philippine higher education ==
He was very active in education circles until his death. He was president of the [[Education in the Philippines|Philippine Accrediting Agency for Schools, Colleges, and Universities (PAASCU)]], Federation of Accrediting Agencies of the Philippines (FAAP), [[Education in the Philippines|Philippine Association of Colleges and Universities-Commission on Accreditation (PACU-COA)]] and member of The Fund for Assistance to Private Education (FAPE).
== Published works and family ==
Sta. Maria wrote ''Communication Strategies in Management (1995)'',<ref name="Communication Strategies in Management (1995)">[http://www.elib.gov.ph/details.php?uid=7a7cf28f58b4dd042465a42149ff24b5&tab=2%7C] {{dead link|date=May 2019}}</ref> ''The Philippines in Song and Ballad (1969)''<ref name ="The Philippines in Song and Ballad (1969)">{{Cite web |url=http://www.elib.gov.ph/details.php?uid=4a4e1f9c910da58568f43c641c41e93b&tab=2 |title=Philippine eLib |access-date=2009-08-03 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110716150929/http://www.elib.gov.ph/details.php?uid=4a4e1f9c910da58568f43c641c41e93b&tab=2 |archive-date=2011-07-16 |url-status=dead }}</ref> and numerous scholarly papers <ref name="Art and Intellect: Masks and Signature">{{cite web|url=http://www.philippinestudies.net/index.php/main/issue/view/486/showToc|title=Philippine Studies: Vol. 17, No. 3 (1969), Art and Intellect: Masks and Signature|pages=625–626|website=Philippinestudies.net|accessdate=30 May 2019}}</ref><ref name="Scholarly Publishing in the Philippines: A Review and Assessment">{{cite web|url=http://www.philippinestudies.net/index.php/main/issue/view/366/showToc |title=Philippine Studies: Vol. 21, No. 1 (1973), Scholarly Publishing in the Philippines: A Review and Assessment|pages=3–18|website=Philippinestudies.net|accessdate=30 May 2019}}</ref><ref name="Redirecting Higher Education to Meet the Needs of a Developing Society: The Liberal Arts and the Social Sciences">{{cite web|url=http://www.philippinestudies.net/index.php/main/issue/view/327/showToc|title=Philippine Studies: Vol. 24, No. 2 (1976), Redirecting Higher Education to Meet the Needs of a Developing Society: The Liberal Arts and the Social Sciences|pages=210–219|website=Philippinestudies.net|accessdate=30 May 2019}}</ref> and articles. He was married to Teresita Laico Pronove and had three daughters: Cynthia Sta. Maria Baron, a published author; Thelma Sta. Maria Camus, a psychiatrist; and Sonia Sta. Maria Guerrero, a dentist.
==References==
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[[Category:People from Pampanga]]
[[Category:1922 births]]
[[Category:2006 deaths]]
[[Category:University of the Philippines alumni]]
[[Category:Stanford University alumni]]
[[Category:Michigan State University alumni]]
[[Category:Academic staff of the University of the Philippines]]
[[Category:Presidents of universities and colleges in the Philippines]]
[[Category:Filipino expatriates in the United States]]
[[Category:Academic staff of Far Eastern University]]