The IPCAP National Convention: A Review

I know there have been those among you who have been checking this site for a review about the 1st IPCAP National Convention last Nov. 21-22, 2008 at the University of the East. It was only last Friday and Saturday, and we ended at 5PM, then the Board met and evaluated while having supper at Blue Bay near the Manila Ocean Garden. Pabuya man lang sa mga pagod na IPCAP Board and our very able-minded members who actively assisted the Convention.

First, I feel very thankful to God because we were nearly bumped off the Convention site. We had made reservations for UE since the beginning of October 2008 when the IPCAP Board of Trustees decided to hold the Convention. On Oct. 14, I was texted that the reservations had been finalized. But another organization wanted to have their event in the same place at the same time. There were raised concerns about some impropriety, and thanks God, the University of the East, being an ethical institution kept its word. And thanks indeed to our Guidance and Counseling Office there. Nila really deserves our deepest gratitude.

And yes, we got the projected number of participants who were RGCs already amidst the email brigade sent to many Counselors. The email was supposed to discourage participation in the Convention and IPCAP for that matter, but I believe that not all of us are gullible and would like to ensure that there is a legitimate process in organizing ourselves. We are not simply heirs of the past, and blind followers of the mob. We can also determine our present, particularly when our needs cry out so loudly. I have yet to read a PRC document which states that an organization is not to use the word "integrated" because I believe the PRC may not have such curtailing powers of the freedoms of peoples, least the RGCs. IPCAP really has nothing to defend itself for. We have gone through the rigors of registration. We sought PRC indorsement for the SEC to register us, got ourselves SEC-registered, and there has not been any order from anyone revoking our status. So there is no truth to the rumor that IPCAP is illegal. Whoever is spreading that word is liable before the law. In fact, to forestall those rumors, we have included the SEC registration number in our invitations and brochure.

In all humility, the first day started late, about an hour because of onsite registration problems, plus other matters like adjusting the site for our meals. But by 0900AM the program began. I was still at the Secretariat ensuring things were to move smoothly when I saw the body of participants doing the taichi under the guide of an American lady in the projection screen. Wasn't that fun seeing everyone doing the same motions! Then, we were wowed by 20 members of the the 35-big internationally-acclaimed UE Chorale that sang the National Anthem and a spiritual song that uplifted the participants and made it an Invocation experience in itself. (Pa-style ba?) They actually came back during the break time to serenade us with Christmas carols and other songs. It was indeed a UE Treat we got during the opening of the Convention. What a way for the Registered Guidance Counselors! You missed that definitely.

Anyway, we did not have the former Congressman to Keynote us. Instead, we had the Former PRC Chair herself, UE Chancellor Antonieta Fortuna-Ibe who gave us the Keynote Address. It must have been Providential for IPCAP because I heard in the introduction by Dr. Llanes that Chancellor Antonieta resigned from PRC when her own daughter was to take the medical board exams, the delicadeza we have so often heard our government officials being demanded of. She thus becomes for me now a face of the delicadeza we Filipinos have. Yes, may delicadeza po ang Filipino, and Chancellor Antonieta has it. I bet she's not yet in her 50's? Wala po kasi sa hitsura. She can pass for late 40s. After her Keynote, we were like ordinary Filipinos who encircled her after the IPCAP Board of Trustees had a picture taken with her. Picture picture. (I will load that here when I get the pics.)

The UE Marketing Department went all the way to support the IPCAP 1st National Convention. It had a press release a day or two before the event, and had sponsored a game for the participants. The PhilPsyCor also did its gimick. All during the break. I actually had a difficulty stopping them so the 1st Plenary could start.

Plenary 1: IMPLICATIONS OF THE LAW FROM VARIED PERSPECTIVES

We had speakers from the hospital setting, private school, private practice, assessment provider and public school sectors.

A. From the Hospital setting:
Dr. Bernadette Padilla gave a very thorough description of the many traumatic sequelae of victims of abuse which we Registered Guidance Counselors really need to be sensitive to as we handle clients in every field we're in. The cases they have handled in the hospital gave them the gut feel that "no one is safe" nowadays from abusive behaviors of adults around us. Hence with the Registered Guidance Counselors' unconditional positive regard and acceptance for the client, we may be the first to know these "secrets" under long sleeves worn on hot days everyday, or the behavioral changes indicating emotional effects of verbal, physical and emotional abuse. One of the highlights of Dr. Padilla's presentation was a video clip of children cat walking in the ramp, carrying with them placards of the pain they carry: words often said to them as if these were a fashion nowadays that pull their self-esteem down, keep them from developing normally and in a healthy manner, i.e., BOBO TANGA G-G_ and the material means used to deflate their development. Hence, accurate diagnosis is a must for all of us if we were to be of help to our abused victims. This the law expects from us professional and licensed Guidance Counselors.

B. From the Private School Guidance and Counseling Practice
Prof. Leonila Urrea gave her impressions about the implication of the law in her practice, seeing it as now a regulatory matter that will challenge all of us in the conduct of our profession. In her own presentation, she said "without the law, every one could be a charlatan." Hence opportunities for respect and self-worth for the Counselor are opened. Thus there is a challenge to ensure that the quality of our Counseling in the schools will not decline. With the law, an orderly and systematic screening of Counselors will be easy to implement. In short, if one has no PRC license, one may not apply anymore as Guidance Counselor. Besides, there is the challenge to constantly update oneself if one has to maintain one's status as a licensed Guidance Counselor. Hence, the law has given her and other Counselors some sense of "next level confidence" given the fact that professional regulation implies ensured professional quality. In fact, the law has sent many Guidance Counselors shifting from the educational to the industrial setting, and even other jobs that give higher pay. Prof. Urrea took and passed the 1st board exams but she opines that it seemed not to be a measurement or gauge whether or not she will be a good counselor. She mentioned that "a review of the Law must be done so that we don't lose more and more Counselors who are truly experienced." She made her own survey of Counselor's perception of how the law will affect the Guidance Counselor. One of these said that "the society's impression of us would definitely change for the better." "With the Law, information dissemination about the Guidance and Counseling field will be discussed more comprehensively inside the classroom. As a result, students will have the opportunity to direct themselves if they would really like to pursue the Counseling career." Hmm, sounds promising.

C. From an Assessment Services Provider Perspective
The PhilPsyCor Technical Director and Company Psychologist Ms. Cristabel Garcia-Chao, M.A. gave us an introduction to the company that has been serving as early as 1948 in PWU as Institute of Human Relations (IHR) before it branched out into providing testing services to other schools, companies and government institutions, thus giving it legitimacy to establish itself as an independent business institution in 1961. She mentioned that PhilPsyCor is at the forefront of confronting the unethical practices in assessment, misrepresentation of qualifications, as well rampant violation of copyright laws which is now a criminal offense. The Law definitely has an implication to PhilPsyCor as an assessment services provider as stated in Article I Section 3 Definition of Terms such that Guidance and Counseling "...includes functions such as counseling, psychological testing, (i.e., personality, career, interest, aptitude, mental ability, achievement),..." utilized in "the use of an integrated approach to the development of a well-functioning individual..."

First, the law regulating the Guidance and Counseling profession has gained for us "the respect of international community of test publishers and users" as reported by PhilPsyCor in an international journal: "the field of counseling in the country (Philippines? mine) is already professionalized & this milestone will upgrade the local practice of testing for career counseling." ("Career Coaching in Asia & the Middle east" by Shoya Zichy, APTI, Bulletin of Psychological Type, Vol. 31, #3.

Secondly, regulating the profession gives PhilPsyCor (and I bet other providers as well) an easier accreditation process since there may be no more need to cross-check the credentials via background investigation of the license presented.

Thirdly, the PRC and membership in IPCAP will be an assurance of proper credentials. I bet this is really promising to the guidance counselors doing psychological assessment in schools, community and even private practice as well as a strong challenge for IPCAP to properly accredit its registered members.

For PhilPsyCor, the law's implication to their accreditation system is in providing them easier evaluation. PhilPsyCor would only need to evaluate on the specific tests Registered Guidance Counselors wish and are qualified to purchase since applicants with the license will have satisfied their background. PhilPsyCor can be of help to them in making the most out of the instruments by providing them with specialized training and references if needed. For feedback as well as contact, PhilPsyCor's telephone number is +63(2)636-6327 to 29.

D. From a Private Practitioner Perspective
Dr. Julian Montano, our IPCAP Vice President and Convention Chair shared on Accountability as an immediate implication of the Law to private practice. He phrased "Accountability" this way: it is a means of assessing the impact of our services on our client's improvement...If before the Law focus was on techniques, interventions, theories, approaches (all inputs), the Law challenges us to focus on insight, learning, understanding, solutions (all outcomes)...the "show me" attitude...used to answer the questions that concern what difference Counselors or our services and programs have made to children, adults, students, families, teachers, employees, and community. He also dealt with the possibility that maybe our people are not that willing to pay for counseling services simply because we have not yet shown the validity of our claims in our practice. Sir, we can test your hypothesis for the next years. I bet your ideas will be at the forefront of development of Counseling in the Philippines.

E. The public school sector representative showed the challenge of the law towards ensuring that counseling is really practiced amidst the fact that even principals may be charged with the task of counseling. The public school sector is one area we can still better address in the next convention in Dumaguete and Zamboanga.

Plenary 2 and 3: Legal Aid for RGCs and IPCAP Organizational Process

In the afternoon, we had Dr. Atty. Joyce Cruz who talked about Legal Aid for RGCs. She focused her talk on ensuring that the Registered Guidance Counselors know what they are obliged before the courts of law and how to deal with confidentiality, privileged communications, informed consent and the privacy clients expect from their Counseling sessions with us their Counselors.

Then came our IPCAP Organizational process. Dr. Rose Llanes gave us her Presidential Address, expounding her address published here a few days ago. Then the Treasurer Cesar Cong gave us the financial standing of the organization. We are really thankful for the fund assistance the PGCA Board under then Dr. Llanes extended to IPCAP last year so that IPCAP would be registered with the SEC. The present fees have not been included in the report yet since it was just the first day and the Treasurer needed time to sum the collected fees yet. We are secure though that with auditing to be done, and the decisions the Board of Trustees have made, there should be no room for dis-integrity in this area.

Then I gave a history of IPCAP, the acts and decisions we have made, the two-year process IPCAP went through together with eight Guidance and Counseling-related organizations, namely the PGCA, PACERS, PACC, PAPSHP, CDAP, GCC, FCAP and the RGS Community that led to our SEC-registration. IPCAP since March 2006 was already clear in its direction stirred by the Law's Article III Section 21 provision. While we have not made any claim about being APO, and have in fact not yet submitted our petition to be APO of the Guidance Counseling profession, IPCAP remains ready to do that role for the profession. It is an organization formed after the law and according to the intent of the law. Hence, we are clear about our organizational direction which is always for the good of the profession. We advocate transparency and integrity, something which other organizations may need to constantly strive for, including ourselves. Since I gave a rundown of the revitalized IPCAP Constitution (the present IPCAP Board of Trustees deliberated and made additions to the Constitution formulated last year and signed by the IPCAP Incorporators) the facilitators of the IPCAP Constitutional process (Drs. Polestico and Montano) decided to give all members the chance to read it on their own and be ready the next day for a ratification process. We went home early the first day.

Oh yes, did I forget to say that one of this blog's followers, Ms. Kit Molina serenaded us with two songs from her album which were distributed during the Convention. Finally, I heard the voice of the face that follows this blog. Thanks indeed Kit. God bless.

Early Saturday morning, I received an email from one of the IPCAP members stating her views about the Constitution and asked that she be included in the ratification process which we did in the afternoon of Saturday (more on this later).

Plenary 4: Legal and Professional Accountabilities

Fr. Ranhillo C. Aquino gave a highly interesting talk that merited the open dialogue process of trying to understand the nuances of our profession. Worthy of note was the possibility for Guidance Counselors to be called to the court for expert witness. In his words, Fr. Aquino said that we Registered Guidance Counselors may now be called by the courts to testify and provide expert witness about the personality of the defendant or plaintiff, whomsoever we may be called to testify on. The tips he gave were so encouraging. Dr. Luz Guzman, our first member of the Board of Guidance and Counseling (I said "a historical figure and still alive in our midst) was present for his talk, and in her presence, I extended the invitation for Fr. Aquino to come with us to Dumaguete and Zamboanga next year. I also noted that since this matter seems to be very essential for Registered Guidance Counselors, we at IPCAP intend to offer this as a CPE course. It would be just fitting for IPCAP to do that since we have always made the law our bedrock in the process of organizing ourselves.

Oh yes, we posed for some picture taking with him before he had to leave for his next commitment. Thanks a lot, a million in fact Fr. Rannie.

The DSWD and DOJ representatives who came were celebrated figures due to the fact that they have handled celebrity cases of abuse. They gave a very informative presentation of the Laws of the land regarding the defense and protection of children and other victims of violence and traumatic events, as well as the protocols needed in reporting cases of abuse.

After lunch, we inserted the IPCAP Constitutional process. It was a very lively, frank but prudent discussion about the major issues in the profession, including the controversies haunting the field. I myself just summarized my position in this manner: "If your answer to these questions - is borrowing money from the organization and not paying back now acceptable?; is it now acceptable for Treasurers to not submit a financial report to the members and officers of the organization? Is it now a fad to simply let Board members withdraw money even when its authority has lapsed? Is it now the trend to buy for the organization a property and not liquidate it immediately? - is YES, sorry I AM NOT WITH YOU.

There were comments about certain people who were actually known to have not qualified and yet were given the license. Our position at IPCAP is: if you can gather the evidences, we will help in the process of correcting what errors may have been committed. This is our way of ensuring that we don't just hurl accusations left and right without regard for due process. I was busy ensuring that the questions about the Constitution were the focus. One of the questions was on the term of office for the Officers. We were of the opinion that we are not supposed to frame a Constitution in the likes of EDSA in 1987 when a lot of emotions were in it that we end up virtually having difficulty implementing it. Hence the Constitution we wrote and presented for ratification is one that is forward looking and intends to allow for a process of correction in the conduct of our Officers if ever proven to not have done their obligations. Then we sent two pages of bond paper where members wrote their names, PRC license number and affixed their signatures, without coercion but with full knowledge of their choice to ratify or not. I will write more on the results of this process in the next blog. But let it be stated here that we now have a ratified IPCAP Constitution which is waiting for full implementation after our last event in Zamboanga.

The Psychological Resources Center gave us for a break an introduction of their services. Together with PhilPsyCor and Rex Bookstore, we were really well supported. IPCAP is indeed deeply greatful for their generous support for this Convention. They will be with us in the forthcoming events in 2009.

The scheduled workshop became a plenary facilitated by Dr. Elvi Ramos. She talked about Career Realities and Prospects. After her talk we had our Oath-Taking as IPCAP members, followed by the release of the IPCAP Certificate of Membership, one which cannot be duplicated because we have devised a measure of authenticity. We had ready the Certificates of Participation, Attendance for all to get. This seems to be the most coveted moment as each searched for their certificate or for those who did not submit their names for the Attendance certificates, chasing me to sign.

Our handouts were given after the talks, and if there were those which were not printed, they will be emailed to the IPCAP participants.

The Board of Trustees had a simple supper at the Blue Bay restaurant near the Quirino Grandstand, and we enjoyed each other's sacrifice and service, something which we will treasure for the years to come, knowing that IPCAP now has a life of its own, and we are sworn to protect and promote it by our dedicated service as RGCs.

Upcoming Events

Now we are ready for the next event. See you in Dumaguete on January 23-24, 2009. Do reserve that date ahead of time. We are coordinating with our IPCAP members there so that those of us from anywhere in the Philippines, particularly those from the Visayas can be housed in decent and affordable lodging areas. We know there's an economic crunch looming, hence we made sure that IPCAP will not make attendance a heavy burden but something affordable and worth spending because indeed the Convention is growth-inducing for us professional Guidance Counselors.

As regards the Zamboanga schedule, while we intend to proceed with it, we are contemplating some changes due to some conflict schedule. We will keep everyone abreast nonetheless about developments on this matter.

God bless and take care.