GLENVILLE, WV — Eight Glenville State University students, along with two faculty members, Dr. Rico Gazal, Professor of Forestry, and Mr. Jacob Petry, Assistant Professor of Land Surveying, attended and gave presentations at two universities in the Philippines.

Students presented about Invasive Species in West Virginia at Southern Luzon State University and the University of the Philippines Los Baños College of Forestry and Natural Resources (UPLB CFNR). The presentation at UPLB was part of a joint seminar between the Department of Land Resources, GSU, and the Department of Forest Biological Sciences, UPLB CFNR, with Dr. Gazal and Dr. Alona Linatoc.

Both events allowed Glenville State students to promote GSU and West Virginia to students and faculty, igniting interest among potential international exchange students with opportunities at GSU.

Mr. Petry delivered a seminar on Legal Aspects: Metes and Bounds versus Public Land Survey System in the United States. The Department of Land Resources also donated a total station to UPLB CFNR, with Mr. Petry and GSU students assisting in the demonstration for Dr. Jun Tiburan’s Forest Surveying class.

“The trip to the Philippines this year was a great success,” Petry said. “Each time I meet our friends at UPLB, I leave with a better understanding of what it means to be an educator. It’s important to strengthen current relationships and foster new ones with institutions such as UPLB and UP Diliman. In the future, Dr. Gazal and I plan to have an MOU/MOA with a school that teaches land surveying and geomatics.”

This year’s trip was also highlighted by the group attending the “Pahiyas” Festival in Lucban, Quezon, hosted by Dr. Ellaga of SLSU. The Pahiyas Festival is a harvest festival in the Philippines that celebrates San Isidro Labrador, the patron saint of farmers, laborers, and peasants.