The University of St. La Salle and BagoSphere inked a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) to explore areas of potential collaboration and promote cooperation in a wide variety of possible educational activities, including but not limited to joint programs, projects and activities; including research and other forms of sustainable agreements to benefit the formation of the young, especially the poor.
The partnership between La Salle and Bagosphere shall focus mostly on the design and co-creation of an international program for English language learning and training for language trainers. This is in support of La Salle’s programs for continuing education and lifelong learning in the 21st Century.
BagoSphere is a social enterprise based in Bacolod city that gets rural and urban talents into jobs through micro-funded education in digital and soft skills. It offers an affordable and intensive job preparation bootcamp teaching high school graduates and college dropouts relevant communication and IT skills in an authentic work setting, and gets them hired fast. Since BagoSphere started operations in 2003, 80% of its graduates have been hired by BPOs despite 75% of them being only high school graduates and 40% of them having no work experience.
The La Salle-BagoSphere partnership was formalized on September 20, 2016 at the Santuario de La Salle when La Salle and BagoSphere co-organized the first-of-a-series forum, La Salle Exchange, an event conceived by USLS to bring thought leaders in different fields to share their insights on different topics and issues.
Dr. Peter Wuffli, the keynote speaker, is former CEO of the Union Bank of Switzerland (UBS), Chairman of elea Foundation for Ethics in Globalization, Chairman of the Foundation for International Management Development (IMD) Global Business School in Switzerland, and author of the book, Inclusive Leadership. Elea is one of BagoSphere’s major investors.
“As an active philanthropic investor, elea Foundation strongly supports BagoSphere’s initiatives in pursuing effective solutions to enhance the potential of underprivileged youth in the Philippines, helping them find employment as a first step towards a self-determined future. BagoSphere’s innovative model, driven by outstanding young social entrepreneurs, lies at the heart of elea Foundation’s purpose of creating lasting impact through entrepreneurship,” said Wuffli.
Dr. Wuffli’s talk was attended by the leadership team of the University of St. La Salle headed by Br. Manuel “Mawel” Pajarillo FSC, public officials led by Hon. Alain Gatuslao, Sangguniang Panlalawigan Board member of the 5th district of the province of Negros Occidental and currently the SP Committee Chairman on Laws and Cooperatives, business leaders represented by Frank Carbon, President of Metro Bacolod Chamber of Commerce and Industry and member of NEDA (National Economic and Development Authority) Regional Development Council, civic leaders, and students.
“The issue of youth unemployment extends beyond young people and their families, it impacts business, government and society at large. Therefore, employers, education providers and youth cannot live in parallel universes. We hope that this partnership with USLS will give rise to more collective action from both education providers and employers. ” said Zhihan Lee, Group CEO of BagoSphere.
“The Partnership of La Salle and BagoSphere will jumpstart the establishment of a venue or mechanism where stakeholders: national government agencies, LGUs, the academe, and the business sector can come together and have constructive and productive discussions to promote the general welfare of the Community,” Carbon remarked.//