Marivic Bathan (2ND from Left), Children’s Paradise Montessori School President, is the first Gallup-Certified Strengths Coach from Cebu who finished the Accelerated Strengths Coaching Course (ASCC) Batch 5 in Shangri-la Edsa, Manila last March 2017. (from left to right) Angel Scott of Gallup; Marivic Bathan; Coach Pia Nazareno-Acevedo- 2015-2018 Gallup Philippines Representative who pioneered Gallup CliftonStrengths in the Philippines; Coach Lanie Teves of ASCC Batch 5; and Paul Walters of Gallup
In any field of endeavor, it is innovation that sets apart an institution or organization from the rest. At Children’s Paradise Montessori School (CPMS), innovation is also a vital component in its operations.
CPMS is the first Strengths-Based School in the Philippines. As such, the school promotes a strengths-based culture where it focuses and capitalizes on strengths and managing weaknesses in its students, and even its employees.
CPMS President Marivic Bathan, a certified Gallup Strengths Coach, the very first one from Cebu,took the Accelerated Strengths Coaching Course (ASCC)- Batch 5 in Shangri-laEdsa in Manila in March 2017. There is a continuous growth in the Strengths Movement in the Philippines that is observed since it was pioneered by Coach Pia Nazareno-Acevedo in 2015.
Philippines has only 134 Gallup-Certified International Strengths Coaches in 2018 serving around 100,000 who took the CliftonStrengths Finder Assessment here and 20.7 Million around the world. Undoubtedly, there is an increasing demand for Strengths Coaches in the country.
MORE ON GALLUP’S CLIFTON STRENGTHS
Gallup, a USA-based company, delivers analytics and advice to help leaders and organizations solve their most pressing problems. Combining more than 80 years of experience with its global reach, Gallup knows more about the attitudes and behaviors of employees, customers, students and citizens than any other organization in the world.
Gallup worked collaboratively with Dr. Donald Clifton, the Father of Strengths Psychology and creator of the CliftonStrengths Finder Assessment, and learned through research that people and organizations grow more when they focused on what they do best rather than trying to fix their weaknesses.
“Compared with those who do not get to focus on what they do best, people who have the opportunity to use their strengths are six times as likely to be engaged in their jobs and more than three times as likely to report having an excellent quality of life” Rath, T. (2007). StrengthsFinder 2.0. New York: Gallup Press.
“A study of 1,874 individual employees, most of them in sales functions, found that productivity improved by 7.8% after a strengths intervention. And in another study of 469 business units in organizations ranging from retail stores to large manufacturing facilities, units with managers who received strengths feedback showed 8.9% greater profitability.”Asplund, J., & Blacksmith, N. “Strengthening Your Company’s Performance.” Gallup Business Journal.
CPMS is pioneering the Strengths-based culture among the schools in the Philippines. Ms. Bathan took the ASCC in 2015, the school’s 10th year anniversary, as an intervention for the organization. Indeed, it gave her the inspiration to set the school’s direction for the next decades to be more relevant to society and the world and consequently be recognized internationally for its innovations in education. And it can only do so through its people. Hence, recognizing talents and developing them into strengths and capitalizing them can empower and propel everyone in CPMS to work collaboratively in fulfilling its vision and mission.
As a trailblazer, CPMS will be holding two summer workshops to reach to the greater Metro Cebu community – the Youth Empowerment and Strengths Camp or YES Camp, and the Integrated Boot Camp (IBC).
According to CPMS President Marivic Bathan, these innovative activities are aimed at developing and honing the talents of children and the youth to develop them into strengths.
Youth Empowerment and Strengths Camp or YES Camp
The first ever YES Camp is set to be held at the RAFI-Kool Adventure Camp (KAC) in Balamban, Cebu this coming May 30 to June 1. It will be open to youth aged 4 to 16 years old.
“CPMS is launching this annual program this year as it sees it relevant in empowering and engaging the youth to contribute to the greater good of humanity,” Bathan said.
“This YES Camp will focus on the strengths of the youth, individually and collectively. At the end of the camp, the participants would have a concrete and firm grasp of their talents, will be coached on how they can develop and hone their talents to strengths, and will be provided a support group starting from their parents, family, and the YES Camp family,” she added.
The YES Camp will be facilitated by Coach May Soriano, an internationally awarded Life, Executive, and Gallup Strengths Coach; Fr. Loreto Jaque, who is finishing a masters degree in Biodanza in Peru and has been trained in Play Expressive Arts Therapy in France and Switzerland; and facilitators from the RAFI-KAC.
CPMS’ very own Marivic Bathan, a Gallup-Certified Strengths Coach, will also be one of the facilitators of the YES Camp.
Limited slots are available for the YES Camp. Register now and avail of an early bird discount. Registrations can be done through calling CPMS at 0920-9522-509 or 422-3446.
Integrated Boot Camp
On the other hand, the Integrated Boot Camp (IBC) is scheduled on May 20 o July 6 and will delve on theater arts and creative ecology.
Participants of the IBC will be children from 4 years old to 16 years old with the objective of holistic development through opportunities of exposure in different learning areas and disciplines like the arts, humanities, sciences, and technology.
A competent pool of professional creative artists will serve as trainers and facilitators of participants of the IBC.
Leading the group is Rudy Aviles who will act as the creative director, and EmmanMante as his assistant creative director. Mante is the founder and director of independent theatre group Young Thespians of Cebu.
Professional songwriter, record producer, and musical director Jude Gitamondoc, who is a two-time recipient of the Awit Awards, will be the composer and arranger.
Other trainers are Nino Banares for percussion and rhythmic instruments; well-rounded Alfie Mosqueda as choreographer; CrisantoEtorma as visual artist, photographer and videographer known for his unconventional and fresh style; and the internationally-trained and experiencedRosebelleDaculanas camp facilitator.
“What makes this year’s Boot Camp exciting is that it will culminate into an original full-theater production to showcase the creativity of the participants on July 6, 2019 at the USP Theater for Performing Arts. Internationally awarded Maestro Dennis Gregory Sugarol will also be the musical director of the play,” Bathan said.
“With a very relevant theme on Ecology, Theater Arts will be the effective means to inspire, educate and empower the participants and its audience to take heed of the challenge to live back to the basics to save Mother Earth,” she added.
At the end of the boot camp, the management of CPMS sees the participants developing their self-confidence, literacy, communication, imagination, empathy, critical thinking and problem solving, self-discipline, community awareness, public speaking, curricular integration, and teamwork.