The Continuously Growing Seed

When a seed is planted in a good soil with ample watering for sustenance, it will surely grow and produce fruits. But growth will not stop with the production of fruits. The seed, now a plant will continue to grow proximally and laterally and produce more fruits until it produces seeds from its fruits and propagate more. The growth of the plant is continuous. This is the growth of Zamboanga A.E. Colleges, now Universidad de Zamboanga (UZ).

Sixty-one years ago, a young man from Marikina came to Zamboanga City and dreamed of a school that provides affordable education for the underprivileged. He wanted a school that would exemplify the ideals and aspirations of the youth, live up to the expectations of the people of a school for everybody, regardless of social standing, religion and political affiliations, and the one that imparts a higher level of understanding to its students, inculcate ideals which will enable them to be successful in their professional and personal endeavour later on in life. Because of this dream, Engineer Arturo Francisco Eustaquio Sr. founded Zamboanga Arturo Eustaquio Colleges (ZAEC) on October 12, 1948.

Engineer Eustaquio Sr., more known as “The Founder”, wanted his school to cater the educational need of everyone. That is why from The Founder to the present Chief Executive Officer (CEO), he passed the legacy “education for all”. And along with this legacy, Zamboanga A.E. Colleges started in the strategy of “study-now-pay-later” which made Zamboanga A.E. Colleges known as the school for everyone.

For the past sixty-one years, Zamboanga A.E. Colleges now Universidad de Zamboanga was able to produced thousands of graduates who now have their own livelihoods and works, outstanding positions in big companies, and high-paid jobs here and in abroad. Known political figures who are alumni of Zamboanga A.E. Colleges are Mayor Celso Lobregat and the late former Mayor Vitaliano Agan. They are the alumni who surely had contributed to the advancement and improvement of the society in terms of education, agriculture, medicine, engineering, technology, criminology and commerce. These people are the proofs of the quality education which Zamboanga A.E. Colleges provides.

Through the management of the present CEO, his son, Dr. Arturo F. Eustaquio III, not only just Zamboanga A.E. Colleges became Universidad de Zamboanga but there were still more achievements. Universidad de Zamboanga has now eight campuses namely the Main Campus in Tetuan, the City Campus located in the city proper, the Cabatangan Campus, the Pasonanca Campus, the Veterans Avenue Campus, the UZ Community Medical Center in San Jose Road, the Canelar Campus and the Ipil Campus in the municipality of Ipil. Also, the construction of the Summit Centre was made possible.

Universidad de Zamboanga has also the title of the first internet provider in the whole region and the leading Information Technology Education Provider. Not only had that Universidad de Zamboanga produced board topnotchers but had already set the trend. Most graduates of Universidad de Zamboanga not only passed the board exam but made it to the top especially in the School Allied Medicine (SAM).

In continuing The Founder’s legacy of “education for all”, Universidad de Zamboanga has many offered scholarships for deserving students and still has the lowest tuition fee compared to the other private institution in the city. This is to prove the school’s commitment of providing quality education for everyone even in a not-so-expensive way.

Universidad de Zamboanga has improved many lives through academic excellence by providing quality education for all. We still and will always say that Universidad de Zamboanga is still the best school in town!