Professor Regalado T. Jose, former Archivist and academic staff of the Graduate School, is now the new head of the National Historical Commission of the Philippines (NHCP), an agency he will head until January 3, 2027.
In an interview with the Communications Bureau, Jose looks forward to 鈥渕ore awareness of our history and heritage in our daily lives, to shape our values.鈥� In particular, he called on Thomasians to 鈥渂e keenly aware of UST鈥檚 role in shaping Philippine history. This includes, among other things, learning to read historical documents in their original Spanish (in the same way that many like to learn Korean).鈥澛�
Jose is an authority in Church heritage and has published and read papers extensively on Church architecture and art. He continues to engage in the conservation and restoration of built heritage of Churches and works with government and non-government agencies alike. In the National Commission on Culture and the Arts, he chaired the Committee on Monuments and Sites (2001-2004), Committee on Archives (2011-2013), and Commissioner for Cultural Heritage (2011-2013). In 1999, he was feted with the Cultural Center of the Philippines Centennial Award for the Arts.
The NHCP is the country鈥檚 鈥減rimary government agency responsible for history and has the authority to determine all factual matters relating to official Philippine history.鈥� Among its mandates are to support and engage in research activities on Philippine history, its people, and important events. It maintains a historical data bank and Resource Center and recognizes places of historical significance.
