3 AYLC alumni awarded as Ten Outstanding Students of the Philippines

Three of this year's Ten Outstanding Students of the Philippines (TOSP) are AYLC alumni from Batch 2011. Awarded on Thursday, August 2, at Malacanang Palace by His excellency, President Benigno Aquino III, the three bested 27 other finalists and made it to the list of the top ten.

Kenneth Isaiah "Ken" Abante of Ateneo de Manila University, Daniel Philip "Scud" Dy of Ateneo de Naga University and Jay-R "Mhigo" Mendoza of the University of Rizal System, were all recognized for their excellence in leadership and academics and their involvements with their respective communities.

Ken delivered a message in behalf of the awardees and expressed the challenge and responsibilty of being modern-day Filipino heroes. "There is so much to be done, but our hearts are in the right place."

Pres. Aquino, in his keynote address, also emphasized heroic leadership in today's times. "It's about choosing the difficult right from the easy wrong."

Aside from Ken, Scud and Mhigo, four other AYLC alumni were part of the 30 national finalists. They were Randell Aranza of the University of St. La Salle, Michael Angelo Abarcar of University of Southern Philippines Foundation, Danilo Rogayan Jr. of Ramon Magsaysay Technological University, and Ridwan Landasan of Xavier University.

The TOSP is an annual award given by the RFM Foundation since 1961. 

Photo by Ryan Lim/Malacanang Photo Bureau. Taken from Rappler.com.