Visayas State University (VSU) makes its mark at the Philippine Association of State Universities and Colleges (PASUC-8) Regional Culture and Arts Festival (RCAF) 2025 as its over 87 delegates brought home the Mr. PASUC-8 crown and multiple awards during the December 8 to 12 regional festival held at Palompon, Leyte.
Hosted by the Palompon Institute of Technology (PIT), with the theme “Duyog Han Kultura: Pagsaulog sa Panaghiusa,” RCAF 2025 gathered 10 State Universities and Colleges (SUCs) from the islands of Samar, Leyte, and Biliran. The festival featured five major events—visual arts, music, performing arts, dance, and pageantry—highlighting the region’s rich cultural heritage and artistic excellence.
Viscan lad to represent Region VIII in NCAF ‘25
Marking a true #VSUStarNgPASUC moment, Viscan lad Kobe Juanillo was crowned Mr. PASUC-8 2025, earning the honor of representing the entire Eastern Visayas region at the National Culture and Arts Festival (NCAF) 2025.
In an interview with Amaranth, Juanillo shared that he hopes to amplify environmental protection and conservation through culture and the arts in his future national pageant stint.
“I want to use this platform to inspire others, especially the youth, to see environmental care not as an obligation, but as an act of love for our culture and our communities,” Juanillo said.
Along with the crown, he also secured the Best in Talent award during the pageant.
Meanwhile, Rio Anne Ronato delivered a strong showing in the same competition, finishing Top Five and earning the Ms. Photogenic award, underscoring VSU’s consistent competitiveness in the PASUC-8 pageantry scene.
Multiple awards rake in across music, visual arts, and performing arts comps
VSU also garnered accolades across various competition categories. The university secured its first and only gold medal through Elgin Cebreros, who clinched first place in the Visual Arts – Charcoal Rendering competition and will represent Region 8 at NCAF 2025.
Fellow Viscan artist Dhaniel Gonzaga added to the haul with a third-place finish in the Painting category.
In the music competitions, VSU delegates delivered notable performances with Leneth Genotiva and Jhecerie Abenoja placed third in the Vocal Duet category, Laurence Casipong earned second place in Instrumental Solo (Violin), Vienna Marielle Balonga placed fourth in Pop Solo (Kundiman), and the VSU Chorale secured third place in Standard Chorale Singing competition.
Further, Joshua Dayandayan finished fifth in the Pop Solo (OPM) category, while Rapunzel Angelie Malalis claimed second place in the Song Writing Competition.
Under the performing arts category, Viscan delegates also earned third place in the Indigenous Dance (Female) competition, rounding out a strong showing of artistry for the university.
VSU caps off RCAF 2025 with a 7th overall finish
With these achievements, Visayas State University once again affirmed its excellence in culture and the arts as it placed seventh overall in the final medal tally with a total of 62 points, proudly raising the Viscan banner across Eastern Visayas as its qualifiers set their sights on the national stage.