FEATURED CITY SCHOLAR OF THE MONTH: Reynajane C. Oyag "Ikaw gyud ang mahimong example sa imong mga igsoon kung makahuman ka, "those were the exact words of Reynajane's dad, whihc have always remained with her to strive, to this day.

Reynajane is a resident of barangay Tuburan and third-year college student taking up Bachelor of Science in Secondary Education major in Social Studies at Xavier University-Ateno de Cagayan.

She comes from a family that worked doubly hard to get through everyday life.

Her father manages their small farm and works as a habal-habal driver on the sideline, while her mom is a housewife. While her dad had two jobs, his combined income isn't enough to fund her college education, especially since there are five of them.

Gladly, she was able to participate in the scholarships caravan held by the City Scholarships Office in barangay Taglimao in 2020 and eventually got into the scholarship program.

"Sa amo nga time, way back 2020 to sya, mao to sya ang pagsugod sa pandemic tapos wala mi kahibalo kay naa baya misa bukid, wala mi kabalo kon asa mi mag-apply, naa ba'y scholarship. Nagpasalamat mi kay niabot ang City Scholarships Office mismo sa among barangay, nag conduct sila og scholars caravan, didto gitudloan mi nila sa process ug ila pud mi'ng gipa-apply gamit ang ilang mobile bus," she recalled.

"Wala pa gyud to niabot sa Tuburan ang ilang mobile bus, nara to sa Taglimao. Kami gyud ang nag-adto. Ang uban namaylo og papagasolina sa motor para lang maka-apply dadto. Nanggibalon ra mi sa among mga kauban tapos tibuok gyud to nahapon, naghulat mi, nagpuli-puli mi kon kinsa makagamit sa mga computers ayha dayun mi naka-apply. Luckily karon, nakasulod," she added.

The scholarship made a huge impact on Reynajne's mindset, as she made it into the scholarship program and even got to enroll in Xavier University-Ateneo de Cagayan, a prestigious school theat, according to her family, they coud not afford due to financial instability.


"Dako kaayo siya og impact ilabina sa akong mindset kay before, wala ra gyud kaayo sa akoa nga ngano man diay kung mag-eskwela lang, inana bitaw siya pangutok, pero karon naka-avail ko'g scholarship, posible diay ang mga gobyerno ilabi na sa scholars caravan, mao'y moduol gyud sa tao, maghatag sa ilang service. Grateful gyud ko ato ilabina akong pamilya ilabina kay dili man kaayo mi ingon ana ka - financially stable tapos karon, na-enroll pa gyud ko sa Xavier. Kon dii ko city scholar, asa kaha ko mangita og pang tuition. Naka-ingon ko nga bisan diay pud og pobre, naa gihapon diay mahatag ang government sa amoa tapos amo pud sya'ng magamit sa among pamily," she said.

To help her parents, Reynajane took it upon herself to find a away to support her studies alongside the City Scholarships Program. She worked part-time and lived at her aunt's.

Reynajane is best known for her active participation in a tutorial drive dubbed " Project Pagabasa," initiated by her fellow city scholars in barangay Tuburan to help children and youth in their barangay understand their modules at the height of the pandemic, where they not pnluy served the students but also helped parents assist their children. The project is set to be implemented city-wide this year.

She is among the 8,053 city scholars and is currently undergoing a Government Internship Program at the City Scholarships Office. She is also the current president of Oro Scholars Association of Barangay Tuburan. (NLB/CIO/Infographic by Jhon Carl Balanza/CIO).