A Boholano who graduated from a local university has been honored as one of the Ten Outstanding Students of the Philippines (TOSP) in 2017.

Ronald Calamba, who graduated magna cum laude from the University of Bohol (UB) with a degree in civil engineering, received his award during the TOSP awards night on Sunday.

He was chosen from a list of 30 national finalists from various universities and colleges in the Philippines.

The awarding ceremony, held at the Kalayaan Hall in Malacañang, was led by Presidential Spokesperson Harry Roque, TOSP founder Jose Concepcion and TOSP president Marie Concepcion-Young.

“I feel so blessed and grateful for the realization of this achievement. Despite poverty and other adversities, I was able to reap this fruit of success with the undying love and support of my family, mentors, and friends,” Calamba said.

According to Calamba, he hopes that his achievement will help inspire other students to strive in reaching their goals.

“This milestone will forever be a motivation to other people most especially to the students to believe that no dream is beyond reach,” he said.

Calamba, a native of Baang, Catigbian was born to Roberto and Olivia Calamba.

He graduated from the Holy Infant Academy in Catigbian before taking up civil engineering at UB.

The TOSP is an annual nationwide search for the country’s best-performing students in terms of academics and leadership values.

Awardees are chosen by a panel of screeners from various fields. Each region can have a maximum of 20 finalists but only 30 students will be chosen as contenders for the 10 national slots.

Representatives from the TOSP hold yearlong screenings in choosing the TOSP. (A. Doydora)