University of Iloilo

The University of Iloilo is a private university in Iloilo City, Philippines. It is a member of the PHINMA Education Network.HistoryThe University of Iloilo started as the Iloilo City Colleges . It was established in June 1947 by the Hon. Fernando H. Lopez, past Vice President of the Philippines and then mayor of Iloilo City, who said that he was inspired by his wife Doña Mariquit and his brother Don Eugenio. Joining him were professionals and educators who shared in his vision of putting up a school for the poor and the middle class.The first classes were held in makeshift buildings - quonset huts with nipa roofs, sawali and bamboo walls, and mud floors, as the country had just come out of World War II. There were two campuses: the Iloilo Unit, which housed the Colleges of Dentistry, Pharmacy, Commerce, Liberal Arts, Law and the High School Department; and the La Paz Unit where the Colleges of Normal Education, Engineering, and the High School and Elementary Departments were located. Dr. Gabino Tabuñar served as the first President of the Iloilo City Colleges. Upon his resignation in 1954, Hon. Lopez, assumed the Presidency with Jose Jimoga-on, Sr. as controller and Miss Loreto J. Ledesma as Administrative Officer.Over the next few years the school changed its course offerings and replaced dilapidated buildings. First to be constructed was the Don Benito Lopez Building, followed by the Don Fernando Lopez Hall as an annex to Doña Presentacion Lopez Building, which would be occupied by the Basic Education Department. In the main campus were erected the Doña Mariquit Lopez Building and the Don Eugenio Lopez Building. The Queen Theater in the latter was renovated to accommodate the University Auditorium on the second floor and the College of Law Library on the ground floor. The College of Law Building was constructed on the corner of Rizal and Iznart Streets, with the ground floor becoming the University Chapel.