about us

Ika-Tatlo nga Distrito
padulong sa Smart Asenso
sa liderato ni Cong. Doc. Kiko
"
Asenso itself never ends... development does not end. It is constant process of finding ways to address the needs of our people...
"

Cong. dr. kiko benitez

Third District
Negros Occidental

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Christmas Message of Cong. Dr. Kiko Benitez
Congressman Kiko Benitez
CONGRESSMAN
dr. kiko benitez

HON. JOSE FRANCISCO “KIKO” BANTUG BENITEZ, Ph.D. is the Representative of the Third District of Negros Occidental. He is the Chairperson of the Committee on Housing and Urban Development, and Vice Chairperson of the Committee on Creative Industry and Performing Arts.

Congressman Benitez has been championing bills that promote new development paradigms that balance the imperatives of social equity, economy and ecology, and
aim to harness technological innovations to ensure sustainable economy. He authored bills to address the country’s housing needs; accelerate the digital transformation of our economy, and bureaucracy;  adapt our education system to the changing world; strengthen creative industries; promote blue economy, circular economy,  food security, and sustainable urbanization, to name a few.

Congressman Benitez earned his M.A. and Ph.D. in comparative literature (minor in Southeast Asian studies) from the University of Wisconsin-Madison, and his B.A. in comparative literature (summa cum laude) and English (cum laude) from Cornell University.

CURRICULUM VITAE

HON. JOSE FRANCISCO BANTUG BENITEZ, PH.D.
REPRESENTATIVE, THIRD LEGISLATIVE DISTRICT
NEGROS OCCIDENTAL

  • Chairperson, Committee on Housing and Urban Development
  • Vice Chairperson, Special Committee on Creative Industries and Performing Arts
  • Member, Committee on Visayas Development
  • Member, Committee on Economic Affairs
  • Member, Committee on Ecology
  • Member, Committee on Foreign Affairs
  • Member, Committee on Inter-Parliamentary Relations
  • Member, Special Committee on Nuclear Energy

  • President, Philippine Women’s University (2010 - June 2019)
  • Chairman, Unlad Resources Development Corporation (2016 - June 2019)
  • Assistant Professor, Department of Comparative Literature, University of Washington-Seattle (2006 - 2013)
  • Acting Assistant Professor, Department of Comparative Literature, University of Washington-Seattle (2004 - 2006)
  • Lecturer, Southeast Asian Studies, Asia-Pacific Studies Program, University of Asia & the Pacific (2001 - 2002)
  • Lecturer, World Literature, Philippine Women’s University (2000 - 2001)
  • Lecturer, Filipino, Department of Languages and Cultures of Asia, University of Wisconsin-Madison (1998 - 1999)
  • Teaching Assistant, Department of Comparative Literature, University of Wisconsin-Madison (1995 - 1997)
  • Lecturer, Effective Writing, Philippine Women’s University (1993 - 1994)
  • Teaching Assistant, Filipino, Department of Linguistics, Cornell University (1992 - 1993)
  • Associate Editor, Plaridel: A Philippine Journal of Community, Media and Society
  • Associate Member, Institute for Transpacific Cultural Research, Simon Fraser University, Canada

  • Current chairperson, Board of Trustees, Bayanihan Folk Arts Foundation
  • Current member, Board of Trustees, Philippine Air Force Educational Fund Inc.
  • Vice President and Member, Board of Trustees, Philippine Association of Colleges and Universities (2018 - June 2019)
  • Member, Board of Trustees, Association of Southeast Asian Institution of Higher Learning National Council of the Philippines (2018 - June 2019)
  • President and Member, Board of Trustees, South Manila Educational Consortium (2018 - June 2019)
  • Commissioner, Commission on Graduate Education, Philippine Accrediting Association of Schools, Colleges and Universities (2015 - 2018)
  • Member, Board of Trustees, Betty Bantug Benitez Foundation, Inc.

  • Ph.D., Major in Comparative Literature, Minor in Southeast Asian Studies, University of Wisconsin-Madison, 2004
  • M.A., Comparative Literature, University of Wisconsin-Madison, 1996
  • B.A., Comparative Literature, (summa cum laude) and English (cum laude), Cornell University, 1993
  • Secondary, Ampleforth College, York, United Kingdom
  • Elementary, Xavier School, San Juan City, PH

  • The Asia's Education Excellence Awards, Award for Outstanding Contribution to Education, presented by World Education Congress, CMO Asia and CMO Council, Le
    Meridien Singapore, August 2, 2017
  • Fellowship, Simpson Center Society of Scholars (2009-2010)
  • Foreign Language and Area Studies (FLAS) Fellowship for Bahasa Indonesia, University of Washington (1999-2001)
  • Foreign Language and Area Studies (FLAS) Fellowship for Bahasa Indonesia, Southeast Asian Studies Summer Institute 2000
  • Usha Mahajani Memorial Prize, Association of Asian Studies, SEASSI 2000.
  • Knapp University Fellowship, University of Wisconsin-Madison, 1994-1995.