In a world where excellence often speaks in quiet determination and unwavering purpose, Mr. John Mark G. Lachica allowed his journey to do the talking.

This year, over 1,000 hopeful young educators across the Philippines submitted their applications to the 2025 – 2026 Fulbright Foreign Language Teaching Assistant (FLTA) Program, each one dreaming of representing the country on the global stage. But when the final list was drawn, only four were chosen.

Among those four, carrying the hopes of La Union and his University with him, stands a name that resonates through the halls of Don Mariano Marcos Memorial State University – South La Union Campus: Mr. John Mark G. Lachica.

Currently serving as Program Chair of the Bachelor of Secondary Education at the College of Education, Mr. Lachica will embark on a new chapter at Skyline College in California. Mr. Lachica will stay in the United States of America from August 4, 2025, to June 5, 2026.

As an FLTA, Mr. Lachica will assist in teaching Filipino classes and serve as a consultant for Filipino language instruction in English classes under the Kababayan Learning Community, which centers on Filipino and Filipino American experiences. His responsibilities include teaching a beginner-level Tagalog course in the fall and an intermediate/advanced course in the spring. This established program also reaches local high schools, with over 50 students enrolled annually, typically more in the fall.

The Fulbright Program, one of the world’s most competitive and renowned platforms for international education, seeks to build bridges through scholarship, dialogue, and cultural understanding.

What makes this feat truly awe-inspiring is the staggering rarity of it all: fewer than 0.4% of the thousands who dared to dream were chosen. This is a selection so exacting it shows not only the program’s rigor, but of the extraordinary promise it sees in those it uplifts.

And yet, for Mr. Lachica, this is but one star in a growing constellation of milestones.

As if this international recognition were not enough, Mr. Lachica will also march on July 4, 2025, for his graduation with a Doctor of Philosophy in Language Education degree from Saint Louis University.

Students’ favorite, Mr. Lachica’s roots are deeply tied to service and purpose. In 2020, he was named Faculty Member of the Year for the sincere impact he brought to classrooms and the lives he helped shape through education.

“This isn’t just about going abroad,” he shares. “It’s about bringing the Filipino story to the global classroom and returning with lessons that will make ours even better.”

His journey now lights the path for aspiring educators across the country. Mr. Lachica is a living reminder that when one teaches with heart and purpose, the world listens.

As he prepares to carry the name of DMMMSU to international shores, he also carries with him the heartbeat of a university and a country that believes in global relevance, transformative learning, and the boundless potential of those who serve.

And in the quiet brilliance of his story, one thing is certain: the best is yet to come. (By Ayu/Maricon Viduya)