Brother A brother (: brothers or brethren) is a man or boy who shares one or more parents with another; a male sibling. The female counterpart is a sister. Although the term typically refers to a family, familial relationship, it is sometimes used ende ...

Rafael S. Donato was a Filipino Lasallian Brother and academic who led several Lasallian educational institutions in the Philippines. Throughout his career, he successively served as president of La Salle Green Hills, La Salle College-Bacolod (now University of St. La Salle),

De La Salle University-Manila De La Salle University (), also referred to as DLSU, De La Salle or La Salle, is a private university, private, Catholic Church, Catholic coeducational research university run by the Institute of the Brothers of the Christian Schools with main ...

De La Salle Lipa De La Salle Lipa, also known by its acronym DLSL, is a private Catholic Lasallian basic and higher educational institution run by the De La Salle Brothers of the Philippine District of the Christian Brothers in Lipa City, Batangas, Philippines ...

, and

De La Salle Araneta University De La Salle Araneta University, also referred to by its acronym (Araneta U or DLSAU), is a private Catholic Lasallian co-educational basic and higher education institution supervised by the Philippine District of the De La Salle Christian Brot ...

Biography

Donato finished

grade school A primary school (in Ireland, India, the United Kingdom, Australia, New Zealand, Trinidad and Tobago, Jamaica, South Africa, and Singapore), elementary school, or grade school (in North America and the Philippines) is a school for primary ...

in 1952,

high school A secondary school, high school, or senior school, is an institution that provides secondary education. Some secondary schools provide both ''lower secondary education'' (ages 11 to 14) and ''upper secondary education'' (ages 14 to 18), i.e., ...

in 1956, and a

Bachelor of Science A Bachelor of Science (BS, BSc, B.S., B.Sc., SB, or ScB; from the Latin ') is a bachelor's degree that is awarded for programs that generally last three to five years. The first university to admit a student to the degree of Bachelor of Scienc ...

Education Education is the transmission of knowledge and skills and the development of character traits. Formal education occurs within a structured institutional framework, such as public schools, following a curriculum. Non-formal education als ...

, majoring in English literature with a minor in

Philosophy Philosophy ('love of wisdom' in Ancient Greek) is a systematic study of general and fundamental questions concerning topics like existence, reason, knowledge, Value (ethics and social sciences), value, mind, and language. It is a rational an ...

in 1961 all at De La Salle College. In 1956, he decided to become a De La Salle Brother. Donato then earned his

Master's degree A master's degree (from Latin ) is a postgraduate academic degree awarded by universities or colleges upon completion of a course of study demonstrating mastery or a high-order overview of a specific field of study or area of professional prac ...

English as a Second Language English as a second or foreign language refers to the use of English by individuals whose native language is different, commonly among students learning to speak and write English. Variably known as English as a foreign language (EFL), Engli ...

and

Linguistics Linguistics is the scientific study of language. The areas of linguistic analysis are syntax (rules governing the structure of sentences), semantics (meaning), Morphology (linguistics), morphology (structure of words), phonetics (speech sounds ...

Columbia University Columbia University in the City of New York, commonly referred to as Columbia University, is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in New York City. Established in 1754 as King's College on the grounds of Trinity Churc ...

in 1965 as a

Fulbright scholar The Fulbright Program, including the Fulbright–Hays Program, is one of several United States cultural exchange programs with the goal of improving intercultural relations, cultural diplomacy, and intercultural competence between the peopl ...

. Another Fulbright grant allowed him to travel to

Europe Europe is a continent located entirely in the Northern Hemisphere and mostly in the Eastern Hemisphere. It is bordered by the Arctic Ocean to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the west, the Mediterranean Sea to the south, and Asia to the east ...

and

Vietnam Vietnam, officially the Socialist Republic of Vietnam (SRV), is a country at the eastern edge of mainland Southeast Asia, with an area of about and a population of over 100 million, making it the world's List of countries and depende ...

. In the 1970s, Donato became the first Filipino Director of De La Salle Lipa and the first Filipino President of La Salle Green Hills. In 1974, he received a Certificate of Advanced Studies from

Harvard Harvard University is a private Ivy League research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States. Founded in 1636 and named for its first benefactor, the Puritan clergyman John Harvard, it is the oldest institution of higher lear ...

and in 1976, he earned his

Doctor of Education Doctor, Doctors, The Doctor or The Doctors may refer to: Titles and occupations * Physician, a medical practitioner * Doctor (title), an academic title for the holder of a doctoral-level degree ** Doctorate ** List of doctoral degrees awarded ...

degree in Administration, Planning and Social Policy. Upon his return to the Philippines, he was then assigned to La Salle College Bacolod in Bacolod City, Negros Occidental as its first Filipino president. Donato was appointed Brother Visitor and concurrent President of La Salle Green Hills in Mandaluyong, Metro Manila from 1983 to 1990. He then served as President of

from 1991 to 1994. In 1994, he became a

British Council The British Council is a British organisation specialising in international cultural and educational opportunities. It works in over 100 countries: promoting a wider knowledge of the United Kingdom and the English language (and the Welsh lang ...

Fellow for Peace Studies at the

University of Bradford The University of Bradford is a public research university located in the city of Bradford, West Yorkshire, England. A plate glass university, it received its royal charter in 1966, making it the 40th university to be created in Britain, but ...

in the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Northwestern Europe, off the coast of European mainland, the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotlan ...

. In 1995, he received another fellowship from the

Hebrew University of Jerusalem The Hebrew University of Jerusalem (HUJI; ) is an Israeli public university, public research university based in Jerusalem. Co-founded by Albert Einstein and Chaim Weizmann in July 1918, the public university officially opened on 1 April 1925. ...

's Truman Institute for Peace. He was then appointed President of De La Salle Lipa in Lipa City, Batangas on May 15, 1995, and served in that capacity until 2003, at which time he was named ''President Emeritus'' for his role in the expansion of the school. Donato was at the time of his death the Auxiliary Visitor of the Philippine District as well as President of De La Salle Araneta University in Malabon, Metro Manila effective SY 2006-2007. He was also a faculty member of the Educational Leadership and Management Department of De La Salle University Manila's

College of Education In the United States and Canada, a school of education (or college of education; ed school) is a division within a university that is devoted to scholarship in the field of education, which is an interdisciplinary branch of the social sciences e ...

. On October 16, 2006, he celebrated his 50th year as a De La Salle Brother in ceremonies held at La Salle Green Hills. On November 2, 2006, Donato was reported missing after a few hours of swimming off the shores of

Morong, Bataan Morong, officially the Municipality of Morong (), is a municipality in the province of Bataan, Philippines. According to the 2020 census, it has a population of 35,394 people. History In 1607, Morong was officially founded as an ecclesiasti ...

. His body was found at 8:30 p.m., six hours after he was reported missing and one kilometer away from where he was last seen. His remains were subsequently driven back to

Manila Manila, officially the City of Manila, is the Capital of the Philippines, capital and second-most populous city of the Philippines after Quezon City, with a population of 1,846,513 people in 2020. Located on the eastern shore of Manila Bay on ...

.Br. Rafe Passes Away

. Retrieved on 2006-11-03

References

* Madridano, V. (2006)
Br. Rafael S. Donato FSC Distinguished Lasallian
''Philippine Lasallian FaMiLi, 8,'' pp. 16. {{DEFAULTSORT:Donato, Rafael S. 1938 births 2006 deaths Clergy from Manila People from Vigan De La Salle Brothers in the Philippines De La Salle University alumni Linguists from the Philippines Filipino writers Harvard Graduate School of Education alumni Columbia University alumni Academics of the University of Bradford Deaths by drowning Accidental deaths in the Philippines Presidents of universities and colleges in the Philippines 20th-century linguists

Biography

See also

References