Dedicated Professional, Teacher and Mentor: Tarroja Awarded Outstanding Psychologist by PAP
“I am the Psychologist that I am today because of so many people I have met and those who have inspired me to simply do good Psychology.”
These were the words of thanks relayed by SDRC Director Dr. Maria Caridad H. Tarroja after being awarded Outstanding Psychologist by the Psychological Association of the Philippines on the occasion of the 53rd Convention of the Psychological Association of the Philippines, held on September 15, 2016 at the Fontana Convention Center, Clark Freeport Zone, Pampanga.
The award, signed by PAP President Dr. Angela V. Regala and Outstanding Psychologist Award Committee Chair Dr. Allan B. I. Bernardo, acknowledges Dr. Tarroja as “an outstanding teacher and mentor in clinical psychology, psychological assessment, child and family psychology; an active scholar in family psychology, psychological assessment and mental health who has published in national and international journals of psychology, and completed various research and development projects for agencies including the World Health Organization, Save the Children-Philippines, Council for the Welfare of Children, and UNICEF, among others; a staunch servant of the professional community of psychologists and social scientists who has served as leader of the Psychological Association of the Philippines, Philippine Social Science Council, and the ASEAN Regional Union of Psychological Societies; and a dedicated professional assessment psychologist and clinical psychologist who has shown true character as a helping professional by humbly sharing her expertise, providing help and guidance to those in need by engaging community service groups such as the Child Protection Network, Citizens Network on Psycho-Social Response in Disasters, and other organizations.”
In a personal message posted on social media, Dr. Tarroja expressed special thanks to her family and her daughter Trish, and to two institutions that played an important role in her recognition: Ateneo de Manila University, for “providing me the wings to fly,” and De La Salle University-Manila for providing “the vast green fields so I can fly and soar as high as my wings could take me.”
