Siena College of Taytay, formerly St. Catherine Academy, was opened in June 1957 in response to the invitation of the Archbishop of Manila, his Eminence Cardinal Rufino Santos.
Mother Natividad Pilapil, O.P., then Superior General of the Congregation of Dominican Sisters of St. Catherine of Siena, appointed Mother Ma. Stella Salao, O.P. as the first Superior and Directress/ Principal of the school. With the help of Father Pedro Hilario, Parish Priest of Taytay, classes for the 183 students ( 1st and 2nd year) was made possible in 1957 and the 3rd and 4th year levels on the following year. The first graduation exercises for fifty graduates was held in March 1960.
In 1965, the Kindergarten, Elementary and Secondary Education were given recognition by the Department of Education and Culture. The College Department opened in 1982 with the following courses: Bachelor degree in Business Administration, Computer Education, Secondary Education, Secretarial Administration, Certificates in Clerical, Junior Secretarial, Two- Year Basic Computer Programming and other short term courses.
Along with the academic development was the construction, inauguration and blessing of a four-storey building on a 1.5 hectare site along E. Rodriguez Avenue. On December 7, 1980, the central administration offices, Sisters’ convent and the junior and senior high school levels were relocated to the new site. In 1982, the school was renamed Siena College of Taytay with the three levels of education in full operation.
A very important milestone in the total operation of the institution was the adoption of the Catholic Schools Systems Development Program in 1983. The CSSD Program( now OPS-SSD) aimed at the radical living of the Gospel by all the personnel and students, with the end in view of emulating the life of Christ and of participating in the building of God’s kingdom through the Catholic School apostolate.
The Parents as integral part of the school community made their influence felt in June 1988. Since then the Parents Homeroom Organization and the Family Advisory Councils have been very active, cooperative and supportive in the school’s programs and projects as well as in their continuing program of formation. Also, in October 1989, the Alumni Association was formally organized which included graduates of 1960 to 1988. The graduates in their varying degrees of involvement were in public and private services for the country and fellowmen, all for the love of God.
For the promotion and development of education, arts and culture, the St. Catherine Gymnasium with a capacity of 3,500, was constructed in November 1990. Later, with the school’s expansion and improvement in facilities, the following were constructed: the Mo. Francisca Hall in the second level of the Gymnasium, an air-conditioned auditorium with a seating capacity of one thousand five hundred; and the St. Martin Mini- Sports Complex with a mini-Olympic size swimming pool at the back of the gym.
In February 1991-1992, the High School Department had its Preliminary Survey by the Philippine Accrediting Association of Schools Colleges and Universities (PAASCU). The Grade School Department was visited by the PAASCU in SY 1992-1993. The High School Department passed the First Formal Visit in SY 1994- 1995 and awarded a five-year 2nd level of accreditation in February 2003. The Grade School Department passed the 1st Formal Visit in SY 1996-1997 and was granted a 2nd accreditation for 5 years in December 2005.
The curricular programs of the three departments were enriched through: the offering of computer program; added student- teacher contact hours in English and Math, new areas of concentration in Guidance and Counseling and Religious & Values Education for the B.S.E program; courses in BSBA and Associate in Hotel & Restaurant Management (AHRM) in SY 1993-1994.
In school year 1997-1998, the school launched its Cluster Scheme Program for planning, implementing, supervising and evaluating the different programs in Filipino, English, Math, Science and Social Studies subjects in the Grade and High School Levels by selected faculty and administrators who were experts in their respective field of specialization.
The first year of operation of the Basic Education Department (BED) was in SY 1998-1999. The BED Program aimed to provide continuity in the methodology and strategies that are considered effective to teaching and learning. Thus, teachers were able to monitor the progress and provide more extensively the individual needs of the pupils and students. The program further strengthened the cohesiveness of the personnel. The administrators, academic & non-academic personnel of the two departments worked hand in hand as they shared resources without biases or preferences for their areas to achieve common goals and objectives. Indeed, the BED Program encouraged people to share their thoughts, each contributing a significant part and at the same time willing to accept fresh learning from their colleagues—a mark of true professionalism.
Misfortune could be turned into grace for in place of the St. Catherine Building which was gutted down by a fire last May 2002, a four storey building was constructed to house a number of classrooms and offices. The school’s expansion continued with the constructions and blessings of the Our Lady of the Rosary Building in October 2004 for the chapel, offices, clinic and canteen.
During the opening of the first semester 2005, the St. Thomas Building for the College Department was inaugurated. The ground breaking ceremony of the HRM Training Hotel named St. Jacques Internationale Centre de Formation (Hotellerie et Restauration) was held on the 21st of April 2006. The training hotel was put up as a practicum center for the BSIHM students. It was inaugurated on the 14th of February 2007 during the launching of the Golden Jubilee Celebration of Siena College of Taytay. The SCT-Golden Jubilee with the theme “Balitok: Pagpupuri, Pagbabasbas, Pagpapahayag” was a one-year memorable celebration with the unveiling of the marble image of St. Catherine of Siena, a culminating activity in February 2008. The rite served to commemorate the SCA-SCT’s 50 Years of living up to its motto – “In the Service of Truth”.
On December 15, 2008, the institution climbed another step towards the fulfillment of its commitment to excellence as the High School Department was granted PAASCU Level III accreditation for 5 years until May 2015. In the same light, the College Department was granted a five-year IQUAME (Institutional Quality Assurance through Monitoring and Evaluation) Accreditation by the Commission on Higher Education (CHED) from 2009-2014.
In 2010, the programs of International Hospitality Management, Business Administration, Education and Computer Science underwent PAASCU accreditation. In the same year, the Business Administration was granted level I accreditation while the International Hospitality Management got its level 1 accreditation in 2011. The 1st and 2nd year levels of the BS Travel Management Program was opened in 2012.
The succeeding years saw the continued growth and development of Siena College of Taytay as an educational institution.
The year 2013 saw the opening of the Special Education Program for individuals with specific needs in development. It was also during this school year that the Varsity Team was officially named Siena Guardians. The following year, 2014, as if coinciding with the naming of the varsity team, a football field was developed. Devotion-wise, the annual Family Rosary Crusade marked a milestone as it celebrated its 25th year—its Silver Jubilee. In terms of linkages, in 2015, SCT partnered with Mikrotik Academy which would be of great help to the school’s programs in Engineering and Information Technology. That same year, for the first time, the Integrated Basic Education Department had its PAASCU Accreditation.
In 2016, the Service Education Department followed suit with a string of successes in terms of PAASCU Accreditation—
– Level II accreditation for the Business Administration Program and for the International Hospitality Management Program
– Level I accreditation for the Computer Science Program and for the Education Program, both Elementary and Secondary Education
Coinciding with these would be the opening of the Senior High School Level, as mandated by law, the granting of the DepEd Recognition for the Special Education (SpEd) Program, and the approval of the Institutional Development Innovation Grant (IDIG) for K-12 Transition by the Commission on Higher Education (CHED).
It was also in 2016 that “Domie” as introduced as the official mascot of the Siena Guardians and even the school itself, after it was chosen among the entries for the Mascot Design Competition. The look and the name of the mascot were created by Jose Luis L. Reyes, an alumnus of high school batch 2009.
“Kinang ng Anim na Dekada”–Siena College of Taytay celebrated sixty years of being an educational institution in 2017. This, actually, was a three-year celebration which started in 2016 (Tatak Siena: Patungong Sisenta) and culminated in 2018 (Kita-kita sa Kinang ng Sisenta).
Also in 2017, SCT opened as an Assessment Center and had its Expanded Tertiary Education Equivalency and Accreditation Program (ETEEAP) approved by the CHEd. The computer system or the management information system was further modernized for easier access to necessary information. And, with the growing number of students, mainly because of the senior high school, and the possible number of freshmen in the college department, a new building had to be put up and it had its ground breaking rites that same year on the occasion of the 321st Foundation Anniversary of the Congregation.
The year 2018 saw the first graduation exercises for the Senior High School Level under the K-12 Program. A Grand Alumni Homecoming was successfully held and handled by Batch 1987 and Batch 1992. With the opening of the new school year came the opening of the MBA program and the implementation of the cashless system for the canteen. Finally, the St. Albertus Magnus Building was blessed and inaugurated on the 15th of November 2018, the feast of St. Albert the Great.
These achievements prove once again that like “fire tried gold,” Siena College Taytay, as a Christian, Filipino, Dominican school, will continue to facilitate the total formation of the members of the school academic community through a “Gospel-centered and Marian-inspired education.”