UST Yellow Jackets

Established in 1993, the UST Yellow Jackets is the official pep squad of the University of Santo Tomas.

History

Before 1990, there were no Yellow Jackets yet, and the UST basketball team, then known as Glowing Goldies, relied on the team's loyal followers for support. The 1990s saw eight Thomasians form the UST Bangers, led by Michael Ismael Flores.

With the help of fellow Thomasians, mostly from the University's football and baseball teams, they acquired 3 bass drums, 4 snare drums and 1 pair of cymbals. The PE Department enlisted the help of Mr. Mike Silbor and Mr. Andres to serve as the group's coordinator and adviser respectively.

In 1993, the University of Santo Tomas hosted the University Athletic Association of the Philippines (UAAP). It was an opportunity for the UST Bangers to prove their worth, and they created many of the beats and cheers the University still uses to this day. The Seniors Basketball Team won the UAAP championship that year. The PE department awarded them with their first set of Sto. Niño bass drums and snare drums. Mr. Robinson Laxa was deemed the new adviser.

1995 marked the first time the UST Bangers and the Salinggawi Dance Troupe (SDT) collaborated for the first UAAP cheering competition, the Jollibee Chi-Cheer Kayo Contest, which was won by UST. [1] UST won the championship until 1996, when UST decided to withdraw from the cheering competition in the UAAP, and instead competed in the Lipton Iced Tea Cheering Competition which they also won.

In 1996, female members were admitted into the group to help manage the UST cheering squad. The following year, the group changed their name from the UST Bangers to the UST Yellow Jackets (YJ). It was also in 1997 that the group started to integrate members of the UST Pay High School into its roster in order to establish its presence during the games of the UST Tiger Cubs. This arrangement continued until the separation of the High School's PE program from the UST-IPEA in 2001.

In 2001 the UST Yellow Jackets, after years of service to the community, was awarded its long-overdue recognition as a legitimate university-wide student organization by the UST Office of Student Affairs and Community Service (OSACS). It was also during this year that the organization's Constitution and By-laws was drafted and its first set of officers inducted with Mr. Franco Lorenzo Cachero as its President.

The years 2002 and 2003 marked the beginning of a massive re-tooling program for the YJ. Bent on upgrading its equipment to meet the rigorous demands of the Thomasian community, former presidents Franco Cachero (2002 - second term) and Billy Pineda (2003) initiated steps to upgrade the group's arsenal with new bass and snare drums that will match with the spirit and passion of every individual member of the team who will use them. At the end of the latter's term, The YJs can boast of being able to field no less than 22 Bass and 16 Snare drums at any given time.

It was also during these years that the YJs started to appear frequently during the halftime performances of the UAAP and other engagements in and out of the university. To cover for the absence of the Salinggawi during the weeks before the cheering competition or in other school and corporate events, the YJs began wooing crowds with their signature all-male formations and cadences which can be compared to the traditional cheering styles of other all-male squads in the past dating back to the pre-war years.

2008 marks the 15th year of the UST Yellow Jackets in serving the Thomasian community. This year was also a change of the guards of sorts as long-time YJ adviser Mr. Robinson Laxa handed over the reins to Mr. Raymond Anselmo.

Aside from its usual cheering duties, members of the USTYJ are also engaged in other sports-related activites. It is regularly fielding teams in different Dodgeball competitions in the Metro and is the duly-recognized partner of the Philippine Dodgeball Association in UST. The group has thus far organized two Dodgeball competitions in the university wherein the best Dodgeball teams in the circuit has participated.

YJ members have also made their mark as organizers of events in the university. In the late 90's the group, along with the UST Salinggawi Dance Troupe and the Institute of Physical Education and Athletics (IPEA)organized the first University-wide cheering competition which it Christened as "Cheermania." It then became one of the most anticipated events in the school calendar because it gave students a very good opportunity to represent and compete for their respective colleges.

In 2002, Mr. Froilan Pitpit, a YJ alumnus and the Auditor of the Student Organization Coordinating Council (SOCC) of the University used his appointed offices to bring the event to a bigger scale. His efforts paved the way for the yearly tie-up between the SOCC and the USTYJ in keeping this competition alive from that year until 2006, usually during the University's Foundation week.

The group also regularly assists the IPEA in its yearly events such as the Thomasian Pep Rally during the start of the UAAP season and the IPEA Week Celebration.

Officers

Cheers and Beats

Basic Cheers

* Black Gold Black White
* Animo Cheers (s)
* Santo Tomas Spelling
* Tigers Ready
* Tomasino

Transition Cheers/ Special Cheers
* O Defensa! (defense)
* UST Let's Go Fight (offense)
* Yosi Cheer (after free throws)

Cheer Beats
* Go Uste!
* Slayer
* GST (Go S-A-N-T-O-T-O-MAS)
* Disco (also known as the "We are the Tigers" Cheer)
* Ocho
* Power
* Nightmare
* Chantra
* Beng-Beng (Go Fight UST Cheer)

Beats
* Orange (raw-rage)
* Kero
* Yogi
* Boomtiyaya
* Ayala Beat
* Ocho Opening
* Nestle Cheer 2001
* Mabuhay Cheer (Nestle 02 & Puspusan sa Busan Cheer)
* P-N-P (used during the Nestle 03 competition)
* Lumidee (Nestle 2004)
* Nestle Cheer 2005

Cheer History

* Go USTe! - This staple cheer of the University got its inspiration from the Go Ninja Rap song of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles cartoon in the early nineties.
* Black Gold, Black White! - Patterned from the Alaska Milk TV commercial chant, "Alaka Gold, Alaka White", this cheer was among the three that were already conceptualized long before the formal establishment of the UST Yellow Jackets as an organization. The other two were Animo Cheers and Santo Tomas Spelling.
* Ganda USTe and Pogi USTE were used before whenever the basketball team wins a game.

References

External links

* [http://www.ust.edu.ph University of Santo Tomas Web Site]

ee also

UST Growling Tigers
Salinggawi Dance Troupe
UAAP Cheerdance Competition