Former television newscaster and journalist turned academic, Associate Professor Yasmin Pascual-Dormido, of STI West Negros University, brought pride to the institution after winning two major awards at the 5th Philippine Association of Collegiate Schools of Business (PACSB) International Research Conference, held on October 13–14 at Dong Nai Technology University (DNTU) in Dong Nai Province, Vietnam.
Representing the College of Business Management and Accountancy (CBMA), Dr. Pascual-Dormido earned both the Best Research Paper Award and Best Paper Presenter Award for her study titled “Integrating Cybercrime Prevention into Sustainable MSME Practices and Business Education.”
Her study examined the implications of cybercrime prevention compliance for micro, small, and medium enterprises (MSMEs) resilience and business education. Specifically, it investigated the extent of compliance of police officers and punong barangays with the Cybercrime Prevention Act of 2012. Findings revealed a generally high extent of compliance, with penalties against identity theft and cyber libel most strictly enforced by frontline implementers such as barangay chiefs and police officers in a highly urbanized city in Central Philippines. However, lower compliance was observed in preventive measures such as building secure digital environments and regulating social media use.
“The gap suggests the need to shift from reactive penalties to proactive strategies safeguarding data and digital assets,” Pascual-Dormido explained. The research further found that compliance was influenced more by institutional mandates than by gender, but varied with age and length of service—where younger, less experienced officers showed stronger adherence, reflecting digital nativity and technological fluency.
She emphasized the importance of strengthening preventive strategies, capacity-building, and bridging generational gaps in digital literacy to sustain compliance. During the interpellation, Dr. Yeo Sook Fern, Director of the Centre of Excellence for Business Innovation and Communication of Multimedia University Malaysia, highlighted the study’s relevance, to which Dr. Pascual-Dormido responded:
“Cybercrime is not just a tech and law enforcement issue — it’s a governance, business, and education issue. It is an economic and educational imperative. For MSMEs, preventive compliance reduces exposure to fraud and strengthens consumer trust. For business schools, the lesson is clear: we must integrate digital risk management, cybersecurity literacy, and ethical governance into the curriculum to prepare leaders who can navigate and secure the digital economy.”
She further underscored that aligning governance, education, and enterprise supports Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 8 – Decent Work and Economic Growth and SDG 16 – Peace, Justice, and Strong Institutions.
Pascual-Dormido, a Doctor in Public Administration and a License Professional Teacher major in Secondary – English, serves as Director for External Affairs and Linkages and International Relations Officer of STI West Negros University, where she also teaches Research, Governance, Human Resource Management, and Corporate Social Responsibility in the School of Graduate Studies and Tertiary Level. She is a former anchor of TV Patrol Bacolod, former regional anchor of ANC Dateline Philippines, former provincial correspondent of DZMM Radyo Patrol, and former News Operations Specialist of ABS-CBN Broadcasting Corporation in Bacolod City. She is also a columnist of the Visayan Daily Star, a 2024 cohort of the WAN-IFRA Women in News Leadership Accelerator Programme, and a Doctor of Communication student at the University of the Philippines Open University (UPOU).
She was joined by Dr. Mima Villanueva, dean of the College of Business Management and Accountancy, who likewise presented her paper titled “Influence of Senior High School Factors and Academic Performance of Business Administration Students.”
The conference carried the theme “Sustainability Meets Innovation: The Emerging Trend in Business Education.”*
