Ex-DepEd chief Luistro named new head of De La Salle Brothers

Former Education Secretary Bro. Armin Luistro FSC has been named the 28th successor of St. John Baptist de La Salle, making him the first Filipino to become the Superior General of the De La Salle Brothers worldwide. 

On Facebook, the De La Salle Brothers-Philippines congratulated Luistro for being elected into the highest position in the global Catholic religious teaching congregation.

“Congratulations to Brother Armin Luistro FSC for having been elected as the 28th Successor of St. John Baptist de La Salle, and the first Filipino Superior General of the De La Salle Brothers worldwide!” it said in a social media post.

“Our profound prayers of thanksgiving are with you, our dear Brother, as you continue to respond to God's call to be of service to all Lasallians as our Superior General,” it added.

The De La Salle Brothers-Philippines likewise asked its members to keep Luistro in their prayers as they seek to “build new paths to transform lives”.

According to a report from Catholic Bishops Conference of the Philippines, the elections took place on May 18 at the religious institute’s 46th general chapter in Rome. This comes eight years after the election of the Bro. Robert Schieler, F.S.C.’s administration in 2014.

An educator with more than 34 years in both public and private sectors, Luistro joined the La Salle Scholasticate, the academic training center of the Brothers of the Christian Schools, in Manila in April 1979 while studying at De La Salle University (DLSU).

He received the religious habit in October 1981, professed his first religious vows in October 1982, and his final vows in May 1988.

He started his career at De La Salle Lipa in Batangas, where he worked as a religion teacher, class counselor and campus minister from 1983 to 1986.

In August 2000, he co-founded with Indonesian Bishop Josef Suwatan of Manado, the De La Salle Catholic University in Manado, now known as De La Salle University-Indonesia.

Luistro previously served as the president of DLSU Manila from 2004 to 2010 before being appointed as Education Secretary under the administration of late President Benigno “Noynoy” Aquino III from 2010 and 2016.

In his previous years, he also served as president of the De La Salle University System and several other La Salle schools. From 2017 to 2019, he returned to serve as President of De La Salle Philippines, the network of La Salle schools in the country.

He is currently a board member of the Philippine Business for Social Progress and was appointed Brother Visitor of the Lasallian District of East Asia in 2019.

Further, Luistro held various positions in other governmental and intergovernmental organisations including the Advisory Council of the National Youth Commission, the UNESCO National Commission of the Philippines and the South East Asian Ministers of Education Organization.

He holds a Doctorate in Educational Management from Saint La Salle University in Bacolod and a Master’s Degree in Religious Education and Values from De La Salle University in Manila. He also holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in Philosophy and Humanities from DLSU.—Sundy Mae Locus/LDF, GMA News