Background
Born on 5 September 1977 in Vinzons, Camarines Norte to parents who are both into food business, Ma. Cristina Acosta describes herself as open-minded, straightforward (“what she say is what she really think”) and very observant person.

Eldest among four children, she is obedient to her parents and considers herself as a good wife but she always believed that women were not born weak and that they should know how to be independent.

In 2000, Tinay recounted her difficulty in finding a job despite having earned a degree in BS Food Technology from a prestigious university in the country (UP Los Banos). At that time, jobs seemed to be scarce and elusive.

She realized that her problem had something to do with her height and skinny appearance, which fell below the standards required by the food industry. Even though theoretically, her academic credentials should qualify her for supervisory positions, she was turned down several times due to her small built and the fact that she had no previous job experiences to speak of.

Training at TWC
She remembered that in 1999 an uncle, who worked as a Provincial Director of TESDA-Camarines Norte, mentioned to her about the training programs in TWC. He suggested that she look at the possibility of getting employed as a trainer. Thinking that it could be the realization of her longtime dream, she hastily inquired in TWC and learned about its Comprehensive Trainers’ Training Program (CTTP). The CTTP was an 18 – month self – paced course designed to train applicants in teaching technical – vocational courses. But the program was still then in the conceptualization stage. She decided instead to enroll in the 6 – month Pre-Employment Skills Training.

Tinay admitted that her training at TWC was a very humbling experience. Even though she was already a graduate of a four year course, she realized that her TWC training was an eye opener. The training allowed her to acquire not only technical skills (the training was made up 70 percent of hands-on training) but also the right work ethics and values. She cited instances when their trainer had to be away from the class and she and her co-trainees would be asked to continue doing their tasks. They learned the value of initiative and resourcefulness.

Employment
After completing the training on Food Processing, she underwent th two – month on-the-job training at Monde Nissin Corporation, which eventually hired her as a contractual employee for six months. She worked in the Research and Development Department. But she found the work in a private manufacturing company quite unfulfilling.

It was in year 2001 that an opportunity came to her by surprise. TWC called her to take over the training of food processing as oncall (temporary) trainer to conduct three modules in Food Processing for the 6th batch of pre - employment training. Because of the good feedback on her performance by the trainees and management, she was hired again for to conduct the same modules for the 7th batch. She also had the opportunity to serve as an oncall trainer for the UNDP- sponsored short course in Meat Processing.

Between 2002 and 2003, the OB Montessori Center Inc. in Greenhills hired her as a novice teacher for the first year and fourth year students of Food Technology, Basic Food Services and Food Preservation. It was then that she realized that teaching was the work that she loved to do.

Tinay thought that life was getting better and better. She was doing the work that she loved and in 2003, she decided to get married. She now has a two-year old daughter. Her patience and perseverance paid off because little did she that life was going to get even better.

In January 2004, her former trainer, Ms. Maria Clara Ignacio, informed her that there was an opening for a food processing trainer at the TESDA Women’s Center. She was encouraged to apply for this position and fortunately she was eventually hired as Senior TESD Specialist designated as Food processing trainer. The rest as they say was history.

At first, the young lady felt an enormous pressure when she started to handle her own class. She could even recall the times when some of her college degree-holder trainees tried to test her, apparently doubting her capability. But she was able to keep up with them and vowed to continuously improve her knowledge and skills to develop not only as a good trainer but also as a good motivator.

As a TWC trainer, Tinay plans to be not only a technical trainer but also an advocate of women empowerment. She is determined to improve her knowledge and skills not only in her chosen trade but also in the field of gender and development. She hopes that she could contribute significantly to the attainment of the vision of the TESDA Women’s Center to become a Center of Excellence for Women in the Asia Pacific Region.