Maria Kalaw-Katigbak: First Batangueña Senator in Congress

There is a long list of Batangueñas who left significant marks on Philippine history, and among them stands Maria Kalaw‑Katigbak, whose life bridged the intellectual tradition of the Kalaw family of Lipa and the national institutions she later served. Her name was Maria Kalaw-Katigbak.

She was born in Manila on 14 February 1912¹, but her family roots trace back to Lipa, Batangas through her father, Teodoro M. Kalaw. She grew up in a household shaped by scholarship and civic duty.

AI-colorized photograph of Maria Kalaw-Katigbak, originally from the National Library of the Philippines.

She completed a Bachelor of Philosophy at the University of the Philippines², a program focused on critical thinking and the study of ideas. She later became a Barbour Scholar at the University of Michigan, where she earned a master’s degree in social work³, a field concerned with helping individuals and communities address social challenges.

She eventually obtained a Doctor of Philosophy in Social Sciences, magna cum laude, from the University of Santo Tomas⁴, a discipline that examines society, culture, and human behavior through research and analysis.

Her father, Teodoro M. Kalaw, was a historian, legislator, and Director of the National Library⁵, known for his writings on Philippine political thought. Her mother, Pura Villanueva‑Kalaw, was a leading suffragist⁶ who advocated for women’s right to vote and is widely recognized as the first Filipina beauty queen, crowned in 1908⁷.

Their influence shaped Maria’s intellectual formation and her sense of responsibility toward public life.

In 1961 she was elected to the Senate of the Philippines⁸, becoming the first woman senator with Batangas roots and the first Batangueña to serve in Congress. While she was not associated with landmark laws, she worked actively in Senate committees dealing with education, health, and public welfare⁹.

Senate committees are smaller groups within the chamber that examine proposed laws in detail before they are debated by the full Senate. Her work in these committees reflected her academic background and her long‑standing interest in social development.

Outside the Senate, she held significant roles in civic and cultural institutions. She served in the leadership of the Girl Scouts of the Philippines¹⁰, where she promoted youth development, discipline, and community service.

She later became chairperson of the Board of Censors for Motion Pictures from 1981 to 1985¹¹, an agency responsible for reviewing films and determining which content was suitable for public viewing. This position placed her at the center of cultural regulation during a period when cinema played a major role in shaping public opinion.

Maria Kalaw‑Katigbak was also known as a journalist and writer¹², contributing essays that addressed issues affecting women, youth, and national identity. Her contributions to Philippine society are best understood through her influence in education, youth development, cultural regulation, and the symbolic significance of her position. As a highly educated woman from a Batangueño family, she represented the entry of provincial intellectuals — especially women — into national leadership.

Her life demonstrated that public service could take many forms: through legislation, through civic institutions, and through the shaping of cultural values. Born in Manila but rooted in Lipa, she carried her family’s legacy of scholarship and public duty into the Senate and beyond.