DepEd to deploy 15,000 principals in 2025
To fill vacancies, enhance administrative efficiency, and provide better support for teachers and students in public schools nationwide, the Department of Education (DepEd) is set to deploy 15,000 school principals in 2025 as part of its efforts to strengthen school leadership and improve education quality.
In a statement issued on Feb. 11, DepEd reaffirmed its commitment to deploying over 15,000 qualified teachers as principals while also issuing guidelines and updating the existing principal hiring process in public schools.
“This pressing issue is an eye-opener,” DepEd Secretary Sonny Angara said. “So many of our schools operate without brains—because that’s what our principals are, the brains of our schools,” he added.
Lack of principals
Citing the Year 2 report of the Second Congressional Commission on Education (EDCOM II), DepEd noted that 55 percent of public schools in the Philippines operate without principals.
READ:
https://mb.com.ph/2024/11/9/24-480-schools-without-principals
This shortage is driven by several factors, including historically low passing rates for the National Qualifying Examination for School Heads (NQESH), high personnel turnover, an insufficient pipeline of candidates, burdensome qualification processes, and the absence of structured mentoring, coaching, and formal induction programs.
“Rest assured, DepEd is taking swift action to address this problem,” Angara said.
Key interventions
To address this challenge, DepEd announced that it will implement several key interventions starting this year.
“The first step is deploying the existing pool of NQESH passers—7,916 as of 2024—to fill vacant principal positions with qualified personnel,” DepEd stated.
Additionally, the department will issue interim guidelines to ensure that principals detailed to offices return to their assigned schools.
“These guidelines will also facilitate the reassignment of surplus principal positions to schools in need,” DepEd explained.
As part of this initiative and in line with the implementation of the Expanded Career Progression Policy, DepEd will reclassify 14,761 Head Teachers (I–V) as School Principal I.
Meanwhile, 954 Head Teacher VI and Assistant School Principal II positions will be retitled as School Principal I, DepEd added.
DepEd clarified that under this process, acting school heads will be prioritized as “on-stream candidates,” ensuring a faster promotion to principal roles.
“Eligible personnel undergoing retitling will also secure their rightful positions as principals in their designated schools,” DepEd stated.
Starting this year, NQESH will be “refocused on competency assessment as a basis for intervention and capacity building,” DepEd noted.
The department further announced that NQESH administration will eventually be “decentralized to regional levels as part of system improvement.”
By 2026, DepEd plans to adopt the School Organizational Structure and Staffing Standards (SOSSS), establishing a 1:1 principal-to-school ratio.
READ:
https://mb.com.ph/2025/1/31/dep-ed-pushes-for-1-1-principal-to-school-policy
“As part of this initiative, an additional 5,870 School Principal I positions will also be created,” DepEd added.
PBBM’s orders
DepEd Undersecretary for Human Resource and Organizational Development Wilfredo Cabral assured that these measures would be closely monitored to ensure their effectiveness, in line with President Marcos’ directive to prioritize the well-being of teachers.
“We owe it to our hardworking and visionary principals, who are often overlooked. DepEd recognizes your passion for keeping our schools operating and running. Thank you for your selfless service,” Cabral said.
During his State of the Nation Address (SONA) last year, President Marcos emphasized the need to prioritize teachers’ needs, noting that “the quality of our education rests on the quality of our teachers.”
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