Gatchalian to DepEd: Prioritize schools without principals for a long time

Senator Sherwin Gatchalian on Thursday said the Department of Education's principal deployment plan should prioritize public schools that ''have long lacked permanent leadership."

The Senate basic education chairman and co-chairperson of the Second Congressional Commission (EDCOMM II) on Education made the call as the DepEd seeks to address the problem of shortage of principals in the country.

While welcoming this "significant step toward strengthening school management," Gatchalian said the Senate remains committed to working with DepEd "to ensure that the recruitment and deployment of principals are based on merit and competency, prioritizing schools that have long lacked permanent leadership."

"It is equally important to establish clear career paths for aspiring school heads and provide continuous training and professional development to equip them for the demands of the role," he said.

"A well-trained principal can make a huge difference in a school’s performance. We must ensure they have the necessary skills and resources to lead effectively," Gatchalian said.

According to the DepEd, it will be deploying passers of the National Qualifying Examination for School Heads (NQESH) to fill the vacant principal positions.

As of 2024, there were 7,916 teachers who had passed the NQESH, which assesses the competency and quality of aspiring school leaders in DepEd schools.

The agency will then issue interim guidelines to ensure that principals detailed to offices return to their assigned schools. These guidelines will also facilitate the reassignment of other principal positions to schools in need.

DepEd will also reclassify 14,761 Head Teachers I to V as School Principal I under the Expanded Career Progression Policy. Meanwhile, 954 Head Teachers VI and Assistant School Principal II positions will be retitled to School Principal I.

Under this process, acting school heads will be prioritized as “on-stream candidates” to ensure their faster promotion to principal roles, the agency said. Eligible personnel undergoing retitling will also secure their rightful positions as principals in their designated schools.

“This pressing issue is an eye-opener. So many of our schools operate without brains—because that’s what our principals are, the brains of our schools. Rest assured, DepEd is taking swift action to address this problem,” Education Secretary Sonny Angara said in a statement.

It was the EDCOMM II that flagged the shortage of public school principals in the country. In its report released last month, it said that a total of 24,916 public schools in the country have no sitting principals.

In response, the DepEd said it is eyeing implementing a one principal-one school policy.

By 2026, the agency is expected to adopt the School Organizational Structure and Staffing Standards, establishing a 1:1 principal-to-school ratio. An additional 5,870 School Principal I positions will also be created to support this initiative. —VBL, GMA Integrated News