Edcom: Over 26,000 public schools still without principals

Over 26,000 public schools in the country remain without a principal, which can affect the learning development of students and professional growth of teachers, according to the Second Congressional Commission on Education (Edcom 2).

In a statement on Thursday, Edcom 2 called for an increase in the funding for School Principal I positions in the 2027 national budget, noting that current budget proposals cover only some 3,000 new positions.

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Despite the need for new principal positions, the Department of Education (DepEd) has yet to fill the 6,000 Principal I positions created under its 2026 budget. Edcom 2 noted that only 843 positions have been filled as of Sept. 30. “The gap matters because principals answer for how a school performs,” the commission said.

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Based on DepEd rules, there should be one principal per school or for a cluster of at least three schools with nine or more teachers. One head teacher is also required for a school or a cluster of schools with six or more teachers.

Teachers as OICs

According to Edcom 2, there are 3,765 schools across the country that are “urgent cases” because they have neither a principal nor a head teacher. Moreover, 5,000 other schools with nine or more teachers do not have principals and are led only by a head teacher.

Edcom 2 said these schools alone require the hiring of 7,379 new principals. That figure should be covered by the vacant positions under the 2026 budget and the positions available under the 2027 budget.

To ensure that all public schools have principals by 2028, Edcom 2 said at least 6,000 new posts are needed in 2026, 8,000 in 2027 and 8,124 in 2028.

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School administrators

When a school has no principal or head teacher, Edcom 2 explained their roles fall to a “regular classroom teacher designated as teacher-in-charge or officer-in-charge” who usually do not have the same support for actual school heads.

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It cited the case of Koronadal National Comprehensive High School in South Cotabato, where a teacher serves as OIC in charge of 402 teachers and 10,602 students, “with limited fiscal and decision-making authority and no formal path for professional growth.”

Principals serve as the schools’ “chief instructional leader,” Edcom 2 said, citing the Governance of Basic Education Act of 2001 and DepEd’s Order No. 24, series of 2020.

They are the ones “responsible for making sure learners reach their learning targets” and that “teachers grow professionally,” it noted.

Principals serve administrative, operational and fiscal functions, and also ensure the implementation of the Academic Recovery and Accessible Learning Program and School-Based Feeding Program, among others.

Edcom 2 urged DepEd to fast-track the hiring of principals for the 5,157 vacant positions under the 2026 budget, and called for additional funding to open at least 5,000 more School Principal I positions in the 2027 budget.

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It also urged the government to prioritize the hiring of principals in the 3,765 schools it identified as urgent cases. INQ