“Continuity is not about resisting change—it’s about enabling it”
Leadership transitions present an opportunity to reflect not only on where we are but on how far we’ve reached a point—and how much further we need to go.
The complex challenges of the Philippine education sector need leadership with a reform agenda that is grounded, forward-looking, and responsive to real-world challenges.
Retaining Department of Education Secretary Sonny Angara and Technical Education and Skills Development Authority Director General Francisco Benitez would ensure that this direction continues uninterrupted, building on initiatives that are showing promise.
The education sector needs continuity that will accelerate meaningful progress with leaders who know the path forward.
Continuity is not about resisting change—it’s about enabling it.
Both Secretary Angara and DG Benitez bring a kind of leadership that blends vision with pragmatism.
Their work reflects a deep understanding of the real conditions in classrooms, training centers, and communities across the country.
With Angara at the helm, DepEd has begun shifting from piecemeal fixes to cohesive, data-informed strategies. He has prioritized teacher development, more transparency, and smarter infrastructure investment.
Crucially, his leadership has revitalized collaboration with private education institutions, laying the groundwork for shared solutions to long-standing challenges.
One of the most strategic outcomes of this collaboration is the renewed emphasis on public-private partnerships.
These partnerships are key to addressing persistent issues like classroom congestion, uneven access to digital resources, and infrastructure gaps. Under Angara’s direction, DepEd has supported initiatives that maximize the strengths of both public and private sectors, recognizing that national education goals can be better achieved when all stakeholders work in concert.
A central part of this strategy is the proposed expansion of the DepEd voucher program. Currently available only to senior high school students, the proposal seeks to extend support to learners in Kindergarten through Grade 6.
This initiative reflects a forward-thinking approach to immediate and long-term needs.
In the short term, it helps ease overcrowding in public schools while enabling public schools students access to quality education through accredited private educational institutions.
Over the long term, it strengthens a more balanced and responsive education system—one that recognizes the value of choice, equity, and complementarity of the public and private education systems.
Support for this direction has been strong. National private education organizations such as the Coordinating Council of Private Educational Associations, Catholic Educational Association of the Philippines, Philippine Association of Colleges and Universities, and the Private Education Assistance Committee have openly expressed their confidence in Secretary Angara.
They commend his evidence-based governance, focus on reform, and commitment to accountability. As PEAC noted, Secretary Angara’s leadership is exactly what the sector needs at a time when public confidence in education is critical.
A similar case can be made for DG Francisco Benitez at TESDA.
With a clear and inclusive vision, Benitez is positioning technical and vocational education as a dynamic contributor to national development.
His leadership reflects an understanding that workforce readiness goes beyond training—it requires strong industry linkages, lifelong learning pathways, and a system attuned to the evolving demands of the job market.
TESDA, under his stewardship, is making significant strides toward modernization and greater relevance, helping bridge the gap between education and employment.
Benitez’s reforms are particularly timely as the country works to address skills mismatch and youth unemployment.
His push to move beyond short-term programs and toward structured, career-building pathways reflects a systemic view of TVET’s role in economic and social mobility.
Organizations like PACU and UniTVET have recognized his ability to link strategy with impact, and they have voiced strong support for his continued leadership.
Systemic education reform takes time, but we cannot afford intermittent disruptions.
That is why steady, capable leadership matters.
We need more leaders like Secretary Angara and DG Benitez to be empowered to think strategically, act decisively, and respond with both sensitivity and clarity to the realities on the ground.
They have both laid down ambitious yet achievable plans that are beginning to reshape their respective institutions.
Their retention would signal a commitment to thoughtful reform, long-term projection, and performance-based governance.
As the administration considers its next steps, the message should be clear: the work of building a better education system is underway and it deserves to continue with the people who have already shown they can lead it forward.
By keeping Angara and Benitez in their posts, the government affirms its commitment to focused, forward-looking leadership – and ensures the reforms now gaining ground will have the stability and support needed to deliver lasting, meaningful change.
