Marcos picks commissioner as new CHED chief
Metro Manila, Philippines - Commission on Higher Education (CHED) Commissioner Shirley Agrupis is the agency’s new chairperson, replacing Prospero de Vera, Executive Secretary Lucas Bersamin said.
In a press briefing on Thursday, May 29, Bersamin said President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. has accepted the courtesy resignation of De Vera.
He said while he is not privy to the official reason behind Marcos’ decision, De Vera has already served two terms.
“Maybe the president wanted to give a fresh start to the CHED. Or maybe there were other reasons. Hindi natin madi-discount that may factor diyan yung mga intramurals sa CHED [We cannot discount the intramurals in CHED as factors]. I don’t know, I cannot particularize because I am just generally aware of those particulars,” said Bersamin.
De Vera, CHED chief since 2018 under the Duterte administration, led the transition of colleges and universities into flexible learning during the COVID-19 pandemic. He was reapppointed by Marcos in 2022.
Meanwhile, Agrupis was president of the Mariano Marcos State University (MMSU) in Ilocos Norte, the president’s home province.
She is a member of the CHED technical working group “for the revision and formulation of criteria in the evaluation and levelling of state universities and colleges,” according to her biography posted in the MMSU website.
Agrupis was also a part of a special task force created by the United States Agency for International Development to assist universities in research and innovation.
