The Commission on Higher Education (CHED), in partnership with the Development Academy of the Philippines (DAP), will formally launch on July 19 the second batch of the Executive Development Program (EDP) of the Philippine Higher Education Career System (PhilHECS) at the First Pacific Leadership Academy in Antipolo City, Rizal.

The PhilHECS is a strategic initiative of CHED for the improvement of the quality and internal governance of Philippine higher education, which envisions a professional advancement and career management system that will recruit, select, and develop senior executives in State Universities and Colleges (SUCs) in the Philippines. The initiative will facilitate the creation of a pool of highly-qualified Higher Education Executives (HEEs) from where future leaders of SUCs will be sourced.

The EDP is a key feature of PhilHECS designed to engage aspiring higher education executives and enhance their competencies to prepare them for increased roles in the improvement of the public higher education sector in the country by equipping them with the knowledge, skills, and attitudes (KSAs) necessary to excel as leaders of SUCs. The program targets experienced senior administrators and staff, and mid-level managers from SUCs, other agencies of government and the private sector, who are 35 to 55 years old, has earned a doctorate degree, and aspire to become leaders of SUCs.

This year’s candidates will undergo a rigorous three-month residential training composed of modules organized into four (4) key learning areas that enable them to achieve specific learning outcomes directly anchored on competencies expected from well-rounded and efficient HEEs.

A total of 36 candidates – 58% (or 21) of which are female while 42% (or 15) are male – provides this year’s mix of senior executives with two (2) from NCR, eight (8) from Luzon, 14 from Visayas, and 12 from Mindanao. These candidates, all currently employed in SUCs across the Philippines, went through competitive and rigorous screening, testing and selection processes, were recommended based on results by the PhilHECS Technical Working Group (TWG), and approved by the CHED en banc.

CHED Chairperson Patricia B. Licuanan and members of the TWG, headed by former CHED Commissioner Alex B. Brillantes and Co-chair Deputy Executive Director Napoleon B. Imperial, and other CHED officials will grace the opening of the program. Chairperson Licuanan, former Commissioner Brillantes, former University of the Philippines (UP) President Emerlinda R. Roman among others, will also serve as faculty and resource persons of the training program.