Yahya Ibrahim G. Yusop

The Palace has appointed Dr. Shirley C. Agrupis as the new chairperson of the Commission on Higher Education (CHED), replacing Prospero "Popoy" De Vera III.


Executive Secretary Lucas Bersamin confirmed the appointment in a press briefing on May 29.

De Vera submitted his courtesy resignation last week following President Ferdinand Marcos Jr.’s call for Cabinet officials to step down after his political party suffered significant losses in the recent midterm elections.

“After almost seven years of leading the Commission on Higher Education, I respectfully accept the decision of President Ferdinand R. Marcos to end my term as Chairman,” De Vera said in a statement.

De Vera’s term was originally set to end in July 2026, but he stepped down “pursuant to the instructions of the President.”

President Marcos accepted his resignation and appointed Agrupis, the sixth and first woman president of Mariano Marcos State University (MMSU), where she has served since 2017.

As a scientist and educator, Agrupis earned her doctoral degree in agricultural sciences from Shizuoka University in Japan, her master’s in botany from the University of the Philippines Los Baños, and her bachelor’s in biology from MMSU.

De Vera congratulated Agrupis on her new role, calling her appointment “well-deserved.”

Her advocacies for science and education are expected to shape CHED’s new chapter of leadership in the country’s higher education sector.