SENATOR Joel Villanueva on Sunday welcomed the government’s decision to hire 10,000 non-teaching personnel, calling it a positive step for the country’s education sector.

According to Villanueva, the initiative complements earlier efforts to recruit 20,000 new teachers for the upcoming school year and supports Department of Education Order No. 2, s. 2024, which mandates the removal of administrative duties from public school teachers.

“Our teachers have long been burdened with non-teaching tasks,” Villanueva said. “This measure addresses that long-standing concern and allows teachers to focus on what they do best—teaching.”

Villanueva, a commissioner of the Second Congressional Commission on Education (EDCOM2), noted that during consultations, teachers reported handling over 50 additional responsibilities. These include managing school canteens, coordinating the 4Ps and school-based feeding programs, and overseeing the Gulayan sa Paaralan project.

“These tasks pull teachers away from the classroom and negatively affect the quality of instruction,” he said. “If our teachers can focus solely on teaching, they’ll have more time and energy to help address the learning crisis.”

The senator stressed that filling government vacancies is a key advocacy of his—not just to improve services, but also to generate employment.

According to the 2025 DepEd Staffing Summary, there are still 47,546 unfilled positions in the department.

“With the student population growing, the need for more teachers and support staff becomes even more urgent,” he said. “This hiring initiative shows that the government is finally listening to the clamor of our educators and learners—and is beginning to fix the system.”