SINGAPORE — Sixty new principals will be appointed later this year, with at least two experienced educators moving to helm schools in the heartlands.

Mr Richard Lim, who is now principal of Anglo-Chinese School (Primary), will take over the leadership role at Si Ling Primary School. Mr Ong Lye Whatt, who has been a principal at Kong Hwa School for the past decade, will take over at Gan Eng Seng Primary School.

Speaking to TODAY, Mr Ong acknowledged that the profiles of the two schools are different. Still, he noted that engaging teachers and parents will remain key “for the benefit of the children”. Mr Ong, who has been in the education service for the past 25 years, said he aimed to find out what the students’ learning needs are at Gan Eng Seng Primary School. “I’ll need to look at what the school has been doing to address this (issue), and from there, I will see how to add value,” he said.

The Education Ministry (MOE) yesterday announced that 60 schools will get new principals, of whom 25 are newly-appointed.

The rest have been redeployed from MOE headquarters or other schools, and their appointments serve as “affirmation of MOE’s confidence in their abilities to continue guiding our teachers and our young”.

“The process of systematically appointing and rotating principals allows schools to benefit from the infusion of fresh perspectives and enables experienced principals to share best practices in support of ‘Every School a Good School’. It also gives the principals the opportunity to take on new challenges as part of their career development,” the MOE added.

The ministry’s announcement came a day after Education Minister Heng Swee Keat said some of its most experienced and well-regarded principals will be sent to head schools in the heartlands — a practice that has been in place previously, TODAY understands. Addressing graduates of this year’s Leaders in Education Programme at the National Institute of Education on Thursday, Mr Heng said the leadership renewal process will, among other things, inject fresh perspectives across the education system.

As part of the leadership changes, Mrs Lim Lai Cheng, Raffles Institution’s first woman principal, will be stepping down. When she leaves at the end of this year, Victoria Junior College (VJC) principal Chan Poh Meng will take over her position. Ms Ek Soo Ben, who is now Deputy Director at the Academy of Singapore Teachers, will head VJC.

At the Singapore Sports School, Mr Tan Teck Hock will be appointed the new principal from Dec 15. He replaces Mrs Deborah Tan, who will relinquish her role and assume a senior appointment at the MOE.

The new principals will receive their letters of appointment on Dec 27.