Not many outside the Teachers Service Commission (TSC) knew Evaleen Jesang Mitei before Tuesday, when she was made acting chief executive officer.
She steps into the role following the exit of long-serving CEO Nancy Macharia, at a time when there’s mounting pressure on the Commission to deliver on key reforms in teacher management and deployment.
While Mitei is a career human resource management professional, having spent three decades in the field, her career began in the classroom.
Evaleen Jesang Mitei, the newly-appointed acting CEO of the Teachers Service Commission.
Photo credit: Pool
Despite many years in the boardroom, teachers hope that her roots in the classroom mean she can relate to systemic issues affecting their welfare as she takes the helm of one of Kenya’s most critical education agencies.
She began her career in 1994 as a graduate teacher at Samoei Secondary School in Nandi, where she also served as acting deputy head teacher. She left teaching to join education administration in 1999 when she joined TSC headquarters as a staffing officer. Here, she managed the recruitment, deployment and transfer of teachers across the country.
Over the years, she has steadily risen through the ranks at the Commission, holding numerous key leadership roles in Human Resource Management and Development.
Notably, she served as Deputy Director, Senior Deputy Director and later Acting Director of Teacher Discipline Management (TDA), a position she held until her current appointment.
As head of TDA, she was in charge of implementation of disciplinary procedure on teachers that violate the Code of Regulations for Teachers.
Between 2003 and 2007, she was seconded to the Public Service Reform and Development Secretariat under the Cabinet Office where she played a significant role in reengineering HR processes and building capacity within government ministries.
Heart of teacher conduct oversight
Her most recent role as Director of Teacher Discipline Management, from June 2024, placed her at the heart of teacher conduct oversight, where she led policy formulation and the coordination of disciplinary processes.
Mitei holds a Master of Science in Human Resource Management from the prestigious University of Manchester (UK) and a Bachelor of Education (Arts) degree from Moi University.
She is currently pursuing a Doctor of Philosophy in Human Resource Management at Jomo Kenyatta University of Agriculture and Technology (JKUAT).
As a leader, she is known for championing development of the Teacher Induction, Mentorship and Coaching policy, as well as spearheading capacity-building programs for heads of institutions and field officers.
As the acting CEO, she is expected to oversee the continuity of key reforms, maintain industrial harmony within the teaching profession and lead the Commission as it navigates teacher staffing challenges and education sector transitions.
Her appointment has been welcomed across the education sector as a nod to experience and a deep understanding of the inner workings of TSC.
Kenya National Union of Teachers (Knut) Deputy Secretary General Hesbon Otieno said the union expects a cordial working relationship with TSC during the transitional period under Mitei.
Review of hardship allowances
“We wish her well in her new role and hope she organises to meet with the stakeholders,” he said.
The Kenya Union of Post Primary Teachers (Kuppet) Secretary-General Akelo Misori said there should be no further delays in TSC’s engagement with the unions concerning the 2025-2029 Collective Bargaining Agreement.
“As the unions and the country in generally is aware, the Commission is fully constituted… what we now need is that the TSC, through the acting CEO, engages unions and ensures the process is seamlessly followed,” said Misori.
The current CBA is set to lapse end of June to pave way for negotiations on a new one, in which Kuppet has hinted that it proposed an upward review of hardship allowances.
