Accreditation official: Probe ‘intrudes’ into NMC affairs •Hofschneider decries what he calls as a ‘fear tactic’

The Northern Marianas College raised alarm on its accreditation to the House committee on Health, Education and Welfare, warning the ongoing oversight hearing has edged toward a “political intrusion” into the internal affairs of the Board of Regents.

Committee chair Rep. Heinz Hofschneider, however, slammed what he called a “fear tactic” on its status as a means to defend the state college against allegations of mismanagement and discrepancies in the implementation of policies.

An official from the Western Association of Schools and Colleges (WASC), the accrediting commission for NMC based in California, testified during the resumption of the hearing last Friday — postponed twice last week — to stress significance of the status quo.

“The rule is very clear that the board should be independent and if there’s any attempt to take the power of the board to manage its internal affairs, the commission will take a very deep view of that,” said Ernest Leach, who is on the island to conduct workshop with college regents.

But Hofschneider accused the WASC official of making a “qualifying statement” in his meeting with the college board questioning the oversight role of the legislature on NMC, calling it divisive.

He also disclosed a report from the commission issued last January in which he claimed he was singled out in his attempt to investigate into the operations and management of the financially-troubled institution.

“How can the accreditation be blind when you have before you a financial report that revealed serious overspending, lack of controls, very bad management and embezzlement,” Hosfchneider asked.

Admitting he felt uneasy for being put in the spotlight, Leach told the panel the commission has set in place a mechanism to resolve the problems facing any educational institution in a bid to prevent stepping over the line.

NMC has been a WASC member since 1985 and its accreditation is necessary to be eligible for federal grants and to allow its students to gain credits when they enroll in accredited U.S. colleges and universities.

While its accreditation is reviewed every four years and a midterm inspection is also being conducted every two years, Hofschneider underscored the failure of the commission to consider in its review NMC’s financial records, which he charged to have consistent deficit in the last few years.

“Accreditation should not be paramount to the question of unaccounted public expenditures and mismanagement in the college,” he told reporters after the two-hour questioning.

“We should not be so wrapped up or so convinced that accreditation is so important to a point that we have to appropriate money and it ends up being abused and misused,” Hofschneider added.

New findings: Meanwhile, the panel unleashed new findings during the six-hour hearing last Friday, the eight in the series of oversight on NMC and the government scholarship program.

A document revealed that NMC comptroller Lawrence Harris is an officer of an accounting firm hired by the college to do independent audit of their financial records.

Hofschneider alleged the company, ran by David J. Burger, produced the first “clean financial record” for NMC in 1996. But President Agnes M. McPhetres told the panel the public auditor selected the firm.

“It was the public auditor that made the choice. We give $80,000 a year to OPA,” she said.

When pressed on the “ethical” issue of the findings, Leach said the internal process of the audit should be left with the board and that public disclosure of all assets and interest of government officials must be adopted.

The panel also charged conflict of interest on the operations of the privately-owned college cafeteria, citing that McPhetres’ brother was awarded the contract.

The president claimed she did not participate in the decision despite being a member of the NMC board of auxiliary services. Her brother Martin Manglona was not allowed to speak by the committee during the hearing when he attempted to do so.

In the afternoon session, attended only by middle managers and vice presidents of the college, HEW focused its inquiry on the lab school being run by the School of Education for its student teachers.

According to Hofschneider, charging of fees by the department for primary students attending the experimental school is contrary to the Constitution which mandates free, compulsory education.

He also claimed that the lab school — one of the programs implemented by NMC in recent years, is being subsidized by the government as the cost of running it falls short of the total revenues it generates.

She has to go: Meanwhile, Hofschneider told reporters that it’s about time that the college undertake reform measures and overhaul the existing system that has been blamed for shortfall of funds.

“She continues to overrun appropriated funds,” he said, referring to McPhetres. “I am not going to hide behind that she has to go. It’s time for change in the college. I am not going to tell the board (that) because I have no business telling who to appoint.”