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PSS has enough teachers
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Posted on Aug 14 1999
The Public School System filled over 100 teaching positions this school year, giving a guarantee that every classroom in the CNMI public schools has enough teachers, a PSS official said yesterday.
“During the first week of school, every request for a teacher or teacher aide has been granted,” said Bill Matson, PSS budget official and CIP program coordinator.
Matson said that aside from the 102 applicants who showed up at the job fair last June, PSS also accepted more applications recently.
“In the last couple of weeks, we have hired more teachers and teacher aides. Some of them are teachers who left last school year because of the financial instability of PSS,” Matson said. “They have come back to join PSS again.”
Earlier this year, the education agency’s squeezing budget forced PSS to include into the teachers’ contracts an addendum that served as termination notice in the event that the agency failed to find money for personnel.
Funds were promptly gathered through realignment of staff and reduction in overtime, among other austerity measures.
Matson said the local funds for teachers are subsidized by federal money from the US Department of Education’s consolidated grants amounting to $4.6 million.
“Most teachers are locally-funded. They are budgeted through local appropriation and don’t have to comply with the same requirements as federally-funded teachers are expected to,” Matson said.
The education department requires that the federal grant be used only to fund teachers who carry out specific programs for educational advancement.
“Advanced math teachers, for example, fall under this category,” Matson said. “Each year, we review these programs to make sure they are still needed.” (MCM)
