BOE renews opposition to bilingual teachers only

Board of Education Chair Frances H. Diaz has renewed opposition to a proposed legislation requiring kindergarten to 3rd grade teachers to have knowledge in Chamorro or Carolinian language.

BOE members earlier prodded the Senate to review this House proposal which they said would impede the Public School System’s ability to recruit qualified teachers.

“We don’t want to start delegating that we have to hire Chamorro speaking teachers because bilingual subjects are mandated and required for our students under the school system curriculum. Right now, an existing policy calls for this. So that’s why we’re saying, no law should have to tell us to hire these bilingual teachers because we are already offering the program,” said the board chair.

PSS currently has difficulty recruiting bilingual teachers and according to Ms. Diaz, this predicament is experienced by public schools in Tinian.

“There are some teachers that are non-Chamorro speaking so they cannot teach bilingual education in the lower grades,” she added.

The board added PSS could face potential lawsuits if such limitation is put in place.

House leaders earlier asked BOE to submit comments and suggestions prior to passing House Bill 12-158, one of the measures set in motion to overhaul CNMI’s public education system.

Meanwhile, PSS and BOE officials also expressed opposition to a provision designating the Department of Public Works to take responsibility for the construction and major renovations of public and school facilities.

“We respectfully inform the Senate that there are Capital Improvement Projects Committee and a CIP office addressing CIP issues for PSS. These teams have the responsibility to meet standards and requirements to provide for the appropriate instruction, health and welfare of the students of the CNMI and we take this responsibility to the students very seriously. We also have the experience and special knowledge necessary for the development of educational facilities,” said education leaders.

Both the school system and the BOE also agree that inserting “concurrence with the Legislature” in establishing and approving curricula, administrative policies and assessment content and performance standards for PSS could create unnecessary administrative problems and delay PSS’ federally-funded programs and projects.

PSS and BOE also stood pat on its position not to endorse a certain provision under the bill seeking to amend a list of qualifications for the Commissioner of Education which states that he or she must have three consecutive years of responsible administrative experience, three consecutive years of full time teaching experience, and fluent in Chamorro/English or Carolinian/English.

According to BOE members, the board is in the best position to review the qualifications of an applicant and determine if the applicant will be a responsible and efficient commissioner.