YEAR-END REPORT Education, 1998

The 1999 fiscal year budget left an indelible picture of a difficult year in public education. It defines a year in memory with a series of prudent measures to live within a significantly reduced budget.

While the Public School System has a constitutionally mandated 15 percent budget, the Northern Marianas College must totally rely on the mood of policy-makers on Capital Hill. In either case, both institutions headed by professional women were taken aback by the cut or zero-increase in budget.

PSS had to endure a million dollar budget from last fiscal year while NMC must wrestle a zero-increase in its budget allocation. While newly appointed Commissioner of Education Dr. Rita Inos discusses her plans about children succeeding in life through education, NMC President Agnes McPhetres vigorously fights for fiscal commitment to persuade the accreditation team from the Western Association of Schools and Colleges to grant NMC a four-year degree program in education.

Both had to juggle funds appropriated for FY `99 to educate pupils for less. It is a task forced upon our educational institutions by the severe downturn in revenue generation so triggered by the Asian crisis.

PSS took the lead however painful to deal with the situation with strict fiscal discipline. Critics may say their piece, but it’s leadership at its best from an institution that patiently guides the education of our children in preparation for life’s challenges outside school campuses.

It quickly freezes hiring at the central office then turns around and begins salary cuts for teacher’s aides from $13 an hour to $7 an hour. Board of Education member Tony Pellegrino refers to them as the highest paid baby-sitters whose salaries range anywhere between $20,000 to $30,000 per year. They had to take salary

As schools started losing some of them, in addition to teachers who decided to quit, student-teacher ratio ballooned to 30 students per teacher. The Commissioner promptly asked the Board of Education for suspension of student-teacher ratio requirement.

By October, PSS cuts overtime pay, a move that particularly affected its bus drivers who follow a dawn to dusk work schedule.

Before the year ended, a 10 percent pay cut for the entire PSS work force was in the calendar for the Board’s review. Ninety-day renewal notices were also in imposed, in case the going gets tougher.

Reports of a pending mass leave of teachers after Christmas reached Capital Hill. It threatened to cut short the academic year to March. Gov. Pedro P. Tenorio rescued PSS by approving $1.7 million to ensure that students complete the entire school year.

On the other side of the education arena, the uphill battle of NMC to show fiscal prudence started to antagonize its standing in public even before the budget was passed. Its payroll deficits over the years brought concerns over its ability to manage its finances well.

For this year, NMC’s annual report was conspicuously missing and McPhetres was challenged to produce proof of its transmittal to the legislature to merit continued funding from the non-resident worker’s fee.

But the search was probably the first base to make a full account of NMC’s annual expenditure. Rep. Heinz Hofschneider called for an audit.

While the college prepared its financial records for audit perusal, the Board of Regents called for reorganization, in addition to banning travels outside the CNMI and suspended annual increments.

The restructuring itself was also designed to identify areas where the college could cut and merge certain services. With a total of 20 retirees and resignations, NMC is also in no position to fill these vacancies.

Why Education?

The year’s struggle for survival opened debates over the value of education in the CNMI, the very year the government trumps its card whether to build a $13 million prison facility.

There seems to have little reluctance to invest on lock up facilities for criminals and the safety of society, but the government shows resistance to splurge in education.

The Board of Education takes the credit for pushing the $32 million package in allowing PSS to build new schools in the CNMI. With no money to match the CIP funding, PSS had to look elsewhere and pursued a loan package with a California State Financing Corporation. Although the final signing of the $16 million bond remains tentative, it was the BOE which led efforts in coming up with the $32 million package.

However, there are prevailing factors that lead to the erosion of support for public education.

The assessment of student’s achievement has been a thorn for PSS. Representative Heinz Hofschneider challenges the system to convince his committee with test scores and he will extend his undivided attention on the needs of PSS. Unfortunately this year’s SAT 9 scores failed to deliver.

In addition, the cost of PSS education is heavily attributed to personnel. This year alone, 92 percent of the appropriated cost for PSS goes to salaries. To maintain its entire facilities in the CNMI, PSS lists close to 500 people on its payroll.

The dearth of teaching forces in the CNMI required PSS and NMC to recruit from outside. Their preference to hire teachers from the mainland had narrowed its recruitment options. Both had to pay the high price of external hiring and satisfying its prejudices.

Although compared to PSS, NMC counts some 150 people, higher education is also expensive. The college was appropriated some $575,000 for Educational Assistance Grant for this fiscal year.

The cycle where the government picks up the tab for education even for college starts at NMC or for students who study abroad continues to increase. Post secondary education promises return of investment if graduates return to render services. In the CNMI, there’s no assurance of their pay back services, if indeed the majority of these scholars do complete their degrees.

At NMC, the returned investment is also in question. Its programs which were considered promising in the job market did not deliver the number of graduates. For instance, its Tourism and Business Hospitality had registered one of the lowest enrollees in the entire NMC.

As funding became scarce, school officials debated whether the college is still in the position to continue investing on remedial education. Providing basic courses that should have been learned in elementary and secondary levels brings stronger pressure upon PSS to improve basic instructions at its end of responsibility.

A couple of years back, PSS and NMC came together and founded the 2+2 program which allowed high school students to enroll in college courses. Their early placement at NMC was designed to prepare them to post secondary education and encouraged to enroll in basic English and Math courses. It looks promising.

Later this year, however, the Department of Finance temporarily shelved the scholarship funding for these high school students. Up to now, the Attorney General’s Office is yet to come out with an opinion on whether they are legally considered as college students and therefore qualify for the educational assistance grant.

But despite the rough ride, public education continues to move however derailed by the reduction in budgetary allocation. With the reported mass teacher resignations, she is rallying for volunteer work to man the schools in January.

In addressing its waterloo on students’ assessment examination, she is spearheading PSS-wide efforts to establish baseline data on learning in addition to the testing offered by Stateside instruments. Inos hopes to offer data that are tailored locally to show that learning is indeed taking place in schools.

Unlike McPhetres, she enjoys confidence from the powers that be who support her projects. To her credit, her passion for education can go beyond her credentials to lead PSS into the next millennium.

But still the “Agnes of the College” is also a strong force to reckon with these difficult days. She resisted efforts to silence her presidency and again gained momentum following the visit of the accreditation team who gave her the vote of confidence.

The college is ready with its Strategic Master Plan to guide its operations for the next five years. The CNMI Economic Summit and Study have secured necessary funding and are due for completion in March. Life also goes at NMC.

The future holds more challenges for public education in the CNMI. The future of both institutions depends more on proactivity of its supporters than those of its critics.