House panel OKs extension of teacher scholarship

The House Committee on Education has passed a bill extending the postsecondary teacher education program, which expires on Sept. 3, 2004, for another five years.

In related development, the House has allocated over $24,000 in unclaimed lottery prizes from 1998 to March 2004 for the teacher education program scholarship.

Earlier, public school teacher representative Ambrose Bennett petitioned the Legislature to place the unclaimed amount under the teacher representative reserve account for teachers’ use.

“It’s agreed that the money should be directed to the education program scholarship,” said committee chair Justo Quitugua.

At the same time, Quitugua introduced a bill calling for the creation of a Lottery Commission for unclaimed prizes. It provides that all unclaimed prizes shall be deposited in the postsecondary teacher education program scholarship account to be created by the Secretary of Finance.

The CNMI Scholarship administrator shall be the expenditure authority of the funds.

Meanwhile, in a report, Quitugua’s committee recommends the passage of House Bill 14-205, which gives the teacher education program a five-year extension.

The bill, authored by Quitugua, requires the submission of an annual report to the governor, the presiding officers of the Legislature, and the education commissioner on the administration of the program.

The report would contain the number of students participating in the program, the number of students who have successfully completed an accredited teacher training program at a college or university, and the number of participating students who have returned to the CNMI to teach in schools.

The committee said it finds that the Commonwealth must continue building up its pool of local teachers.

Since 1998, it said that 141 students graduated from Northern Marianas College and University of Guam with bachelor degrees in Elementary Education.

The scholarship program, enacted in 1997, aims to encourage more CNMI scholars to become teachers to serve the Commonwealth’s rapidly growing student population and lessen the costly dependence on teachers from abroad.

It cited that, as of 2003-2004, the Public School System listed over 11,000 student enrolment.

The committee said that the teacher scholarship program recorded 100 recipients in 2000-2001 and 20 graduates; 82 recipients and 27 graduates in 2001-2001; 80 recipients and 24 graduates in 2002-2003; and 78 recipients and 26 graduates in 2003-2004.

As of spring 2004, it listed 95 freshmen, 37 sophomores, 26 juniors, and 46 seniors at NMC taking up education.

“The program has been successful in serving as an incentive for students aspiring to achieve higher educational goals to choose to become teachers,” the committee said.

It added that both the PSS and NMC support the program’s extension, citing the increasing interest among students.

Quitugua’s committee said the original goal of the education program—to encourage more CNMI students become teachers—“is being met.”

“It is also apparent that there is a need for the extension…because not all scholarship recipients will choose to become teachers or choose to remain teachers,” the committee said.

The committee said that in 2000-2001, one of the graduates was employed as a planner while another was employed as executive secretary.