EDUCATION FORUM

The Saipan Tribune invited its readers to submit questions that will be posed to all Board of Education candidates. The responses of the candidates will be published each Saturday this month. Today, we feature the response of Lucia L. Blanco-Maratita.

By LUCIA L. BLANCO-MARATITA
Special to the Saipan Tribune

Thank you for the opportunity to respond, as a candidate for Board of Education (from Tinian), to your questions concerning the education of the CNMI’s children. The questions represent some of the important issues facing the Public School System and the job of the board in ensuring that the constitutional mandates [of providing maximum educational and training opportunities, among others] are carried out.

Q. What new ideas do you have to help the board change and improve the Public School System?

A. While our Constitution and statutes set out the many responsibilities of the board, my first responsibility, should I be elected, is to listen and thoroughly analyze the present state of education. As in any new job, in order to thoroughly understand what needs to be done, you must first know what you are dealing with. There have been many issues brought to my attention by stakeholders in education, such as parents, teachers, and staff.

After hearing and listening to those concerns, what has to happen next is to look at the present machinery and determine whether the system is functioning well, whether it is delivering educational services in an effective and efficient manner, and whether the stakeholders’ valid concerns are being addressed. If the system is not functioning well, then perhaps it’s time to “think outside the box.” As an example, there’s the issue of using site-based management in the schools. This is something that I would seriously explore in order to determine whether it would lead to improving the delivery of educational services. We need to be innovative and creative, especially in finding ways to not only raise the adequate financial resources we need but also to make the small “bucks” go a little longer.

Q. What do you think is PSS’ biggest challenge for the next four years and how will your membership on the board help to address this challenge?

A. Innovation and creativity are especially needed now when the biggest challenge PSS is facing, and will continue to face for the next four years, is the dwindling budget and rising cost of education. As a member of the Board of Education, I will encourage the board and PSS to continue to build a relationship of collaboration with the community, parents, the Legislature and the administration. The support of everyone will be needed in order for us to have the best education for our children.

Education should never be an “us against them” issue. While critics alone are helpful in pointing out errors, critics that come armed with suggestions and possible solutions are much more valuable. We must find new avenues of budgeting solutions for PSS; some may not be as palatable as others—that is why everyone’s collaboration is critical. Another challenge that PSS will have is meeting the requirements imposed on PSS through the No Child Left Behind measure—grants that we have come to heavily depend on. This can be met with focused attention to ensuring that we do not lose this much needed funding and use it to our advantage to equip our students with the communication skills they will need.

Q. Should teachers be granted a status that protects them from summary dismissal? Why or why not?

A. This collaboration has to include the teachers, of course. They are the most important tool in the education of our children; therefore, a great teacher who possesses the heart and mind to inspire our kids to learn should be given the incentives to continue to perform. However, schools exist to teach our children, not as a source of guaranteed employment. This is not to say that the teachers should be left without due process guarantees and to the whims of the arbitrary and capricious actions of the employer; however, we should not lose focus of our primary goal—delivering the best education for our children. A system that rewards the teachers for excellence, based on merit, would best serve our educational goals while protecting and rewarding quality teachers. Besides, quality teachers do not need to fear for their jobs; they may, however, be offended by others who may not be “toeing their own line.”

Q. What is the responsibility of the board in helping preserve the CNMI’s indigenous cultures?

A. Part of the constitutional mandates of our educational system is to “…recognize the distinct and unique cultural heritage and indigenous way of life…committed to provide for the language needs…and preservation of their cultural integrity within a global community.” We must be cognizant of that responsibility.

However, the primary responsibility for the promotion and preservation of our cultures should be with our parents, grandparents—our family should be the key holders charged with passing it from one generation to another. The educational system should be involved insofar as being cognizant of the effects of culture and the role that our cultures play in our lives and work with, not against, those cultures. In addition, the PSS should provide as much opportunities as possible where students could use their cultures as a learning-tool in the classrooms and to display their proud heritage.

Q. How will you work with other board members to ensure harmony, consensus, and cooperation in board deliberations?
A. In order to promote unity among the different stakeholders, I believe it is important to ensure that everyone has an opportunity to voice their concerns, opinions, and advocate for their cause. It is not different from board deliberations. I will seek to work with other board members as a member of a team, a team that has one primary goal—the best educational interest of the students.

Q. What qualifications will you look for in a candidate when the Board seeks to fill the soon-to-be vacant position of Commission of Education?

A. Dr. Rita Inos’ shoes will be hard to fill as she has been a strong, committed, and effective leader, nationally recognized as one of the most forward thinking leaders in education. In these trying times, we will need to continue to have a strong, committed and effective leader and advocate in education. We will also need to make sure that the next commissioner has the ability and capability to work with all stakeholders and has a deep sense of community, a person who can inspire others to make sacrifices for our children because nothing of value comes without sacrifices. These are the general characteristics that I would look for in a candidate for the next Commissioner but other qualifications, such as education, training, proficiency and other criterion would, of course, have to be given their just weight in the evaluation process.

Q. What contribution will you make to the board to help CNMI students, as a whole, to equal or surpass the academic achievement of students in the mainland?

A. I have always envisioned an educational system that produces graduating students who are able to compete with other students for jobs and entry to U.S. colleges. I believe that one of the ways of ensuring this goal is to be able to meet or surpass the national academic achievement levels. Colleges have been greatly limited in their use of student minority status in granting admission points; it is therefore very important that our students have the knowledge and skills the colleges are looking for in order to get in and be able to stay in. An important skill that students must have is effective communication skills. Our students should be able to not only speak but to speak effectively, to be able to articulate and advocate on their behalf. Another important skill that the students must have is the ability to access information using technology, analyze and give meaning to that information, and then make informed decisions based on use of that information. Thus, my contribution would be to take a focused approach and make results-oriented and results-based decisions as a board member.

Q. Students in the CNMI often receive little or no practical training in fields where employment is available. There is little opportunity for student laboratory experience and training in sciences, because basic laboratory equipment has not been supplied for courses such as biology, chemistry and physics. How do you propose to help students prepare for careers in medicine, nursing and other technical fields where laboratory training is important?

A. It is true that we lack the local capacity for many professional and technical fields, such as in medicine, nursing, laboratory technicians, etc. With the current budgetary constraints, we need to find ways to make this possible through collaboration with the communities. While the basics have to be taught by the schools, we could explore externship opportunities and form partnerships with businesses or government agencies, such as DEQ, EPA, CUC, etc. to place students under the mentorship of qualified technicians. In addition, we could create other programs (like the 2+2 program) at the Northern Marianas College to include our more advanced math and science students in those college level course and have extended labs conducted once a week in order to give them hands-on experiences. There is also abundant programs on-line that we could use to supplement, where appropriate.

All the issues facing PSS are very important and far reaching into the future; they must be addressed as soon as possible or else it will not be soon enough. In the words of former President Franklin D. Roosevelt: “We cannot always build the future for our youth, but we can build our youth for the future.”

(Lucia L. Blanco-Maratita is a candidate for the Board of Education representing Tinian.)