Most PSS principals not certified

A new report by the Pacific Regional Educational Laboratory under the U.S. Department of Education states that only 20 percent of principals in the CNMI’s Public School System met certification requirements during the 2007-2008 school year.

The release of the report comes as members of the Board of Education raised concerns about the number of acting principals and vice principals in the school system.

For the CNMI, principals must hold a master’s degree with a major in educational administration or related field; a minimum of six years experience; three years teaching and three years of successful experience as a school administrator or related leadership management field; and possess a valid CNMI Administrator’s Certificate. Candidates must also pass Praxis I and Praxis II Content Knowledge tests.

Principals and vice principals not meeting the standards are held in an acting capacity. Currently, there are 12 acting principals and eight permanent principals in the school system.

At a recent Board of Education meeting some members raised concerns about the number of actingships, even as accreditors from the Western Association of Schools and Colleges prepare to visit nine schools this year. In the past, WASC had listed that as an area for improvement.

“With WASC, they want to ensure stability,” Education Commissioner Rita Sablan said. “The board is concerned, as well as I am, at the number of actingships in the school system.”

A change in the certification requirements was adopted in October 2006, said Ramon Diaz, acting Human Resources director. The Administrator’s Certificate, which includes taking several education-related courses, is what factors into the number of actingships, he said.

Principals and vice principals will be evaluated on their progress in this aspect in February.

“That’s what we’re faced with,” Diaz said. “It would be nice to allow school administrators more time. Right now, it’s a two-year time frame. Two years is a short amount of time.”

According to the Pacific region education report, 16.7 percent of CNMI principals, or two of the 12 principals, were certified at the elementary level during the 2007-2008 school year. Twenty-five percent, or two of eight principals, at the secondary level were certified during the same year.

In comparison, all 23 American Samoa elementary principals were certified, while 98 percent of Guam principals and 98.9 percent of Hawaii’s principals were certified during the 2007-2008 school year, according to the report.

For secondary principals, all six principals in American Samoa were certified, as were all 86 in Hawaii. Eleven of the 12, or 91.7 percent, of the principals in Guam were certified.

None of the principals in the Marshall Islands, Federated States of Micronesia or Palau were certified because those jurisdictions do not require certification, according to the report.

The CNMI is one of only three jurisdictions—the other two being American Samoa and Guam—that requires a master’s degree for certification, according to the report. The CNMI is also the only jurisdiction that requires principals to pass both PRAXIS I and II. Hawaii requires passing its own test while Guam requires that principals pass only PRAXIS I, according to the report.

The CNMI, American Samoa, Guam and Hawaii are the only jurisdictions requiring principal certification.