The Public School System\u2019s drive to pass House Legislative Initiative 18-12 was kick started before a crowd of principals, teachers, and students on Friday outside the Commonwealth\u2019s Board of Education building in Susupe.<\/p>\n
Two students unveiled a banner reading \u201cVote Yes On 18-12: Students First!\u201d to applause from the crowd.<\/p>\n
The Legislature unanimously passed the initiative this month to amend the CNMI Constitution and increase PSS\u2019 share of the annual government budget from 15 percent to 25 percent.<\/p>\n
Education Commissioner Dr. Rita Sablan said she received a flood of texts from senators and supporters on July 10, telling her of the Senate passing the initiative.<\/p>\n
While she asked the crowd to thank their lawmakers, she also pushed the crowd to take the initiative to \u201cthe next level\u201d by getting the community at large to vote yes on the initiative in November.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe\u2019re going to need your help, principals, vice principals, teachers, counselors students, parents, and all of our partners,\u201d Sablan said.<\/p>\n
The commissioner spoke of \u201cfour big things\u201d that PSS would like to see established if their budget were to increase.<\/p>\n
First, Sablan said, PSS would like to expand the early childhood education program, calling it a \u201ccritical stage\u201d in a student\u2019s overall success. Second, Sablan said class sizes would ideally be reduced from 30 to 25. The final two improvements are coming to classes fully equipped with necessary supplies and a revamped and modernized public school buildings befitting the 21st century.<\/p>\n
While Sablan thanked legislators and encouraged community support, Board of Education chair Herman Guerrero challenged the Legislature to continue to push for a better education for the children of the Commonwealth and the generations to come. <\/p>\n
\u201cThis initiative is increasing the minimum that the public school is guaranteed. The Constitution currently sets it at 15 percent. Now we\u2019re elevating it to 25 percent. There are certain mentalities sometimes with legislators that they are only bound to make the minimum and that\u2019s not true, [the minimum] is just to make sure that it doesn\u2019t fall below that level.\u201d<\/p>\n
Guerrero said if budgets are set at the minimum it is very hard for the system to operate but, with more funds, much more improvement in education can be provided.<\/p>\n
Last week, the House Ways and Means Committee prefiled fiscal year 2015\u2019s budget with an allocation of $32.27 million for PSS. This after the board and PSS asked for a median \u201c$36 million\u201d between Gove. Eloy S. Inos\u2019 proposed $32 million budget and their initial endorsed budget of $40 million.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe need to start looking in terms of what education is going to be like in 20 years, 30 years from now,\u201d Guerrero said.<\/p>\n
Of the \u201cfour big things\u201d Sablan wants for PSS, Guerrero claims the Legislature asked PSS and the board which one is the highest priority and which ones could be taken out.<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019m not going to answer that question because each one of them is an intricate part of the overall picture of education,\u201d Guerrero said. \u201cYou cannot reduce class sizes in our schools if you don\u2019t even have enough classrooms.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
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