Joseph Artero-Cameron, president of the Department of Chamorro Affairs, will be in charge of the merged departments. The immediate cost savings is $217,000 a year from the elimination of the following positions: executive director of the Guam Public Library System; the executive director of the Hagåtña Restoration project; and the executive director of Council for the Arts and Humanities Agency.
The governor also gave control of the village public libraries to the village mayors of Merizo, Agat, Yona, Barrigada and Dededo, which, the mayors said, will be turned into community learning centers of excellence.
The merger will revamp the library system so it meets the demands of the community and increases education and literacy, according to the governor’s Reorganization Advisory No. 6.
The mayors from the villages said they were excited to have a building that can be used to promote classroom settings for villagers who want to obtain their GED, through a program run by Guam Community College. The mayors said many programs can be incorporated in their village now that they have the facilities to host them.
Yona Mayor Jose “Pedo” Terlaje said he was very excited about having the Yona library turned over to his office. Terlaje said more cost savings will be realized since his office will be in charge of the maintenance and upkeep of the property.
Terlaje said he expects to keep the library component, but more programs will be integrated to enhance the library’s services.
Cameron said he will be on-site visiting the libraries next week to determine what steps need to be taken before the keys can be turned over to the village mayors.
Cameron said the merger is the beginning of a cultural renaissance and he will be submitting to the Department of Administration a layoff plan, based on redundancies within the departments.
The merger will also realize the development, implementation and advancement, not only of the native Chamorros, but also other Asian-Pacific island residents of Guam.
“This public corporation will be the guiding force in all aspects of Chamorro culture, language, preservation, education, arts, humanities and history, through public policy, advocacy, research, publication, authentication, restoration, presentation and production, and by providing and overseeing a repository for historical documents, cultural artifacts and documentary and narrative film and video,” said Camero.
