EDUCATION Commissioner Lawrence F. Camacho, EdD issued the following statement Friday, March 21, 2025:
“Earlier today, President Trump signed the executive order (EO) that sets in motion the dismantling of the United States Department of Education.
“The EO, among others, mandates ‘[the] …return [of] authority over education to the States and local communities while ensuring the effective and uninterrupted delivery of services, programs, and benefits on which Americans rely.’
“Both the CNMI Constitution and the Public Education Act of 1988 were designed to give the CNMI Public School System that authority: the power to efficiently deliver education and provide related services directly to the children of the Commonwealth by virtue of its independence and autonomy as a government instrumentality.
“The Public School System functions as a unitary state and local education agency governed by the policymaking body, the CNMI Board of Education. The Board of Education promulgates policies, rules, and regulations for the school district.
“The Public School System implements critical and essential services for elementary and secondary education in the Northern Mariana Islands, and we assure that these services will not be impacted by this executive order and the recent reduction in force of the U.S. Department of Education employees.
“The Office of Elementary and Secondary Education (OESE) employees who oversee the allocation, monitoring, and management of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act’s (ESEA) title formula funding and discretionary grant programs were not impacted by the recent reduction in force. These funds will continue to flow normally, and program functions will not be disrupted. Federal education officials have said that the distribution of formula funds should not be affected by this announcement.
“As your Commissioner of Education and Chief State School Officer, I am working very closely with the Department of Education and the Council of Chief State School Officers to get the full understanding of this development, and any additional changes, if any, that may affect the CNMI PSS, which, in its current structure, is protected from any potential effects.
“The U.S. Department of Education has informed us that they are working to provide official guidance and FAQs, and these should be forthcoming.
“Rest assured, the CNMI PSS continues to engage with our federal education partners and grantors regarding transition of key services and programs into other departments and agencies of the federal government, resulting from the executive order.
“At this time, all PSS formula, discretionary, and competitive grants remain active and are operating as normal. There are no changes directly affecting funding and implementation of these federal grants.
“We will continue our work to navigate the impacts of these changes and will keep our stakeholders informed as additional information becomes available.”
