Majority of these new “instructors” will be paid through a federal grant.
As of April, Head Start had 30 service providers who are considered non-highly qualified though many were in the process of obtaining their degrees.
All service providers were reclassified as instructors 1 through 3 with a salary range of $17,000 to $21,000 per annum depending on their years of service.
A regular classroom teacher who is considered highly qualified receives $28,000 to $47,000 a year depending on the length of service and qualifications.
“Because of the reduced local funding, Head Start could not afford to pay teachers’ salaries and instead opted to hire instructors — teaching positions with less qualification requirements than classroom teachers,” BOE Chairwoman Lucy Blanco-Maratita said.
Each year the program receives $1.7 million in federal funds. However, the local matching has decreased over the years — from almost $700,000 to $350,000.
The program, which used to have 579 children, could only allow to accommodate 462 as a result of decreased funding from the CNMI government.
Each Head Start session serves approximately 17 children.
Blanco-Maratita said while the board understands the importance of having excellent early childhood education, without the financial support “we cannot hire such [highly qualified] teachers.”
She added, “We need to increase local funding to support Head Start.”
As of April, 135 children were on the Head Start waiting list on the three islands.
BOE Vice Chairman Herman T. Guerrero said the reclassification qualifies the Head Start instructors to avail of annual leave and sick leave as well as health insurance.
“Because these service providers were not considered full-time employees, they were not qualified or entitled to these benefits. But with this reclassification, they can now avail of these benefits,” Guerrero said.
The reclassification was supported by the Head Start Policy Council, he added.
He described the salary adjustment as “very minor and minimal.”
Head Start instructors get lower salaries compared to regular classroom teachers.
“The board would like to see Head Start instructors move up,” Guerrero said. “We want them to obtain their degrees so they can be treated on the same level as teachers.”
