THE Public School System is asking the House Education Committee to provide local funds for the Chamorro-Carolinian language immersion program — specifically for 20 additional employees. PSS, however, did not mention an exact figure.
Led by Education Commissioner Alfred B. Ada, PSS officials attended a committee meeting in the House chamber on Monday.
In March, Ada and Board of Education Chairman Gregory Borja submitted a proposed spending measure for the $25 million that PSS will receive from the CNMI government in fiscal year 2023,
Of this amount, $1.96 million will be allotted for school materials and supplies; $2.59 million for special programs; $1.47 million for school repairs and maintenance; $1.9 million for fixed costs including debt service, property insurance and contracts; and $620,000 for PSS programs and administration.
Ada told the House committee on Monday that after they submitted their budget proposal, “we went back and reflected on what more we could do.”
He added, “So here is our chance to share with you how…we tried to uphold the law in preserving indigenous-based education.”
PSS Curriculum and Instructional Services Senior Director Jackie Quitugua then discussed the school system’s Chamorro-Carolinian language immersion program.
She said PSS needs to hire teachers “to ensure that there is sustainability at least for kindergarten to Grade 3 [students].”
Quitugua said currently, PSS teachers can participate in the University of Guam’s Chamorro immersion program.
But she said these immersion teachers will continue to need a lot of professional development support as well as their own local language and cultural materials.
“So we are hoping to really meet that need [and] to provide continuous support,” Quitugua added.
Rep. Donald Manglona asked her, what are the challenges they are facing in implementing the immersion program?
Quitugua said the main challenge is “getting the interest of our own community.”
She said as PSS brings in immersion teachers, “we also provide professional development and the training they need…to manage a classroom, student behavior and instructional time.”
To hire immersion teachers, Quitugua said PSS has been reaching out, even to retirees.
For FY 2023, PSS Human Resources Director Lucretia B. Deleon Guerrero told lawmakers that the school system needs funding for 20 additional employees.
Education Commissioner Alfred B. Ada and other Public School System officials appear before the House Education Committee in the House chamber on Monday.
