THE Department of Public Lands on Wednesday held an awards ceremony for the eight winners of its inaugural annual scholarship essay contest for post-secondary students who are of Northern Marianas descent.
Winners of the first ever Department of Public Lands indigenous scholarship essay contest pose with the DPL team and lessees on Wednesday in the DPL conference room.
Photo by K-Andrea Evarose S. Limol
Cassidy Torres, a junior at Chapman University in Orange, California, majoring in business administration, placed first, and received $1,250, which was sponsored by Saipan Triple Star Corporation.
Rafael Mafnas, a senior at California State Polytechnic University in Pomona, majoring in construction engineering, came in second, receiving $1,000, sponsored by Bibong Corporation.
Victoria Bellas, a junior at Northern Marianas College, studying business administration and liberal arts with a concentration in social work, won third place, receiving $1,000 sponsored by Bibong Corporation.
Nathaniel Snodgrass, a senior at Gonzaga University in Washington, majoring in economics with a minor in analytical finance, placed fourth, receiving $1,000 sponsored by Saipan Stevedore Company Inc.
“My essay was about the importance of preserving and protecting public lands,” said Snodgrass. “I ultimately believe that we should protect public lands because they hold an immense amount of value to us.”
He said the award money he won will go towards the remainder of his education.
Ro’anna Manibusan Tudela, a freshman at NMC studying liberal arts, came in fifth, receiving $600 sponsored by Kenneth and Concepcion Coward.
Through a personal contribution from Jo Anna Ada, DPL was also able to award three additional scholarship prizes: $100 to Querida Maratita of Rota; $100 to Peachy Quitugua of Saipan; and $100 to Kaia Lazaro from Tinian.
Maratita will earn her associate degree in liberal arts with an emphasis in education next semester.
Quitugua is a graduate student at the University of Cincinnati School of Nursing Online in the nurse midwifery masters of science program, completing her practicum on-site at the Commonwealth Healthcare Corporation.
Lazaro is a freshman at NMC studying applied science in business administration with an emphasis in business management.
Due to the Covid-19 pandemic, Torres, Mafnas, Maratita, and Lazaro were unable to be physically present for the ceremony.
Organized by DPL Secretary Marianne Concepcion-Teregeyo, assistant to the secretary Deveney Dela Cruz, and the rest of DPL team, the department was able to secure public benefit funds from four public land lessees for the scholarship essay contest.
Of 51 applicants, eight young scholars impressed judges with their essays, which answered the question, “Why is it important to preserve public lands in the CNMI?”
Judges scored the essays without knowing who wrote which essay, focusing primarily on the content and structure of the essay.
DPL extended its appreciation to the lessees for their willingness to contribute to the betterment of the community through this contest.
“My hats off to the investors, the lessees, because they were willing. They had no problems with accommodating our requests,” the DPL secretary said.
Funding for this annual contest will grow, she said, adding that the 2021 contest will open a little earlier in the year.
She said DPL is working on publishing the listing of all negotiated public benefits to date, which has amounted to over $4 million.
This scholarship benefit is a small component of these public benefits that the department has negotiated over the past couple of years.
DPL is mandated to obtain the best and highest use of rent for public lands, collecting base rent and a percentage of the business gross revenue tax, or BGRT.
It collects a percentage of any revenue derived from public lands, and negotiates for the highest public benefit it can receive.
