Also present was Rep. Ralph DLG. Torres, R-Saipan and chairman of the House Committee on Health, Education and Welfare.
“I regularly meet with Mr. Topik, and took this opportunity to not only introduce Chairman Torres to him, but also to bring him up to date on CIP issues in the CNMI. He has been very helpful getting the CNMI additional funding in the past. It is important that he understands our needs,” Tenorio said.
Topik was briefed about the status of Saipan’s power plants and the need to replace and upgrade them.
“Chris agreed with me that alternative energy sources are only a supplement to basic power generation and right now, we don’t even have basic power generation to meet the needs of the people, business, government let alone economic growth,” Tenorio said. “The lack of affordable electricity is rapidly ruining our economy and is seriously degrading our way of life more than any other factor. What investor would want to come to our islands with very expensive, unreliable power?
He added, “We must work together to improve our power generation and power distribution problems. This to me should be our government’s priority.”
Also included in Tenorio’s package of information was the $20 million Northern Mariana College needs for a new campus; the $6 million the Public School System needs to renovate and repair many of their school; and the $18 million needed by the Commonwealth Health Center to bring its facility up to national standards.
“I also pointed out that we still need more than $400 million for our water and wastewater systems,” Tenorio said.
“The unspent balance, which is still over $50 million, has derailed my efforts in the past from get additional CIP funding. I was prepared with statistics on the governor’s reprogramming efforts, EPA mandated projects, and projects for Rota and Tinian,” he added. “Unfortunately some projects are just not moving which raises concerns about our need for new money. I hope to work with the governor and Legislature to address problems with our CIP. There needs to be a lot more cooperation if any of our CIP problems are going to be resolved. I am glad that Chairman Torres was able to hear first hand that Congress is willing to help us, but we have to be responsible and accountable.”
NMC Upward Bound Program celebrates 25 years
(NMC) — Northern Marianas College’s Upward Bound Program will be marking a historic milestone today by celebrating 25 years of helping more than 3,000 disadvantaged high school students in the CNMI prepare for college.
Primarily serving high school students from low-income families along with high school students from families in which neither parent holds a bachelor’s degree, the Upward Bound Program is a federally funded program designed to help participants prepare for college. The program provides instruction in a variety of subjects, academic, financial and personal counseling, tutorial and mentoring services, assistance with college admission forms and placement tests, and other services.
“Without a doubt, my participation in Upward Bound has equipped me with the tools I needed to overcome the challenges I faced in college,” said Ivan Mereb, who graduated from the program in 2004.
The Upward Bound Program was originally initiated in 1983 under the guidance of the Pacific Post Secondary Educational Council through the University of Guam. George Sablan was the very first director of the program and called Marianas High School its home. Later the program was relocated to the Mount Carmel School library in the spring of 1988. In 1990, NMC applied for and received the competitive Upward Bound grant.
“What truly makes our program a triumph is our participants’ drive and motivation to excel personally and academically,” said Marian Tudela, director of the NMC Upward Bound Program. “The support from our alumni and the participants’ parents and guardians has also been a key factor in program’s success.
Previous directors for the program have included the late Baltasar Borja, the late Calistro Falig, and Jeannette Villagomez.
“For the past 25 years, the Upward Bound Program has played a pivotal role in the lives of many people here in the CNMI,” said NMC President Dr. Carmen Fernandez. “We hope to see more students take advantage of this free program so they too can realize the benefits and opportunities that a higher education provides.
Those who are interested in applying to the Upward Bound Program can contact Marian Tudela at [email protected] or call 234-5498 Ext. 1278.
The Upward Bound Program is a federally funded program sponsored by the U.S. Department of Education, TRIO programs authorized by Title IV of the Higher Education Act of 1965.
EMO advisory
(EMO) — The Emergency Management Office would like to inform the general public that yesterday at 3:23 a.m. Saipan time, there was an earthquake with preliminary magnitude of 4.9 on the Richter scale and 6.2 miles depth, located at latitude 16.828 degrees north, 148.094 degrees east in the Marianas region.
This is about 165 miles east northeast of Anatahan and 195 miles northeast of Saipan.
Joshua school enrollment
JOSHUA Generation International Academy is now enrolling students from K3 to 6th grade.
The school opens on Aug. 11.
Visit the school in Koblerville or call 235-2487/235-3778 for more information.
Red flag raised at 3 sites
(DEQ) — The Division of Environmental Quality has raised the red flag at three sites on Saipan, and advises the public not to fish or swim within 300 feet of these locations for the next 48 hours or until otherwise notified.
Samples collected from DPW Channel Bridge, American Memorial Park and Hafa-Adai Drainage contained excessive concentrations of fecal indicator bacteria — enterococci — that exceeded the CNMI’s marine water quality standards.
The public is encouraged to contact DEQ at 664-8500 with any questions concerning this matter.
