BOE Vice Chairman Herman T. Guerrero yesterday said they have asked PSS to come up with a new compensation plan.
Head Start staff members have to comply with the federal teacher degree requirement before 2013.
At present, there is no degree-holder teaching at Head Start.
Its staff who are degree holders have transferred to PSS, which pays a highly qualified teacher $28,000 to $47,000 annually.
Guerrero said Head Start staff need to comply with the requirements set by PSS — getting a degree, passing the Praxis test and acquiring certification.
“If we are going to treat them as regular classroom teachers, they should also meet the same requirements set by PSS,” he said.
Because Northern Marianas College offers only elementary education, BOE may ask NMC to consider offering early childhood degrees to accommodate the needs of the Head Start program.
“We need to work with other universities and colleges that could bring the needed courses here. There’s no other way to comply with the Head Star requirement than to enroll at the college and obtain a college degree,” Guerrero said.
Asked what will happen to Head Start’s personnel who are non-degree holders after 2013, he said: “We’re not interested with that kind of a scenario. We’re bound to comply with the requirements and we’re optimistic that we can do it. What we need is to come out with a plan and start talking with the staff to encourage and motivate them to get a degree.”
Based on the Head Start information program report, it had 30 assistant teachers and three child development supervisors in school year 2007-2008.
