Marianas High School, Koblerville and Kagman Elementary Schools as well as Oleai Head Start Center will open today.
According to his office, Fitial was “advised” by the regulating agencies that the “water contamination” at the three schools and Head Start center were “finally addressed and cleared.”
Affected by the governor’s suspension order on Monday were over 2,000 students.
“The Public School System has gone to great lengths to comply with all necessary public health regulations,” Fitial said in a new executive order yesterday. “The results of the latest laboratory tests done on Sept. 8, are negative.”
Press Secretary Charles P. Reyes Jr., in an email yesterday, said the governor’s decision to delay the opening of classes was made “in the best interest” of the students.
“The governor issued two executive orders based on the advice and recommendations of the relevant regulatory agencies under the executive branch, including [the Department of Public Health] and [the Division of Environmental Quality],” Reyes said. “The decisions were made in the best interests of the school children of PSS, according to the evaluation of the regulatory agencies.”
He added, “We regret any inconvenience caused to PSS, as well as to the affected students and parents.”
Board of Education and PSS officials were disappointed by the governor’s closure order on Monday.
PSS may end up paying its food vendors for the undelivered food due to cancellation of classes.
The affected schools and the Head Start center will also have to schedule a make-up day.
Fitial earlier asked education officials to re-schedule the opening of classes due to the island’s power crisis.
BOE and PSS, however, told the governor that they had already made the necessary preparations to cope with the daily power outages.
On Sunday, at 9:30 p.m., Fitial notified BOE and PSS that he was canceling the opening of classes at MHS, KoES, KagES and the Oleai Head Start Center, citing their “contaminated water.”
Reyes said “the administration respects the constitutional autonomy of PSS and its authority over public education.”
The governor, he added, looks forward to a “continued dialogue and good faith dealings” with PSS.
BOE Chairwoman Lucy Blanco-Maratita said she was pleased with the governor’s decision.
“I was very glad to hear from the governor (this morning at 11:30), informing me that he had signed the executive order rescinding his previous order,” she told Variety.
“We are also very pleased that all the concerns that needed to be addressed in the order were done in an efficient manner —albeit these issues could have been resolved without the executive order nor the accompanying added expenses and inconvenience,” she said.
She lauded the efforts of the PSS leadership and staffers who “quickly addressed the concerns indicated in the executive order and worked expeditiously on Tuesday with the pertinent agencies to resolve them.”
“We appreciate the assistance of everyone involved,” she added.
