BOE opposes budget percentage increase • Board members says proposal meddles with Constitution

The State Board of Education yesterday decided to maintain the current budget appropriation at 15 percent, deferring a House Committee on Education initiative to increase the Public School System’s yearly allotment to 25 percent from CNMI revenues.

This, despite a recent public hearing which yielded positive feedback for the proposed legislation, stressing on vast advantages it could do to enhance the quality of education in the CNMI.

BOE member Esther Fleming during a special board meeting yesterday expressed opposition to the bill due to certain amendments that have to be made in the CNMI Constitution before the funding increase can take effect.

Ms. Fleming questioned the necessity of having to “tamper” with the constitution with the sole intent of identifying more funds for public education.

“Putting it in the constitution is very dangerous. Do you really believe that placing 25 percent in constitution is going to help us?,” Ms. Fleming asked BOE members at the meeting.

She added that the board should be left to justify additional funds based on its needs.
Member Anthony Pellegrino echoed Ms. Fleming’s views saying that while the board commends the intent of the bill, meddling with the constitution is a serious matter which BOE does not recommend.

The board has also agreed to submit a written comment to the Legislature on its official stand on the issue.

“We prefer to justify our own needs and discuss additional budget infront of legislators,” she added.

BOE Non-Public School Representative Scott Norman also sided with some board members, citing that problems which have stormed the education system especially in the last three years mostly have nothing to do with lack of funding.

The remarkable drop in education cost per student is evident of this, according to Mr. Norman.

“These problems have gotten worse but the end product remains the same. We have the same percentage of students in the “honor roll.” We have the same number of students graduating from high school every year,” he pointed out.

He added that funding deficiency is not the main factor in the decline of the CNMI’s quality of education.

“Money, it seems, is not affecting the end product,” he said. Instead, how every cent of the education cost per student amount is expended needs to be looked at, the private teacher suggested.

Mr. Norman continued that deterrents to education here may have something to do with discipline, curriculum, and attitude problems. (MM)