FLASHBACK – December 13, 2011

Dec. 13, 2000

NMC sees influx of Korean students

The Northern Marianas College is expecting the arrival of over 175 Korean international students to pursue short-term English language courses at the college beginning January 2001, following efforts by Hotel Riviera Saipan’s Korean promoters to lure more foreign students to avail of the Northern Marianas’ “Destination Education” experience. Hotel Riviera Saipan disclosed it has linked with four tour agencies in Korea to tap different elementary schools, colleges, and universities in four major Korean cities in this first ever CNMI promotional venture.

PSS to form fellowship network

The U.S. Department of Education has granted the Public School System additional funding to create a network of former, current and future Christa McAuliffe Fellowship recipients in efforts to establish an exclusive group dedicated toward the professional development of teachers. The Washington-based funding agency awards every year 10 Christa McAuliffe fellowships to PSS teachers worth $2,500 each to support either classroom or staff development projects, including assessment studies which must be completed by the end of each school year.

Dec. 13, 2001

No overpayment of legal services, NMIRF insists

The Northern Mariana Islands Retirement Fund never overpaid Eason and Halsell in October because the Fund actually owed money to this law firm, representing unpaid billings incurred during the duration of its contract with the Fund. This was stressed by Fund legal counsel Kathleen Troy-Rucker in her response to an OPA query over an October payment made by the Fund to the law firm. Public Auditor Michael S. Sablan had asked acting Fund Administrator Takeo George to explain why the Fund paid the law firm in October, when an OPA audit had shown that the Fund overpaid the contractor $9,586.33. The OPA audit was for billings issued by Eason and Halsell to the Fund covering the period from October 1, 1996 to February 29, 2000.

Live TV coverage of Senate sessions mulled

Live television coverage of Senate sessions? That idea is being mulled by some senators, not merely as a means to provide the public with up-to-the-minute news on what’s happening at the Senate but also as a medium to inform people on the bills being tackled by the upper chamber. By knowing what’s going on at the Senate, people will have enough time to submit comments and recommendations that may be taken into consideration when the upper chamber deliberates on pending measures, said Sen. Joaquin G. Adriano. Adriano, who will be the Senate Floor Leader in the 13th Legislature come January, queried reporters on the logistics needed should the Senate opt to have its session broadcasted live on television.

Dec. 13, 2002

Subway donates to local school

The company that operates the local Subway Restaurants has donated $1,000 to the Saipan International School to fund educational programs within the school. Subway Investments Corp. said this gesture is just part of its continued support to the community and as a means to encourage education. In a statement, Subway said the Saipan International School and the company have been partners since October 2001 to provide healthy school lunches for the school’s nearly 200 students. “We are extremely proud to be a part of this school and its continuing growth,” said Marcos Fong, who is in charge of marketing for Subway.

’NMI garment industry southbound’

The newest Saipan apparel industry statistics reveal a continued downward trend in overall sales, spending by the factories and taxes paid to the Commonwealth government. According to the Saipan Garment Manufacturers Association, CNMI Customs Service Division reported an almost 15 percent drop in export sales from fiscal year 2001 to FY 2002, with a 22 percent drop in total sales from FY 1999 through FY 2002. A compilation of CNMI Department of Finance tax data from fiscal years 1998 to 2002, industry provided material and independent Industry Economic Impact Reports prepared by the certified public accounting firm of Burger & Comer, clearly chart the Saipan factories’ slide since 1999, their peak year in activity.