2 new high schools in Saipan gain support

A proposal to split the new high school on Saipan into two smaller schools gained ground after Board of Education member Anthony Pellegrino pitched the recommendation during a public hearing held Wednesday night.

About 40 people, including some legislators, attended the town meeting at the Gov. Pedro P. Tenorio Multi-Purpose Center in Susupe where BOE gathered comments regarding the plan to build the second high school on the island.

This was the third hearing conducted by the board and came weeks after the last one drew lukewarm attendance. No decision was made at the meeting, but BOE officials are expected to decide on the matter next week.

Most of those who came to the Wednesday’s hearing expressed support for the recommendation to situate the school in the northern part of the island, like Kagman or Marpi, to benefit their growing residential communities as well as to decongest overcrowding in most areas .

But BOE officials are also mulling another plan to build the facility on the Public School System property in Koblerville in their bid to expedite the project.

Mr. Pellegrino, chairman of the BOE committee on capital improvement projects, said the board will consider all the proposals, including building two schools instead of just one, when members meet next week.

The plan will call for construction first of one facility in the PSS property in Koblerville while the board is trying to acquire land in Kagman where the second facility will be built.

However, the lack of infrastructure in northern Saipan, such as road, sewer and other utilities, may hamper its construction since these will have to be put in place together with the school.

Mr. Pellegrino said this may also push the cost of the project — estimated at about $10 million — if the government will not be able to find another $5 million to undertake these infrastructure requirements.

“The people would like the site to be up north, but we have this drawback of finding where the available land is and whether utilities and road have been built already,” he said in an interview.

Instead of taking this as a setback, Mr. Pellegrino suggested at the hearing to follow the concept of two smaller schools so that the project can start immediately in the Koblerville site where infrastructures are in place.

“We will then look for a land in the northern part of Saipan if we want to have another school, but the problem is that this will take some time,” he explained.

PSS has been trying to fast-track building of a second high school on Saipan as the Marianas High School in Susupe can no longer accommodate the increasing student population which at present stands at 1,800.

“It is now too congested and it’s getting worse every year,” said Mr. Pellegrino, as he noted that MHS population is projected to grow by 2,000 next year and up to 2,200 within two years.

“Unless we build something immediately to relieve this congestion, we have no alternative but to return to the multi-track system,” explained the BOE official. “Because of the pressure, we need to come up with a plan soon.”