187 students take over govt and private agencies

Students from six high schools on Saipan stepped into the shoes of professionals and officials yesterday, taking part in the 2nd Annual Youth Take-Over Day.

In all, about 187 students from Saipan Southern High School, Grace Christian Academy, Mt. Carmel School, Marianas Baptist Academy, Kagman High School, and Marianas High School experienced a day in the lives of officials and staff from government agencies and about 16 private firms, including the Office of the Governor, Senate, House of Representatives, and the Judiciary, among others.

Special assistant for youth affairs Florence Kirby, whose office organized the event, said that participants this year surpassed the number last year, crediting this to the increase in the number of participating agencies.

“This is the first time where the three branches of government got together and participated, as well as a lot of private businesses,” she said. “It’s a great experience for all the participants because the students got to experience first-hand and understand how things are being done.”

Edwin Correa, a 17-year-old student who spent his day as a job development specialist at the Workforce Investment Agency, echoed Kirby’s comments, saying the experience enabled him to understand the responsibilities of various employees.

“We did a lot of phone calls on clients because I was a job development specialists,” he said. “The job is extremely hard because they have to work with like 30 people a day, and I found that all this hard work has a lot of responsibilities, so I respect that. Also, it was fun to work with them.”

Also sharing similar experiences was Lynette Quitano of Kagman High School, who spent her day as governor of the Commonwealth, attending various meetings as well as signing a bill, among others.

“I had to be at three meetings at one time,” she said. “[But] it was really fun and there’s a lot to do as governor.”

Others were Manuel Borja, who served as Lt. Governor; Amanda Planas, Speaker of the House; Joyce Taman, Senate President; and Seong Huon Lee, Saipan Mayor.

“I just found out that the lieutenant governor is in charge of many different task forces and different groups organized to get tasks done, and today I was with Water Task Force, and they’re working on improving the water system here on island… It’s really cool to see all these things happening,” Borja said.

For his part, Marianas High School sophomore Kelvin Rodeo spent his day as a reporter for the Saipan Tribune.

“It was a great experience. I learned a lot of new things about the way a newspaper works, and I got to experience a day in the life of a newspaper reporter. I was enlightened,” he said.

Also joining Rodeo at the Saipan Tribune were Roselle Calvo, Sherry Ann Songsong, and Roxy Teregeyo.

Kirby expressed her desire to increase participation of both students and host in next year’s event.

“If we keep up with the good work and show our counterparts what we do and give that sense of responsibility of what we do, I’m sure the word will spread and more will join next year,” she said. “Hopefully we’ll get more for you to get to know how the private sector operates and how the government runs our island.”

The event was originally set for last month, but was delayed due to academic tests administered by various schools. It was part of celebrations for October as CNMI Youth Month. (with Kelvin Rodeo, Youth Take-Over Day reporter)