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New BOE chair to be elected Monday
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Posted on Jan 07 2006
Monday will witness not only the installation of Gov.-elect Benigno R. Fitial and Lt. Gov.-elect Timothy Villagomez as the new leaders of the Commonwealth, but also the election of a new chairman for the Board of Education.
Current board chair Roman C. Benavente said the special board meeting on Monday will start at 9am in the BOE conference room on Capitol Hill.
The meeting will also pave way for the oath taking of first-time board member Lucy Maratita-Blanco and re-elected board member Herman T. Guerrero, who is vying for the chairmanship.
Guerrero represents Saipan on the board, while Blanco represents Tinian.
Benavente and Guerrero were earlier reported to be the frontrunners in this year’s board chairmanship.
Benavente said the entire board has performed well on behalf of CNMI students in the last two years that he has held the post.
Even though there were no “physical accomplishments” such as the construction of new schools, he believes that the Public School System has done very well in terms of academic performance and achievements.
In 2005, PSS was completely removed from the “high risk” status given by the federal U.S. Department of Education. The CNMI was also commended for maintaining its “excellent” performance, exceeding the national standards.
“PSS has done very well, being recognized in the Pacific Region,” Benavente said.
Despite the continuing funding problems, PSS also has exceeded expectations, he said. The CNMI, for instance, was mentioned in the USDE newsletter distributed to ranking U.S. government officials last year, setting the local PSS as an example of schools that have been removed from the “high risk” status and were able to maintain standards continuously.
