‘More history teachers needed’

CNMI historian Don Farrell is urging the Senate to use its influence in making sure that local scholarship programs would encourage more students to choose a career in history education to benefit the Public School System.

Farrell, who was honored last week by the Legislature with separate resolutions, said there are a lot of classrooms in CNMI schools that are not filled with teachers that have background in history education.

“It always surprises me that more teachers don’t choose to teach CNMI history. It is the history of their own homeland,” he said. “We spend a lot of money through scholarships. If there’s some way you could focus those scholarships a little bit in encouraging students to choose careers that have history degree background, particularly history education, that would be a long-term benefit to PSS and our community.”

He pointed out that knowing and teaching the history of the CNMI would keep the youth of today educated about the past. “There are many other things that needs to be done, like supporting the preservation of history and culture in the CNMI. It is a difficult issue and it is not always at the top of the public agenda.”

Farrell said his dream is to have a young Carolinian write their side of history, a challenge that would help future CNMI historians in writing a complete account of the Commonwealth.

Farrell has written 10 books about the history of the CNMI and Guam, the last of which is Tinian and the atomic bomb—the untold story of how the atomic bombs, dropped in Hiroshima and Nagasaki, were developed.

Sen. Jude U. Hofschneider (R-Tinian) recently introduced Senate Commemorative Resolution 21-1 honoring Farrell for his exceptional service in the field of education and in preserving the history of the Marianas.

Rep. Antonio SN Borja (R-Tinian) also introduced House Commemorative Resolution 21-1 to also commend Farrell, who was recognized by the council for his contribution in Research and Publication in the Humanities last month.

Farrell graduated at California State University-Fullerton with a bachelor in science degree in Biology in 1972 and earned secondary teaching credits at CSU-San Bernardino. He went to Guam to teach and then founded Micronesian Productions in 1980 in an effort to make the world aware of the Marianas.