NMTI bares financials: $44K remains unused

In the interest of public accountability and transparency, the newly hired CEO of the Northern Marianas Technical Institute disclosed that for the current fiscal year, the institution had spent only over $256,000 of its approved budget.

NMTI was approved a $400,000 budget for fiscal year 2014, sourced from the government’s collection of contract workers’ fees. Of this amount, the fund balance as of May 14 totaled $44,366, which CEO Agnes McPhetres has recommended to be reprogrammed for other purposes.

McPhetres said the “lapsed funds” are necessary to satisfy the institution’s other needs such as hiring additional instructors, procuring reference materials and software, renovation of facility, and adjustment of wages for personnel, among other purposes.

NMTI currently has only 10 adjunct instructors. McPhetres recommends the hiring of three full-time instructors for construction and trade, tourism, and auto mechanic. These additional instructional staff are expected to develop their own curriculum of instructions for their programs.

For many years, NMTI had to make do without a library, which McPhetres described as vital to the learning of its students. Software for assimilation of students, she added, must be procured to continue assisting current and future enrollees.

According to McPhetres, the “lapsed funds” in the fiscal year 2014 budget was a result of unoccupied positions earlier identified in the budgeting process.

“We need some reference books to start our library. We need also some software for student assimilation. I do recommend that we purchase them using these lapsed funds for [fiscal year] 2014,” said McPhetres.

The CEO has disclosed that NMTI, since its start, had only three personnel, including education director Vic Cepeda. She revealed that wages offered to these employees are significantly low and must be revisited for adjustment using the carryover funds for this year. The $400,000 appropriated for NMTI is good until Sept. 30 this year.

69 students

According to NMTI board chair John Oliver Gonzales, there are a total of 69 registered students for this term. Of that number, only 31 are currently attending classes, 22 are presently employed, while the rest are looking for jobs.

Saipan Tribune learned that there are five specific certificate courses currently offered at the technical school: culinary arts with 21registered students; hotel and restaurant with 12 registered enrollees; power industry with nine registered enrollees; auto technology A with 14; and auto technology B with 13 registered students.