Open letter to Public Auditor Mike Pai

Because staff including yourself have chosen to be mum in giving updated information related to Saipan Tribune’s articles on April 10, 2013, titled “OPA probe NMC, board” and “NMI College Board meeting disappoints faculty, staff ,” I thought it may be helpful to share the concern shared by others over the lack of updated status report on OPA’s probe of NMC and the Board of Regents in this public forum.

OPA’s apparent preference to go stealth, low profile, and unexposed reflects a pattern of refusal by OPA to comment on NMC’s “probe”—a probe, mind you, that began in 2013, but, as OPA reasoned, because of the ongoing nature of the investigation, which appears to be no different this year, OPA has still not released any information on the status of its investigation on NMC Faculty Senate’s no-confidence vote on the college president and the college board. The concerns raised by the members of the NMC faculty, most of whom are gone two years later and no longer with NMC, are briefly highlighted below.

Two years and seven months have passed today, yet OPA has done absolutely nothing to communicate to the public about its findings—any findings—that would either confirm/affirm the Faculty Senate’s no-confidence issues with the college president and the Board of Regents, or reject/deny those concerns that are highlighted below.

OPA’s deafening silence by refusing to speak openly and transparently on the issues does not help NMC maintain its standing, nor build public confidence in the board, much less the college’s Faculty Senate.

One may well ask, why has this matter of great public concern not reported out by OPA to the public? OPA’s silence is a violation of the spirit of our Open Government Act and the public’s right to demand accountability of public institutions, such as OPA, NMC and the NMC Board of Regents. It is also withholding of information the public has the right to know and be informed about its locally and federally funded institution of higher education.

I recall that former House Education chair Roman Benavente revealed back in 2013 that numerous complaints were lodged against NMC and the NMC board with his office, which prompted him to ask for OPA’s assistance.

Over two years have passed and, instead of seeing OPA’s draft report out for public comment or review, all that we hear and see is that scores of NMC employees have been discontinued, not renewed, or are too frustrated to continue under the present administration and the present Board of Regents leadership. Former employees like Larry Lee, Wil Maui, Cyndi Deleon Guerrero, Kyle Podziewski, Marie Coleman, Ross Manglona, Galvin Guerrero and others have all been taken off NMC’s employment roster list and no longer listed as active employees of NMC under the present administration’s control.

The NMC Faculty Senate report that hit the newsstand in 2012 was chronicled and delivered to the media, the NMC president and the NMC board and are identified below as a reminder to OPA. These faculty concerns included:

A. Fiscal mismanagement and abuse of power
1. $200,000 spent on travel
2. Questionable reimbursements by college official(s)
3. Sole-source contracts
4. Application of HRO procedures for off-island recruitment

B. Human resources policies and procedures
1. Micromanagement in hiring procedures (e.g., interview committee)
2. Questionable involvement of hiring faculty and personnel
3. Faculty contract non-renewal without cause
4. Inequitable salaries in reference to new hires versus experienced employees and no previous communication on the planned proration rate for faculty prior to them teaching in the summer faculty; faculty found out after they received their pay
5. Contract terms and conditions dishonored
6. Special term and condition for one employee contract on leave

C. Violation of NMC procurement and CNMI law
1. Government-issued vehicle and unauthorized private use
2. Unethical conduct/conflict of interest of sole-source contracts
3. Equipment purchase without RFP

D. Unethical conduct/leadership
1. Interference and manipulation of student registration process for personal gain
2. Interference with HRO hiring processes to benefit personal acquaintances
3. FERPA violation—request and received student academic information without prior approval
4. Preferential treatment of certain faculty in regards to leave requested
5. Possible fraud with federally funded program (CACG) to allow enrollment of family member
6. Plagiarism by college official in ACCJC accreditation report
7. Directing governance bodies on how to vote
8. Increasing class capacities without input from faculty with no regard to current facility conditions

E. Accreditation related concerns
1. Failure to address WASC concern in filling CFO position and IT director
2. Dissolving of BAFC and then reviving it—suspicious and untrustworthy
3. Report to Board of Regents on SOE’s Senior Visiting Team concerns was incorrect
4. ACCJC report possibly plagiarized from GCC report
5. Lack of focus on Supplemental Recommendation #2—participation of constituencies on shared governance

F. Clarification of roles of shared governance (Reported at College Council, 11.2.12)
1. Autonomy of constituent groups removed

G. Update the Institutional Excellence Guide (Reported at College Council, 11.2.12)

H. Proposed board resolution to rescind HR policies (Reported at College Council, 11.2.12)

It was reported then that 82.6 percent of faculty members in attendance at the Dec. 14, 2012, Faculty Assembly gave a “vote of no-confidence” in your leadership at the college while 8.5 percent did not support the vote of no confidence and 8.5 percent abstained from taking a position. Bottom line is that 90 percent of those present at the Faculty Assembly registered their displeasure with the present administration and the present Board of Regents, save former faculty senate vice president Cynthia Deleon Guerrero (Cyndy) over the issues/concerns identified above.

For accountability and transparency, I urge the OPA and Mike Pai to release the longstanding report that began in 2013. I am positive this review/investigation is complete and the public deserves to know OPA’s objective findings of fact and conclusions based on those facts. Anything less is unacceptable!

In celebration of College Month proclaimed by acting governor Ralph DLG Torres, let’s all embrace greater accountability and transparency in public institution in order to empower the governed in the college governance and in public governance in general.

Accountability and transparency are also expectations by the U.S. Accrediting Commission and the U.S. Department of Education on federal programs.

Jonn Santos
Koblerville, Saipan