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PSS Recommends Converting Scholarships To Loan Programs

Saipan. In order to create greater accountability among college students, The Board of Education and Public School System (PSS) have advised a loan program instead of upfront scholarships.

This suggestion comes after the House Bill 18-178 being placed in the House of Representatives. Board of Education Chair, Herman T. Guerrero, and acting Education Commissioner, Glenn Muna had the view that the bill should look into the other side of the picture and consider the needs of the public sector as well as private companies.

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“There are many essential positions that are not being filled in the private sector because our children do not have an incentive to return to the CNMI.saipanmap This should be remedied. By making the scholarship contingent on employment with PSS, the bill simultaneously limits the earning capacity of a qualified individual and forces PSS to fill a job that it may or may not need in the future,” the two officials added.

Saipan might consider allowing graduates to provide ‘essential services’ to the people of the Commonwealth of Northern Mariana Islands (CNMI) in any capacity. The bill, as per Mr. Guerrero and Mr.Muna, should consider including some of the in-demand jobs listed by Saipan Higher Education Financial Assistance (SHEFA).

In order to facilitate the benefits of the bill, both the officials said that instead of awarding student scholarships, a US$ 10,000 can be provided a year after students’ return to the CNMI and provide essential services to pay off their loan. This will help the PSS to achieve the target in the very first year instead of waiting for three years to reap the benefits. This will also solve the problem of collection and accounting for students who fail to match up with the deliverables.

On another interesting note, SHEFA, has taken up measures to collect bad debts. According to Merissa S. Rasa, SHEFA administrator, the process will enlist all the defaulted scholars. “Every single recipient is now accounted for. The second process is tracking these students in order to see exactly how many are in compliance and how much really is in default,” she said.

Terming it as ‘work in progress’, Rasa was hopeful that the agency will be able to collected the amount. “We don’t have those numbers yet because it’s a work in progress right now. But each week, the office staff is issuing 10 to 20 letters—after auditing the students’ files—for compliance,” She added.

As per SHEFA rules, recipients are required to return to the CNMI and get employed here within three months after they finish their studies. Whether they fail to finish their studies or they graduate and fail to return, in all circumstances, they are in default. On a different note, if the recipient stays in abroad three months after completing or terminating their college studies, then the grant amount is considered a loan from that instant and interest is applied on that.

SHEFA has collected US$ 17, 356 from 2004 to 2012.

Saipan is the largest island of the Northern Mariana Islands, an unincorporated territory of the United States in the western Pacific Ocean.