Northern Marianas College senior vice president Frankie Eliptico has been named Marianas Press’ inaugural Person of the Year—a recognition tied to his central role in transforming the college from storm-ravaged campus to a major engine for education and economic renewal in the Commonwealth.
Eliptico currently heads administration, capital improvement, marketing, finance, and workforce development at NMC. He also stepped up as interim president in August 2018, months before Super Typhoon Yutu—the world’s most powerful storm that year—slammed directly into the campus and destroyed roughly 85% of its facilities.
When Eliptico first joined NMC nearly 18 years ago, the college was operating in buildings originally constructed as a hospital—structures repeatedly battered by earlier typhoons and repaired only enough to keep functioning.
That philosophy ultimately changed after Yutu brought the As Teo campus to its knees.
“When I first started here, I was just used to that. Every time there was a typhoon and the tin, the semi-concrete structures would break or the tin roofs would fly away, we just put it back together and then when Super Typhoon Yutu hit, it was a transformational disaster in that we did not see it as a disaster but an opportunity, a historic opportunity because we said let's not fix it back again. Let's not put the tin back up,” he said,
Before moving into senior leadership roles, he served in NMC’s Office of Institutional Advancement, where his marketing and branding efforts earned national recognition. He was named Communicator of the Year by the National Council for Marketing and Public Relations for the district that includes California, Arizona, Nevada, Hawaii, Guam, and the CNMI. He helped launch the “Believe” campaign, the “Start Smart, Start at NMC” initiative, and the “Cash for College” event, which has connected thousands of students to financial aid opportunities.
Beyond the college, he gained experience in public service and nonprofit leadership, completing the Executive Leadership Development Program and serving with organizations including the Northern Marianas Humanities Council, the Mariana Islands Nature Alliance, and PRIDE Marianas.
As interim president during Yutu’s aftermath, Eliptico helped organize NMC’s response and recovery. The storm created an inflection point—instead of restoring temporary structures and waiting for another disaster, college leaders saw an opportunity to rebuild resilient, modern facilities designed for education.
He credited the recovery to strong partnerships with the governor’s office, local agencies, utilities, regulatory departments, federal grantors, and the Legislature, saying it was a collective effort that enabled the campus transformation.
Today, more than $120 million in capital projects are in motion, and a new campus is rising in As Terlaje.
The over $30-million Proa Union Student Center is nearing completion, and NMC is finalizing orders for furniture and accessories to allow a phased move-in by the first quarter of 2026.
Four more facilities—two two-story classroom buildings funded through Community Development Block Grant-Disaster Recovery with the Northern Marianas Housing Corp., a workforce development facility, and a new CRED building—are expected to break ground in early 2026. The recent 40-day federal government shutdown delayed procurement and approval timelines, but the college has been working with federal partners to regain momentum.
Eliptico said the new buildings incorporate lessons learned from the pandemic and current higher-education trends.
“A lot of the spaces that you will see in the new buildings, including the Proa Union building, are flexible spaces. They can be smaller spaces, but they can be expanded into larger spaces that can accommodate more people. They will also be technologically advanced so that we can maximize our classrooms to be in person, but also accommodate virtual classes and other types of instruction modalities within these spaces,” he said.
The new facilities are also being designed to be fully accessible for people with disabilities, and NMC aims for them to become the first LEED-certified buildings in the CNMI to ensure long-term sustainability and cost efficiency.
As construction continues across the campus, NMC is working to protect student safety and preserve educational quality. It will shift some classes to the CNMI Public School System facilities during evening hours, transition others to online platforms, and identify additional public and private instructional spaces to ensure programs continue without major disruption.
“We want to make sure that we don't cause too much disruption or too much inconvenience for our students, and we want to make sure also that that feeling of community, that feeling of connectedness to other students, is still there, no matter where we place instruction. So it's not going to be a one solution, it's going to be a multi-pronged strategy while we do this historic buildup,” said Eliptico.
The model reflects lessons learned after Yutu, when NMC temporarily relocated instruction to Saipan Southern High School.
Eliptico said the new NMC campus is also being built to help lead the Commonwealth’s economic revitalization. Expanded laboratory facilities will support research benefiting ranchers, farmers, and ocean-related industries. A strengthened Small Business Development Center will help incubate local companies. New conference and student housing capabilities will allow NMC to support conference tourism and develop educational tourism partnerships with international schools in Taiwan, Japan, and beyond.
He said workforce development and economic progress “go hand in hand,” and that NMC understands its critical role in rebuilding the CNMI’s economic foundation.
Reflecting on his career, Eliptico said the past 18 years have given him a deep sense of confidence and perspective—especially in recognizing what can and cannot be controlled.
“How you respond to it is what you can control, and this is how the college is responding by fueling its growth with every disaster.”
He added that the transformation of the campus has reinforced the value of teamwork and perseverance: “If you want to go fast, go alone. If you want to go far, go with others.”
Even with progress, Eliptico acknowledged ongoing funding gaps for items like furniture, solar-power systems, and laboratory equipment. Donor support will be essential, and NMC plans to use its 45th anniversary in 2026 as a major year for fundraising and community celebration.
Still, he said he has no doubt the campus—rebuilt stronger and designed for the future—will soon be complete.
“No one is coming to save us. No one is coming to do the work for us, so we have to do it ourselves. And when you put it out into the universe, 100% response, not all the time in the time that you want it, but it will respond eventually,” he said.
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