PSS asks business community to help fix damaged bus stops

Interim Education Commissioner Jacqueline Che is asking the CNMI business and civic community to help repair damaged school bus stops, saying some shelters are missing roofs and leaving students exposed to rain and the hot sun.

Che made the appeal during the Rotary Club of Saipan’s regular meeting last Sept. 22 at Crowne Plaza Resort Saipan as she outlined the financial and operational challenges facing the Public School System.

“We need all of you to help bridge the gap that government funding cannot reach,” Che told Rotarians.

Her immediate ask was assistance with school bus stops.

Che said many of the shelters around the island were damaged by the recent typhoons and that PSS has been hearing from parents about their condition.

“Half of the bus stops that we see on island, they are damaged,” Che said. “And when it's raining out there, our kids are under those bus stops, and they're being poured on.”

Some shelters are in such poor condition that they should probably be demolished, she added, with roofs missing and students forced to wait under the sun or rain.

Che said PSS has reached out to the Department of Public Works about the problem. She later clarified that DPW has funding, but not enough to address all of the bus stops needing attention.

The problem goes beyond storm damage.

Che said some bus stops have graffiti and that PSS has received reports of needles and broken glass bottles being found at shelters.

“We can do what we can, but it also takes a community, right, to step up in your village to maintain or help maintain,” she said.

Rotary member and former CNMI Supreme Court justice Perry Inos responded to Che’s appeal by asking for an inventory of the bus stops and their locations so the club could discuss where assistance may be needed.

Che agreed to provide the information.

“I will provide you by tomorrow with an inventory of all the bus stops and where they're located,” she said. “And then I'll also put there the priority, like these are the bus stops that do need as much support, right?”

Che said PSS would identify the shelters needing the most attention so Rotary members could see where their assistance could make the biggest difference.

She later said PSS has also reached out to lawmakers for assistance, particularly for bus stops located in their respective villages.