PSS Overview

COMMONWEALTH OF THE NORTHERN MARIANA ISLANDS: PUBLIC SCHOOL SYSTEM (CNMI PSS)


OVERVIEW

Vision:

The Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands Public School System is a provider of quality education, empowering all individuals to be innovative thinkers and learners.

 

Mission

 Educating lifelong learners to become productive citizens of a global society.

 

Values

Leadership and Learning
Engagement
Accountability
Diversity
Efficacy
Relationships 


Strategic Priorities 

Student Success

The quality of instruction has a strong impact on student learning (Brophy & Good, 1986, Stigler & Heister, 1999). The PSS believes that although this may be a general statement, we have identified and implemented research-based instructional strategies, best practices, and intervention programs to support high student outcomes. The High Student Performance priority was established to ensure that the public school system develops and implements quality curriculum, instruction, and assessment to help the student achieve their academic goals and to be college and career ready by the time they leave the CNMI Public School System.

Accountable High Performing Systems

The CNMI PSS endeavors to fulfill its vision by ensuring high instructional quality while reducing variability in the quality of education for every student. In a high-reliability educational system, the CNMI PSS aims at achieving the strategic priorities goals, improve standard operating procedures, design effective structures and processes for defined autonomy and constrained improvisation; and create and maintain safe reporting cultures for continuous high performance by all stakeholders within the organization. Through research and development cycles driven by data, PSS seeks to function in failure-free conditions by improving system operations, detecting potential problems and solutions; and discovering new innovations which will have a greater impact on student performance

High Performing Personnel

The quality of human capital in the Public School System is of utmost importance. This is due to the services and programs that must be delivered to our primary clientele which are our students, followed by parents and our school community partners. The public school system employs non-certified staff and certified staff. Regardless of this distinction, the public school system expects the highest performance of staff in exhibiting their effectiveness on the job and their ability to perform based on qualification. Studies have shown a positive correlation between employee effectiveness and organizational performance. The Public School System developed this priority as we pursue to be a top-performing organization in the Commonwealth.

Effective and Efficient Operations

The establishment of the effective and efficient operations strategic priority is to ensure the PSS staff and key leaders oversee and use the resources of the public school system to achieve the organizational goals. The resources of the public school system include personnel, knowledge, and skills of its staff, fiscal, and other resources such as fixed assets. The Public School System staff continuously work together and coordinate their actions to achieve the goals as set forth by the State Board of Education and the Commissioner of Education in consultation with the stakeholders.

Safe and Caring Schools

Safety, orderliness, and caring in schools today cannot be assumed but must instead be explicitly addressed (Riley, P.L. 2013). The Center for the Prevention of School Violence views the establishment and maintenance of these conditions in schools as essential in efforts directed at creating excellent schools. The Safe and Orderly School committee continues to collaborate with all key stakeholders within the public school system and in our community to develop and implement sound policies and procedures. Our goal is to ensure that PSS has policies and procedures that will ensure the health, safety, orderly school environment.

Communications and Community Relations

Research is very clear that parental engagement and community partnership does have an impact on high student performance and school improvement. The engagement of parents in their children’s schoolwork correlates with high grades in schools, positive attitude towards school and good attendance in school. Community partnership is also another positive and key aspect of school improvement wherein resources are leverage and wherein community businesses and public sector members partner with the school district to make available educational programs, services, and resources to support student achievement. The Parental Engagement and Community Partnership were strategically added to the priorities in our effort to continuously reached out to key stakeholders to make a difference in our children’s educational goals.