A PUBLIC hearing on four resolutions introduced by Sen. Frank Blas Jr. was held yesterday afternoon, including Resolution 317-31 which would request Guam Delegate Madeleine Bordallo to introduce legislation to amend the Jones Act.
However, no one came forth to provide testimony on the resolution, which seeks to exempt Guam, Puerto Rico, Hawaii and Alaska from the U.S.-Build provision of the Jones Act.
For Resolution 167-31, however, many people showed up to testify. This resolution requests U.S. President Barack Obama, the Speaker of the House of Representatives and the U.S. Senate to restore funding for the TRIO Programs, which has been active for several years at the University of Guam.
The Trio Programs have three units overseen by Yoichi Rengiil. They are Upward Bound, which serves 80 high school students; Education Talent Search, which serves 38 middle and high school students; and Student Support Services, which serve 160 University of Guam students.
Julie Ulloa-Heath, UOG dean of enrollment management student services, touched on the importance of the Trio Programs and UOG’s full support to keep it running.
“The students from our Guam public schools and university have benefited directly through the efforts of the TRIO employees who are vital in fostering genuine support for those they serve,” she said. “As a result, TRIO graduates contribute positively in their various communities not only on Guam, but in the whole of Micronesia.”
Ulloa-Heath stressed federal funding should continue for the TRIO Programs so it can continue helping students.
Concerns
During the hearing, parents and students also expressed their concerns about the possible TRIO cuts. Among those who testified was Patricia Tenorio, a senior at Simon Sanchez High School and a client of Upward Bound, which she has been involved with since 2009.
“We’re just asking for your support to help not only the students who are already in the program, but also the ones who will be in the program in the future. We want to help the community with our knowledge from the program and the knowledge Upward Bound has given us,” she said.
The other resolutions discussed were Resolution No. 198-31 (COR) relative to requesting the Commander, U.S. Naval Base Guam to change the name of "U.S. Naval Station, Guam" to reflect the cultural history of Guam by renaming it as the "Sumay U.S. Naval Station Guam"; and Resolution No. 375-31(COR) relative to recognizing and agreeing with the desires of the Northern Mariana Islands Legislature to form the Mariana Islands Legislature Association and to establish within that entity a Mariana Islands Cooperative Initiative to explore areas of joint economic development and mutual benefit between the government of Guam and the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands.
