How will they fix Guam schools and public hospital? Gubernatorial candidates share plans at FCG forum
- Admin
- 8 minutes ago
- 6 min read
By Ron Rocky Coloma
Education, health care, workforce development and Guam's economic future took center stage Tuesday as five gubernatorial teams outlined their priorities before members of the Filipino Community of Guam during a forum at the Hyatt Regency Guam.
Hosted by the Filipino Community of Guam on July 28, the forum gave candidates an opportunity to address one of the island's largest communities, with each campaign discussing proposals they said would improve schools, strengthen the workforce, expand health care access, support tourism and improve public safety.
Education emerged as one of the night's dominant topics, with candidates agreeing that Guam's schools need stronger management and accountability but offering different approaches to improving educational outcomes and preparing students for the workforce.
Sen. Therese Terlaje said improving the Guam Department of Education's ability to spend available federal funding should come before expanding additional programs.
"First of all, we have to make sure that GDOE, more than any other agency, is able to use its federal funds because they receive so much federal funds, and that they are not returning those federal funds," Terlaje said. "Those are very critical for our students, especially some of our special needs students."
Terlaje said savings generated elsewhere in government could then be redirected toward expanding career and technical education into additional industries, helping prepare students for new jobs as Guam diversifies its economy.
Terlaje's running mate, Sen. Sabina Perez, said educational improvements should begin well before high school.
"I think what's also critical is we need to take a holistic approach where we promote early childhood literacy and literacy throughout the formal educational process," Perez said.
She also called for Guam to "expand pre-apprenticeships as early as middle school" and broaden them into STEM fields while identifying sustainable funding sources for school maintenance and teacher retention.
ADVERTISEMENT
Terlaje and Perez are seeking the Democratic Party's nomination in the Aug. 1 primary. They are vying against Lt. Gov. Joshua Tenorio, who is running with Sen. Tina Muna Barnes, and Sen. Joe San Agustin, with former Sen. Dwyane San Nicolas.
Tenorio pointed to the current administration's record, saying it provided full allotments to the Department of Education and supports giving principals greater authority over school spending.
"Why do we have to go to DOE central to be able to fix that split unit?" Tenorio asked. "Why don't they just go get the three quotes from whoever's available and get them done fast?"
Tenorio also called for stronger collaboration between GDOE and Guam Community College to better prepare students for careers immediately after graduation.
In terms of infrastructure goals, San Agustin said education officials must be held accountable for failure to maintain school facilities.
"During Covid, DOE received $278 million, and the focus was specifically to get schools ready to open. Did they do anything? As you can all see, they failed to do that," San Agustin said.
He said the legislature just found out this week that the education department has $60 million in unspent funds.
If elected, he said he would form a maintenance team to assist the department.
Republican candidate Frank Blas Jr. said the government needs to "look at ways and means to ensure that the maintenance is part of the budget."
Mary Okada, Blas' running mate, argued that accountability, rather than funding, remains the larger challenge.
The former GCC president recalled reviewing a proposed education budget during her time as chair of the legislature's budget committee.
"The department submitted a $400 million budget to the committee, and we immediately rejected it," Okada said. "The process for GDOE to compile their budget didn't take any consideration of how to spend it. It was simply a wish list."
Okada said the department should maximize existing federal grants and career and technical education funding before seeking additional appropriations.
Health care also drew significant attention, particularly the perennially troubled Guam Memorial Hospital
"We talk about the hospital's infrastructure; we talk about the healthcare system that exists. Hospital healthcare is not just GMH; it's the healthcare industry as a whole," Blas said. "We have the ability to expand that so that we can relieve the stress that currently exists in those areas."
Blas underscored the importance of engaging the community, particularly medical professionals, in balancing the need to stabilize GMH while planning for the construction of a new hospital.
"There are experts here. What we need to do is have discussions with them on how we can help relieve the pressure in the existing hospital," he said.
Blas also noted the need to "prepare so that when we do move into a new hospital, we're not just moving into a new facility, we're moving into a new system that will work for our people."
The shortage of health care professionals on Guam is another challenge facing every administration.
Tenorio also voiced support for expanding licensing pathways for foreign-trained physicians.
"If everybody remembers, the foundation of the healthcare system of Guam was based on the movement of Filipino doctors to Guam," he said. "I am in favor, and we have already started opening the pathways so that we can make it easier for foreign-trained doctors to come into Guam."
Terlaje noted that lawmakers recently approved legislation expanding opportunities for foreign-trained physicians while continuing to prioritize nursing scholarships.
"We can't fill the beds even at GMH because we don't have enough nurses," Terlaje said. "We continue to need nurses. We continue to have to prioritize scholarships for nurses, incentives for nurses, nursing pay, and to keep them here."
Joe San Agustin proposed recruiting nursing students before graduation to encourage them to remain on Guam after earning their degrees.
"We should have been recruiting during their junior year," he said. "You complete your course, you're hired."
Vice Speaker Tony Ada, a Republican running against Blas, stressed retaining locally trained health care workers.
"We graduate so many students from the University of Guam and nursing. We need to start getting them into the hospitals and the clinics," Ada said. "What's happening is that they're being farmed out to the United States or elsewhere."
Economic development also remained central to the evening's discussion, with candidates frequently pointing to Guam's longstanding relationship with the Philippines.
"The Philippine community has helped build our economy, enrich our culture, and strengthen our island in countless ways," Ada said. "That partnership deserves to grow even stronger through greater cooperation, opportunity, and cultural exchange."
Running mate EJ Calvo described the Philippines as one of Guam's most valuable economic partners and pointed to his business relationships with Philippine companies.
"The Philippines represents one of Guam's greatest strategic economic partners, and there are tremendous opportunities to deepen that relationship in ways that create jobs, strengthen our economy, and improve our quality of life," Calvo said.
Tenorio likewise pointed to growing cooperation between the United States and the Philippines, saying the relationship could support Guam's economy while tourism continues recovering.
"We're benefiting from a very close alignment between the United States and the Republic of the Philippines," he said, adding that Guam should continue pursuing inclusion of the Philippines in the Guam-CNMI visa waiver program.
ADVERTISEMENT
Candidates also discussed ways to diversify Guam's economy beyond military spending, including strengthening tourism, expanding workforce development and encouraging new industries.
Public safety and drug enforcement rounded out the forum, with candidates acknowledging that methamphetamine addiction and repeat offenders remain significant concerns for residents across Guam.
San Nicolas connected those issues to the importance of strong families.
"The one thing that's very wonderful about the Filipino community and the Filipino culture is your ability to hold family tight," he said. "In this day and age, when everybody's struggling with meth addiction, the only way out of this is to have a strong family."
Terlaje pointed to legislative efforts aimed at reducing repeat offenses through reforms to pretrial release and parole decisions while strengthening efforts to intercept illegal drugs entering Guam through its ports.
Tenorio said prevention should remain just as important as enforcement.
"We have to continue expanding the number of police and customs," he said, while also advocating continued investment in youth programs and community engagement.
Subscribe to
our digital
monthly issue
