In the short time Dr. Judi Won Pat has presided as acting superintendent of the Guam Department of Education, the mission is clear: to fix the long-standing facilities of the island’s public schools.

It’s an undertaking that elicits the help of different agencies—namely, the Guam Power Authority, the Department of Public Works, the Guam State Clearinghouse, and the Governor’s legal counsel.

To tackle the issue, officials from these sectors gathered in a meeting last week, led by Acting Gov. Josh Tenorio, joined by Won Pat and former GDOE Acting Superintendent Francis Santos.

The meeting yielded an agreement between GPA to address GDOE’s electrical needs and a deeper look into maximizing American Rescue Plan funds to support further repairs.

The Acting Governor stated in part, “our administration can assist with requests to USDOE to reprogram our American Rescue Plan (ARP) funds to prioritize repairs and maximize these dollars.”

Won Pat is pushing for the maximization of over $100 million in ARP funds for fixing the schools—however, GovGuam’s procurement process poses a wrench in those plans.

Another topic of discussion is the legislative involvement in fixing and completing the reconstruction of Simon Sanchez High School—a draft aimed at solving this issue is in the works.

Now the next step is for GDOE to get its spending plan approved by USDOE.