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President Mori Appoints New FSM Scholarship Board Members

Palikir, Pohnpei (FSM Information Services): January 12, 2010 - Today, President Mori met with the new FSM National Scholarship Board members to discuss their appointments and the expectations that he has with the new Board. In their meeting, the President told the Board that there has been a lot of dissatisfaction coming from students in the past and that he has high hopes that this new Board will help address the prior concerns, be more transparent in their work, and take a proactive approach to making sure that scholarships are paid out on time.

The new Scholarship Board consists of 5 members, one from each FSM State and one representing the FSM National Government. Mr. Kembo Mida, Jr., a lawyer working in the private sector in Pohnpei, is the representative from Chuuk State. Ms. Emeliana Musrasrik, who is the Safety/Security Coordinator for the U.S. Peace Corps Office in Pohnpei, will represent Pohnpei State. Mr. Steven George, a lawyer within the FSM Department of Justice, will represent Kosrae State. Mrs. Cindy Edwin, who is the Student Services Specialist at the COM-FSM Pohnpei State Campus, will represent Yap State, and Mr. Burnis Danis, the Chief of Basic Education in the FSM Department of Education, will represent the FSM National Government. These Board members are appointed for a term of two years and must live in Pohnpei State to keep their Board membership. Ms. Musrasrik is the only Board member that is reappointed. All the other members are new.

The President has asked the Board to meet at their earliest convenience and elect a Chairman and Vice Chairman, and find ways to increase the efficiency of awarding scholarships. President Mori will also be reviewing the guidelines and practices of the Scholarship Board to look for ways of improving Board operations, and has requested their next meeting with him to be held during the first week of February.

At the conclusion of the meeting with the President, the new Board members met and elected Ms. Musrasrik as the Chairman of the Board and Mr. Mida as the Vice Chairman.