HAGÅTÑA, Guam — Guam Governor Lourdes A. Leon Guerrero has signed two education measures into law, one creating a licensure framework for school psychologists and another letting the Guam Department of Education tap lapsed funds for school facility projects.
Public Law 38-131 establishes a licensure framework for school psychologists, which the Governor’s Office said is meant to strengthen mental health services in public schools and support the recruitment and retention of qualified professionals. The office said the law responds to a shortage of school psychologists in Guam’s public school system and includes provisions allowing current school psychologists to keep serving students while transitioning to the new framework.
Public Law 38-132 allows GDOE to use lapsed funds appropriated in previous fiscal years for projects that improve school facilities and educational infrastructure. The Governor’s Office said the measure supports campus improvements, playgrounds, athletic facilities, typhoon recovery efforts and the reopening of shuttered school facilities.
“Student success depends on more than what happens in the classroom,” Leon Guerrero said. “It requires access to qualified professionals who can support students’ mental and emotional well-being, as well as safe and well-maintained schools that foster learning. These laws help strengthen both.”
Lt. Gov. Joshua F. Tenorio said the laws recognize that supporting students requires investment in both people and places. “By strengthening the pipeline of school-based mental health professionals and giving GDOE greater flexibility to improve school facilities, we are addressing needs that directly impact our students, teachers, and families each day,” Tenorio said.