1) Public School System mental health program coordinator Walter Mendez and counseling program manager Dr. Paulette Tomokane at the Rotary Club of Saipan meeting on Feb. 10, 2026. Photo by Bryan Manabat
2) Rotarian Donna Krum asks Walter Mendez about social media use among students.
By Bryan Manabat
[email protected]
Variety News Staff
PUBLIC School System officials told the Rotary Club of Saipan on Feb. 10 that social media is increasingly contributing to student mental health challenges, adding to the pressures schools are working to address across the CNMI.
Following the presentation, Rotarian Donna Krum asked whether PSS is seeing a worsening trend tied to social media use.
PSS mental health program coordinator Walter Mendez responded, “Social media is a big issue. Access to information is a double‑edged sword.”
According to Mendez, students today have unprecedented access to information, but constant connectivity carries risks. “Students now have access to more information than ever before, but it also poses significant risks,” he said, noting that the effects often appear as overstimulation.
During the presentation, Mendez and counseling program manager Dr. Paulette Tomokane outlined districtwide efforts to build resilience, teach conflict resolution, and strengthen students’ social‑emotional skills across 20 schools.
“We aren’t just teaching subjects like math and reading,” Mendez said. “We’re focused on cultivating our students as citizens, equipping them with life skills that go beyond academics.”
PSS uses research‑based programs including Positive Action in elementary schools and Character Strong in middle and high schools. Counselors conduct classroom guidance and small‑group sessions using programs such as Healthy Relationships Plus and Peaceful Alternatives to Tough Situations. Suicide‑prevention training through QPR and ASIST equips staff to respond to students in crisis.
PSS also launched Sources of Strength, which trains students to serve as peer mediators and peer support leaders. The mental health program formally began in 2020, initially tied to post‑typhoon recovery efforts after Super Typhoons Soudelor and Yutu, and was later intensified by the Covid‑19 pandemic.
Rotarian Vincent J. Seman noted that many students, especially in middle and high school, are tethered to devices, with cyberbullying and classroom conflicts continuing after school hours. Mendez said the district is responding through outreach on both the positives and negatives of device use, including warning signs of overuse and strategies to manage screen time.
Tomokane added that outreach also extends to families, teaching skills on managing screen-time behaviors and social media use. “Despite funding constraints, we continue moving forward because our students deserve it all,” she said.
Bryan Manabat was a liberal arts student of Northern Marianas College where he also studied criminal justice. He is the recipient of the NMI Humanities Award as an Outstanding Teacher (Non-Classroom) in 2013, and has worked for the CNMI Motheread/Fatheread Literacy Program as lead facilitator.