Students and educators press lawmakers for action as Simon Sanchez High School remains displaced

Sen. Vince Borja convened a community town hall on Feb. 19 at John F. Kennedy High School to hear students, teachers and community members calling for immediate action to rebuild Simon Sanchez High School, which students said has been unusable since 2023.

Students described the concrete impacts of the displacement: shortened schedules, late dismissals and curtailed extracurriculars. "Because our dismissal isn't until 05:50PM, I often do not walk through my front door until 9PM," said Celine Gimbotten, a Simon Sanchez sophomore, who told the panel the late schedule forces students to sacrifice sleep and personal time.

Speakers recounted years of promised plans and stalled work. "For the past 3 years, the school has been fully unusable," Tiara Bloss, a senior, said, calling repeated announcements "intent without action." Teacher testimony described longstanding facility problems dating back more than a decade and the school’s condemnation after the 2023 storm.

Board of Education member Dr. McNinch told the room the board "fully supports the building and rebuilding of Simon Sanchez High School," but also warned of lengthy timelines: "it's not gonna be rebuilt probably for at least 4 to 5 years at a minimum," she said, citing procurement disputes and legal delays as major obstacles.

Community members asked where students will be placed next year if construction does not proceed. Dr. McNinch and other officials floated short‑term options such as sharing space at the University of Guam or Guam Community College or continuing split schedules with nearby schools; Sen. Borja said the legislature will press the Guam Department of Education for firm plans and will summon department leadership to an oversight hearing in the coming weeks.

Many speakers criticized the absence of the department’s leadership at the town hall; Sen. Borja apologized to students and parents for that absence and said the legislature would continue pressing for transparency and timelines.

No formal votes or policy decisions were taken at the meeting; speakers asked the legislature to use oversight powers and to examine procurement rules and timelines to accelerate rebuilding.

The town hall concluded at 8:02 p.m. with a pledge from Sen. Borja to pursue follow‑up oversight and to relay the students' testimony to department leaders.