The remote Outer Islands of Yap, located in the Federated States of Micronesia, have been featured in the October 2009 issue of National Geographic Traveler magazine.

The article, focusing on the Ulithi Atoll, is titled "Way Out and Warmhearted." It characterizes the four inhabited Ulithian islands (Falalop, Asor, Mogmog, and Federai) as "strong[ly] traditional," and home to "clear waters rife with life."

Traveler's profile of the the Outer Islands of Yap is part of that magazine's 25 anniversary feature "50 Places of a Lifetime."

Neil Mellen, the author, explains:

Life on this paradise has its inequities and struggles, but people are warmhearted and friendly, and they willingly share their natural bounty. Sitting communally as the sun set, passing a cup of tuba and contributing my own stories, I realized that around this drinking circle the kindness of the Outer Island people shines the brightest.

Mellen, a former Peace Corps Volunteer who served on Falalop and Asor, Ulithi, is a Director of the Habele Outer Island Education Fund, a charity serving students in Micronesia.

The Fall Semester 2009 updated enrollment data for the College of Micronesia is now online.

According to the President's latest announcment "The enrollment at all campuses are much higher this Fall Semester than Fall Semester 2008, as of 5:00 p.m. on Wednesday, August 19, 2009.  This is the first semester that enrollment at the National Campus has exceeded 1000."

The headcounts for Fall Semester 2009 are as follows:

Campus	Students Enrolled
Chuuk	580
Kosrae	217
National	1,001
Pohnpei	730
Yap	207
Total	2,735

Read about K-12 public school enrollment in Micronesia here.

Habele is an all-volunteer US-based nonprofit organization striving to expand access to quality instruction for students of Micronesia's remote Outer Island community.

This brief overview of data, taken from 2007 state and federal sources in Micronesia, provides a general glimpse of public school characteristics in the four states of the Federated States of Micronesia.

Total K-12 Public School Enrollment

Chuuk 14,271
Kosrae 2,382
Pohnpei 10,825
Yap  3,125

Number of Public Schools

Chuuk 155
Kosrae 10
Pohnpei 34
Yap 60

Number of Public School Classroom Teachers (and % with 4-year college degrees)

Chuuk 948 (10%)
Kosrae 201 (15%)
Pohnpei 731 (21%
Yap 375 (5%)

Estimated High School Graduation Rate (the % of 8th completers who finished high school)

Chuuk 41%
Kosrae 84%
Pohnpei 68%
Yap 82%

Per-Student Spending in Micronesian Public Schools

Chuuk $565
Kosrae $2,051
Pohnpei $1,120
Yap $1,899

Nationwide enrollment in higher education (2-year community college system): 2,700 pupils

In 2009, Habele provided full tuition scholarships to 16 Outer Island students attending private elementary and high schools on Yap, Chuuk, and Pohnpei. The average tuition was just under $500.00.

Research conducted by the Micronesian Seminar indicates that student achievement at Outer Island public schools is "well below" the performance of public school students on Yap Proper, as measured by statewide 8th exit exams.

The author of that report, Francis X. Hezel, S.J., also found that private school students in the FSM consistently outperformed their public school peers on exit exams and college entrance tests. The independent schools charge tuition fees ranging from 40 to 60% of public per-pupil school spending.