Hawaii
U.S.
Rank
Score:
68%
Grade:
D
Rank:
#32
A small but robust diverse array of schools are highly prized but heavily regulated, limiting their autonomy and potential for growth.
Law passed: 1994
Most recently amended: 2019
Number of charter schools: 37
Number of charter students: 12,000
Cap on the number of schools allowed:? No
Virtual charters allowed? Yes
AUTHORIZERS: Hawaii State Public Charter School Commission (SPCSC) has statewide authorizing authority. Universities, county and state education agencies, and non-profits are permitted to apply to the state board of education to authorize charters as well. However, there are currently no active authorizers other than the SPCSC.
Appeals go to the state board.
GROWTH: No cap, but the regulatory environment has led to slow growth of charter schools in Hawaii. In January 2019, the SPCSC voted to suspend approval of new Online, Virtual, and Blended Learning schools until an internal working group submits a new report.
OPERATIONS:Charters receive a blanket waiver from most regulations that apply to district schools. The Commission, however, heavily regulates charters, especially finances, which greatly limits autonomy. Another change enacted in 2019 further constrains charters and authorizers with additional reporting requirements. Charters are also subject to the master collective bargaining agreement that applies to all Hawaiian teachers.
EQUITY: Charter school funding is a line item in the state budget, making charters vulnerable to budget cuts and other funding inequities.
Score:
Grade:
F
Rank:
#42
There are no choice programs in this state.
Score:
Grade:
C
Rank:
#32
50% of student growth is factored into evaluations, but requirements for content knowledge are deficient.
TRAINING AND RECRUITMENT: 59%
General Teacher Preparation 55%
Elementary Teacher Preparation 55%
Secondary Teacher Preparation 65%
Special Education Teacher Preparation 58%
Alternate Routes 60%
STAFFING AND SUPPORT: 67%
Hiring 60%
Retaining Effective Teachers 74%
TEACHER EVALUATION: 80%
TEACHER COMPENSATION: 75%
Score:
68%
Grade:
D
Rank:
#32
A small but robust diverse array of schools are highly prized but heavily regulated, limiting their autonomy and potential for growth.
Law passed: 1994
Most recently amended: 2019
Number of charter schools: 37
Number of charter students: 12,000
Cap on the number of schools allowed:? No
Virtual charters allowed? Yes
AUTHORIZERS: Hawaii State Public Charter School Commission (SPCSC) has statewide authorizing authority. Universities, county and state education agencies, and non-profits are permitted to apply to the state board of education to authorize charters as well. However, there are currently no active authorizers other than the SPCSC.
Appeals go to the state board.
GROWTH: No cap, but the regulatory environment has led to slow growth of charter schools in Hawaii. In January 2019, the SPCSC voted to suspend approval of new Online, Virtual, and Blended Learning schools until an internal working group submits a new report.
OPERATIONS:Charters receive a blanket waiver from most regulations that apply to district schools. The Commission, however, heavily regulates charters, especially finances, which greatly limits autonomy. Another change enacted in 2019 further constrains charters and authorizers with additional reporting requirements. Charters are also subject to the master collective bargaining agreement that applies to all Hawaiian teachers.
EQUITY: Charter school funding is a line item in the state budget, making charters vulnerable to budget cuts and other funding inequities.
Score:
Grade:
F
Rank:
#42
There are no choice programs in this state.
Score:
Grade:
C
Rank:
#32
50% of student growth is factored into evaluations, but requirements for content knowledge are deficient.
TRAINING AND RECRUITMENT: 59%
General Teacher Preparation 55%
Elementary Teacher Preparation 55%
Secondary Teacher Preparation 65%
Special Education Teacher Preparation 58%
Alternate Routes 60%
STAFFING AND SUPPORT: 67%
Hiring 60%
Retaining Effective Teachers 74%
TEACHER EVALUATION: 80%
TEACHER COMPENSATION: 75%
Score:
Grade:
B
Rank:
#4
Hawaii has made extensive statewide efforts with various digital learning programs and initiatives to promote digital access and equity for students.
Hawaii’s Department of Education’s E-School Program supports classroom learning through online instruction for middle and high school students in both district and charter schools. The state places a high emphasis on blended learning by using the Future Ready Learning framework to accelerate equitable digital learning access. In 2016, the state DOE expanded Future Ready Learning by creating the Future Ready Pathway initiative, adding 38 additional schools, where school leadership teams work to develop individualized school plans for integrating technology.
Hawaii also encourages computer science to be taught to all students, and has a multi-year plan to incorporate computer science education into all public schools in the state by 2022. As part of this effort, in 2018 Hawaii adopted Computer Science Standards in an effort to fill computer science jobs after students graduate.
The Hawaii Virtual Learning Network is a state virtual school that opened in 2007, giving students the opportunity to take online courses through the HDOE E-School program. Any public school student (traditional and charter) can enroll in HVLN supplemental classes. Enrollment numbers are relatively small; there were approximately 1,500 students enrolled in the 2016-17 school year.
Bandwidth: “100% of students in Hawaii can access the Internet at speeds of 100 kbps per student, and many students are connected at higher speeds.”
Hawaii has many resources on their website advocating for personalized learning to be used in every school. The state encourages and provides schools information and resources on implementing competency-based learning, differentiated instruction, flexible learning environments, and performance-based assessments.
Hawaii first announced school would close on March 19 in response to the COVID crisis. Gov. Ige and state Superintendent Dr. Kishimoto were committed to no loss of instruction time or skills and as a result the state’s 180,000 public school students have been consistently in online learning. Hawaii’s emphasis on continuing to provide learning differentiated it from most states, who used emphasizing safety as a distraction from their inability to provide adequate distance learning.
Summer e-courses were also offered for high school students so they can get ahead in credits and a strong website provides resources and guidance for students, teachers, and parents.
Throughout all periods of school closure, Hawaii schools continued to offer essential services as safely as possible, including grab-and-go offerings for meal services.
Despite geographic challenges, the state worked to embrace changes needed to provide students with learning opportunities they need. A strength of Hawaii’s resource page was it’s highly user-friendly parent portal, which provided materials each week for all age groups in order to assist parents in participating in their children’s distance learning. These materials were provided through the summer. Another vital feature of the parent portal is a separate page for Special Learners, including students with IEPs and ELL students.
Hawaii delayed full reopening of schools until Aug. 17th.
Fast Facts
4th Grade Math Proficiency:
8th Grade Math Proficiency:
12th Grade Math Proficiency:
4th Grade Reading Proficiency:
8th Grade Reading Proficiency:
12th Grade Reading Proficiency:
Graduation Rate:
Average SAT Score:
Average ACT Score:
Public School Enrollment:
Percent Enrolled in Charter Schools:
Average Student Funding:
Score:
Grade:
B
Rank:
#4
Hawaii has made extensive statewide efforts with various digital learning programs and initiatives to promote digital access and equity for students.
Hawaii’s Department of Education’s E-School Program supports classroom learning through online instruction for middle and high school students in both district and charter schools. The state places a high emphasis on blended learning by using the Future Ready Learning framework to accelerate equitable digital learning access. In 2016, the state DOE expanded Future Ready Learning by creating the Future Ready Pathway initiative, adding 38 additional schools, where school leadership teams work to develop individualized school plans for integrating technology.
Hawaii also encourages computer science to be taught to all students, and has a multi-year plan to incorporate computer science education into all public schools in the state by 2022. As part of this effort, in 2018 Hawaii adopted Computer Science Standards in an effort to fill computer science jobs after students graduate.
The Hawaii Virtual Learning Network is a state virtual school that opened in 2007, giving students the opportunity to take online courses through the HDOE E-School program. Any public school student (traditional and charter) can enroll in HVLN supplemental classes. Enrollment numbers are relatively small; there were approximately 1,500 students enrolled in the 2016-17 school year.
Bandwidth: “100% of students in Hawaii can access the Internet at speeds of 100 kbps per student, and many students are connected at higher speeds.”
Hawaii has many resources on their website advocating for personalized learning to be used in every school. The state encourages and provides schools information and resources on implementing competency-based learning, differentiated instruction, flexible learning environments, and performance-based assessments.
Hawaii first announced school would close on March 19 in response to the COVID crisis. Gov. Ige and state Superintendent Dr. Kishimoto were committed to no loss of instruction time or skills and as a result the state’s 180,000 public school students have been consistently in online learning. Hawaii’s emphasis on continuing to provide learning differentiated it from most states, who used emphasizing safety as a distraction from their inability to provide adequate distance learning.
Summer e-courses were also offered for high school students so they can get ahead in credits and a strong website provides resources and guidance for students, teachers, and parents.
Throughout all periods of school closure, Hawaii schools continued to offer essential services as safely as possible, including grab-and-go offerings for meal services.
Despite geographic challenges, the state worked to embrace changes needed to provide students with learning opportunities they need. A strength of Hawaii’s resource page was it’s highly user-friendly parent portal, which provided materials each week for all age groups in order to assist parents in participating in their children’s distance learning. These materials were provided through the summer. Another vital feature of the parent portal is a separate page for Special Learners, including students with IEPs and ELL students.
Hawaii delayed full reopening of schools until Aug. 17th.
4th Grade Math Proficiency:
8th Grade Math Proficiency:
12th Grade Math Proficiency:
4th Grade Reading Proficiency:
8th Grade Reading Proficiency:
12th Grade Reading Proficiency:
Graduation Rate:
Average SAT Score:
Average ACT Score:
Public School Enrollment:
Percent Enrolled in Charter Schools:
Average Student Funding:
David Ige (D)
Second term began in 2018 (two-term limit)
Governor David Ige should be a strong advocate for parental choice, having sent his own children to private school, but he generally aligns with the teachers unions on education policy matters. A potential sign of Gov. Ige comes from his previous opposition to allocation of public funds for private preschools and instead has advocated for universal public preschool. He did declare School Choice Week in Hawaii in January, so perhaps there is the potential for him to become more pro-parent in the future.
Hawaii is a left-leaning state, with a Democrat Governor, and Democrat-controlled House and Senate. They passed a bill that makes a small improvement for charter school access to facilities in 2019, but in general it would be difficult to pass any big pieces of education reform legislation. The state Superintendent of Education is Keith Hayashi, the Interim Superintendent, who was appointed by the state board, which is appointed by the Governor.
Hawaii’s Supreme Court has interpreted the state’s Blaine Amendment broadly and restrictively.
School report cards are easily accessible on their Department of Education homepage by clicking Vision for Success. The Strive HI report is in pdf format, making it easy for parents to print. They also link prior reports back to school year 2012-13, so parents can see whether a school has been improving or declining over the past decade. Reports are clear and easy to read, providing a snapshot on enrollment, performance on state assessments, achievement gaps, and student satisfaction. There is also a useful section that highlights the percentage of students that: graduate on time, enroll in postsecondary institutions, and complete a Career and Technical Education program by 12th grade. All of this is important data for accountability and transparency in a state.
Educational options are also easily found on the homepage in two clicks: Teaching and Learning → Education innovation.
School board elections are during the General Election cycle, which gives parents more power in their decision making because of higher voter turnout.
David Ige (D)
Second term began in 2018 (two-term limit)
Governor David Ige should be a strong advocate for parental choice, having sent his own children to private school, but he generally aligns with the teachers unions on education policy matters. A potential sign of Gov. Ige comes from his previous opposition to allocation of public funds for private preschools and instead has advocated for universal public preschool. He did declare School Choice Week in Hawaii in January, so perhaps there is the potential for him to become more pro-parent in the future.
Hawaii is a left-leaning state, with a Democrat Governor, and Democrat-controlled House and Senate. They passed a bill that makes a small improvement for charter school access to facilities in 2019, but in general it would be difficult to pass any big pieces of education reform legislation. The state Superintendent of Education is Keith Hayashi, the Interim Superintendent, who was appointed by the state board, which is appointed by the Governor.
Hawaii’s Supreme Court has interpreted the state’s Blaine Amendment broadly and restrictively.
School report cards are easily accessible on their Department of Education homepage by clicking Vision for Success. The Strive HI report is in pdf format, making it easy for parents to print. They also link prior reports back to school year 2012-13, so parents can see whether a school has been improving or declining over the past decade. Reports are clear and easy to read, providing a snapshot on enrollment, performance on state assessments, achievement gaps, and student satisfaction. There is also a useful section that highlights the percentage of students that: graduate on time, enroll in postsecondary institutions, and complete a Career and Technical Education program by 12th grade. All of this is important data for accountability and transparency in a state.
Educational options are also easily found on the homepage in two clicks: Teaching and Learning → Education innovation.
School board elections are during the General Election cycle, which gives parents more power in their decision making because of higher voter turnout.