STATE OF HAWAII
BOARD OF EDUCATION
HUMAN RESOURCES COMMITTEE

MINUTES

Queen Liliuokalani Building
1390 Miller Street, Room 404
Honolulu, Hawaii 96813
Tuesday, November 21, 2017

PRESENT:
Brian De Lima, Esq., Committee Chairperson
Hubert Minn, Committee Vice Chairperson
Margaret Cox
Kili Namau‘u
Bruce Voss, Esq.
Lance Mizumoto, Ex Officio
Kenneth Uemura, Ex Officio

EXCUSED:
Patricia Bergin
Nolan Kawano

ALSO PRESENT:
Christina Kishimoto, Superintendent
Amy Kunz, Senior Assistant Superintendent and Chief Financial Officer, Office of Fiscal Services
Cynthia Covell, Assistant Superintendent of Talent Management (Office of Human Resources)
Courtney Gill, Institutional Analyst, Office of Strategy, Innovation and Performance
Alison Kunishige, Executive Director
Kenyon Tam, Board Analyst
Regina Pascua, Board Private Secretary
Irina Dana, Secretary


I. Call to Order

The Human Resources Committee (“Committee”) meeting was called to order by Committee Chairperson Brian De Lima at 9:30 a.m.


II. *Public testimony on Human Resources Committee (“Committee”) agenda items

Committee Chairperson De Lima called for public testimony. The following people provided oral testimony.

Name
Organization
Agenda Item
Position
Corey Rosenlee Hawaii State Teachers AssociationIV.A. Presentation on annual reporting of the 2017-2020 Department of Education and Board of Education Joint Strategic Plan indicators for Goal 2 (Staff Success)Comment

Corey Rosenlee, Hawaii State Teachers Association (“HSTA”), testified on his concerns regarding the annual reporting of the Department of Education (“Department”) and Board of Education (“Board”) Joint Strategic Plan (“Strategic Plan”) indicators for Goal 2, Staff Success. Rosenlee detailed data relating to State Approved Teacher Education Program (“SATEP”) vacancies for School Year (“SY”) 2017-2018. He also noted shortcomings of the data, for example, that the numbers do not account for teachers who have obtained a SATEP certification in a field other than special education but are placed in a special education teaching position, and they do not include the number of teachers who are new hires and teaching special education. Rosenlee commented that teacher recruitment programs focus on long-term gains rather than short-term gains and that certain complexes fall below state average data in terms of retention and recruitment.

Written testimony was also received and provided to the Committee Members. The following is a listing of the people that submitted written testimony before the testimony deadline.

Name
Organization
Agenda Item
Position
Corey Rosenlee HSTAIV.A. Presentation on annual reporting of the 2017-2020 Department of Education and Board of Education Joint Strategic Plan indicators for Goal 2 (Staff Success)Comment
Martha Guinan, Ivalee SinclairSpecial Education Advisory Council IV.A. Presentation on annual reporting of the 2017-2020 Department of Education and Board of Education Joint Strategic Plan indicators for Goal 2 (Staff Success)Comment


III. Approval of Meeting Minutes of October 17, 2017

ACTION: Motion to approve the Human Resources Committee Meeting minutes of October 17, 2017 and the Human Resources Committee Executive Session Meeting minutes of October 17, 2017 (Voss/Cox). The motion carried unanimously with all members present voting aye.



IV. Discussion Items

Amy Kunz, Senior Assistant Superintendent and Chief Financial Officer, Office of Fiscal Services, stated that the Strategic Plan indicators for Goal 2, Staff Success, are for SY 2017-2018. She noted that most other indicators are for previous school years; however, the way in which the Department calculates the indicator for Goal 2 is not retroactive. Kunz reviewed the rationale for Objective 3, Efficient and Transparent Supports, including monitoring progress toward Strategic Plan goals and objectives, supporting data-driven decisions, maintaining transparency and public access, and advancing equity and excellence for all students. She stated that for Goal 2 indicators, the Department focuses on equity through a special education lens and complex area comparison. Kunz reminded the Committee that during the October 3, 2017 General Business Meeting, Board Members discussed adding special education-specific sub-indicators for teacher positions filled. She stated that the Department will review this information and the five-year teacher retention rate.

Kunz reviewed the status of the Strategic Plan dynamic report. She detailed that the Department uses SY 2016-2017 as its baseline and highlighted SY 2017-2018 results as of the first day of school. Kunz noted that the Department filled 93% of its teacher positions with SATEP teachers for SY 2016-2017. This number decreased to 92% for SY 2017-2018. The target for 2020 is 96%. She stated that in terms of raw data, the Department filled 12,268 out of 13,188 positions for SY 2016-2017 and 12,309 out of 13,320 for SY 2017-2018. Kunz highlighted that the Department’s denominator is a moving target based on principal need. She detailed that for special education, the Department filled 86% of special education teacher positions with SATEP teachers for SY 2016-2017. This percentage remained the same for SY 2017-2018. In terms of raw data, the Department filled 1,818 out of 2,108 positions for SY 2016-2017 and 1,840 out of 2,151 positions for SY 2017-2018. Kunz noted that the demand and denominator both increased. Kunz highlighted that this data is for SATEP positions and includes both classroom and non-classroom teachers, such as librarians.

Kunz reviewed the status of the five-year teacher retention indicator. She stated that the Department’s baseline for SY 2017 is 52% and currently the Department is at 54%. This denominator changed as well. She noted that the Department hired 478 out of 922 teachers in 2012 and 533 out of 985 teachers in 2013. The cohort the Department is tracking is a cohort of teachers that it hired in 2013 and at the beginning of SY 2017-2018 the cohort reached their five-year mark. Kunz noted that this indicator includes all teachers, including teachers that had not completed SATEP. She added that if these teachers were not SATEP teachers in 2013, they would need to be SATEP-approved to be included in this cohort.

Kunz reviewed the Strategic Plan dynamic report available on the Department’s website. She detailed the Strategic Plan goals, indicators, teacher positions filled data, actual raw data, needs of principals, equity inclusion complex area comparisons, SATEP-approved teachers, all teacher positions filled, and various data by school year. She noted that additional data available on the Department’s website includes special education data, statewide data, complex area data, and basic navigation for teacher retention.

Ex Officio Committee Member Lance Mizumoto asked why the denominators change from fiscal year to fiscal year and inquired whether the Department was aware that the number of positions would change over time when developing the Strategic Plan. He stated that it would benefit the public for the Department to add a footnote to its report to explain this change. Kunz explained school financial and academic planning processes and noted that the Department is aware of principals’ needs close to the payroll deadline at the end of December. She stated that principals do not always fill all positions based on school enrollment due to a lack of qualified candidates. Kunz noted that the Department pulls data in October and reviews data from the first day of school. She stated that principals can sell positions after the school year starts if positions are unfilled, if their Weighted Student Formula is lower than expected, or if enrollment numbers decrease. Ex Officio Committee Member Mizumoto clarified that he recognizes the fluidity of the data but suggests the Department provide an explanation or a summary analysis to give the public more clarity as to the context of changes. He noted that when the reader reviews the data, it shows the reader that there is a change but does not explain why changes are occurring.

Ex Officio Committee Member Mizumoto asked whether the Department will provide further data analysis. He stated that the Department’s report lacks analysis. Ex Officio Committee Member Mizumoto commended the Department’s efforts to retrieve data but emphasized the importance of a comprehensive analysis that shows what the data means and what the Department’s plans are moving forward. Kunz stated that the Department’s report is a one-time snapshot of Strategic Plan indicators. She noted that the Department will continue to present its plans and initiatives moving forward. She highlighted that the Department presented on retention initiatives in January and detailed that the Department will continue to provide updates through the Human Resources Committee with a deeper analysis of the data and the initiatives behind them. Ex Officio Committee Member Mizumoto stated that he wants to ensure that the public understands the data.

Committee Member Bruce Voss referenced Rosenlee’s testimony. He highlighted that Rosenlee detailed substantially lower retention numbers in particular complexes and asked what the Department’s strategy is to address individual complexes or schools to increase retention numbers. Cynthia Covell, Assistant Superintendent of Talent Management (Office of Human Resources), stated that the Department needs further analysis for complex areas. She detailed that Superintendent Christina Kishimoto has assembled a working group of principals, Complex Area Superintendents, and teachers to review recruitment and retention efforts and develop innovative approaches that the Department can then present to the Board. In addition, the Department has partnered with the Teacher Education Coordinating Committee to address teacher recruitment. Covell noted that the Department will collaborate with these various groups and present the Board with several strategies related to retention, recruiting, and other ideas that may help with asking for funding from the Legislature. Covell highlighted that the “Grow Our Own Teachers” initiative has been successful and noted that a new cohort will start in January. She emphasized the importance of data and stated that data helps the Department to frame issues so that the Department can discuss these issues and develop more understanding. Committee Member Voss emphasized the importance of focusing on struggling schools and complex areas. He stated that his hope is that the Department develops programs that provide support to schools struggling with changing demographics, housing, and traffic. He stated that there are programs designed to support struggling students and noted that he does not want the schools to be “left behind.” Committee Member Voss noted that overall numbers are increasing, but this point is of little comfort to schools with low retention and recruitment rates. Covell highlighted that Department initiatives will target struggling schools and complex areas.

Committee Member Margaret Cox detailed a personal story of how the Department recruited her as a teacher and noted that although her pay was low, she had the benefit of residing in teacher housing. She highlighted that schools had mentoring programs when she was a beginning teacher and detailed that a beginning teacher supervisor assisted and mentored her each week. Committee Member Cox noted that while not all of the teachers the Department recruits will stay in Hawaii, how schools work with new teachers makes a significant difference. She added that teachers who do not have support will be increasingly unhappy. Committee Member Cox stated that schools cannot control all factors, but schools can provide support to new teachers. She emphasized the importance of schools helping new teachers understand the culture of Hawaii. Committee Member Cox stated that her original intent was to stay in Hawaii for two years, but she stayed for significantly longer. She stated that helping teachers who are new to Hawaii will make a big difference in terms of teacher retention.

Committee Vice Chairperson Hubert Minn stated that Hawaii is isolated and unique and detailed the Department’s current recruitment strategy. He encouraged the Department to review removing visa restrictions and hiring teachers from cities that have similarities to Hawaii. Committee Vice Chairperson Minn highlighted his discussions with individuals from other countries and detailed qualified candidates from the Philippines, South Korea, and Japan.

Committee Chairperson De Lima noted that the Department had exit interview survey reports for SY 2015-2016 and inquired whether these reports exist for SY 2016-2017. Kunz was unsure and noted that she will follow up. Committee Chairperson De Lima stated that the Committee would like these results as soon as possible.

Committee Chairperson De Lima noted that the Strategic Plan references teacher retention and includes the percentage of vacancies as an indicator the Department monitors. He detailed that although the Department fills 93% of teacher positions, the Department still has 1,100 vacancies, which is a major issue because teachers without SATEP certification are teaching in 1,100 classrooms. Committee Chairperson De Lima emphasized that one of the Board and Department’s priorities outlined in the Strategic Plan is that highly qualified teachers should teach the most vulnerable students. He detailed that the Committee adopted an amendment to its Strategic Priorities at its September 5, 2017 meeting to determine the number of unlicensed, inexperienced, unqualified, and out-of-field teachers assigned to classrooms and analyze where those teachers are being hired, what courses they are teaching, and whether those teachers are being assigned to the most vulnerable students, including those at high-poverty schools. He emphasized the importance of this data and noted that it will make a difference for the most vulnerable students. Once the Board and Department focus on this data, the culture of principals will be to ensure that the most qualified teachers in their schools are teaching the most vulnerable students. He stated that this culture change will hopefully have a positive impact on student achievement. Kunz detailed the Every Student Succeeds Act (“ESSA”) requirements related to qualified and unqualified teachers. She stated that the Department is currently undergoing the process of reviewing information and data in order to meet ESSA requirements. Committee Chairperson De Lima asked if the Superintendent’s program review of special education is reviewing this data. Kunz confirmed that it is.

Committee Chairperson De Lima agreed with the Department’s initiatives it outlined earlier in the meeting to solicit input from individuals in the field because it eliminates criticism by those who are closest to schools. By soliciting their input, the Department may determine how best to solve issues related to teacher retention and recruitment. Committee Chairperson De Lima highlighted the Special Education Advisory Council’s (“SEAC”) written testimony and encouraged the Department to review SEAC’s recommendations regarding statewide targets for special education teacher recruitment and to consider these recommendations. He stated that the Department and the Board should discuss and consider SEAC’s recommendations in terms of data review and detailed that these recommendations may aid the special education program review in terms of ongoing monitoring. Committee Chairperson De Lima highlighted that the Committee’s Strategic Priorities address Rosenlee’s concerns regarding the kinds of data that the Department collects.


V. Adjournment

Committee Chairperson De Lima adjourned the meeting at 10:06 a.m.