Editorial
We need a Marshall Plan for public schools

The aftermath of the Sept. 11 attacks has been a vivid demonstration of Hawai'i's enormous dependence on its fragile tourism industry.

Fears of flying and economic uncertainty have led to about a 30 percent drop in visitor arrivals. While that does not on the surface appear to be an enormous number, the impact of that shortfall in the Islands has been staggering.

There is, of course, a need to get those numbers back up to pre-Sept. 11 levels, if not higher. That will take some time.

Look elsewhere

But there is also a fresh awareness that we must redouble our efforts to create economic opportunities in the state that do not depend on tourism and travel. But what?

High-tech is an option, and will be part of the picture. But the experience of Silicon Valley tells us this cannot be our sole salvation.

Other niches, ranging from health and wellness tourism through communications and international meetings will emerge. Diversified agriculture will be another part of the puzzle.

But it is clear that there is no "big bang" solution yet on the horizon that can replace the two previous mainstays: first agriculture and then tourism.

So while we strengthen the niches and look for a unique opportunity for Hawai'i to shine, what should we do?

Turn to education

The answer, and it is more than obvious once one thinks about it, is education. There is no better time than now to put our undivided attention directly on education. After a painful teachers' strike and the sudden resignation of Superintendent Paul LeMahieu, our struggling public school system is in crisis.

We must act.

And no other single investment today promises a more certain payoff tomorrow than education. No matter what our economy looks like five, 10 or 20 years from now, it will depend on something we now clearly lack: a first-class education system.

Top to bottom

And by this, we should include everything from universal preschool through a world-class university.

But most critically, it involves upgrading our state school system so that it becomes a center of local and national pride.

We simply cannot afford to move forward in fits and starts. What is needed in these uncertain times is nothing less than a Marshall Plan for our public schools.

Just as the United States committed blood and treasure to rebuild Europe after the devastation of World War II, Hawai'i must come together in a massive effort to rebuild, upgrade and improve our public education system. There is no single better investment in our economic future.

The Marshall Plan rebuilt Europe's devastated physical infrastructure, its economy and its system of governance. The same is needed here.

It cannot happen overnight, obviously. And it's easy to identify the problems facing public education today: lack of resources, bureaucratic red tape, the complications of a multi-ethnic, multi-cultural society, massive confusion about governance, 19th-century work and union rules in a 21st-century environment — even our geographic isolation.

True commitment

None of these obstacles will be enough to set us back if we truly commit to making the building of a spectacular 21st-century education system our No. 1 priority as we emerge from the ashes of Sept. 11.

The place to start can be — as it was in Europe — basic infrastructure. Our public schools are in lousy physical shape, behind in basic maintenance, let alone in the upgrades that a 21st-century education requires.

So begin with a massive program of improvement and physical repair for our schools. Do it one school at a time if need be, but do it.

Iron will needed

The money is there, and more money will flow once progress becomes obvious. But longer term, we will need iron will to move past structural obstacles; we will need cooperation from every segment and every sector of Island society to keep forward momentum.

Hawai'i has but two great resources: its incredible natural environment and its people. While we stumble occasionally, we do a relatively good job of investing in, and nurturing, our natural environment.

It is time for us to commit fully, and wholeheartedly, to do as much for our human potential by building an education system the world will envy.