Eight BOE seats up for grabs

A majority of seats on the state Board of Education are up for grabs this year, with 18 candidates vying for positions that have met with an increasing amount of criticism and controversy in recent years.

Education officials recently have dealt with budget problems, aging school facilities, disputes with the state's charter schools and a rocky relationship with the Legislature, whose members spent a majority of the 2002 session trying to figure out how to eliminate the board or diminish its authority.

Eight of the 13 BOE seats are up for election this year. A 14th student member is included on the board, but has no voting rights.

Ten candidates are vying for three O'ahu at-large seats, along with three candidates each for one Windward and one Central seat.

O'ahu residents can cast votes in all of those elections — the residency requirement is on the candidate, not the voter.

Maui district candidates Mary Cochran and Kelly King advance directly to the Nov. 5 general election because their race had only two candidates. Their names do not appear on the primary ballot.

In addition, the general election will include two winner-take-all races to fill vacancies created by the mid-term departures of Marilyn Harris (Leeward) and Donna Ikeda (O'ahu at-large). The candidate filing deadline for those seats is today.

Here is a look at the races voters will consider during the primary election Sept. 21.

O'ahu at-large

Incumbent Shannon Ajifu, a former principal seeking her second term on the board, said she can help provide a balanced perspective on the issues confronting the department. Her top priority would be reviewing the structure of the DOE to determine how it can be most efficient.

"I would vigorously support the superintendent, who strives to provide resources to schools despite an inadequate budget," Ajifu said.

Carolyn Golojuch, a social worker and community volunteer and activist, said she is a proactive person who would encourage creative approaches and not allow the education system to remain at the status quo. She would also like to see budgets given to schools based on their student enrollment.

"I tell people that if we as individuals managed our money as badly as our state government does we would all be homeless," Golojuch said. "People are aware of that. I think they're tired of it. People are upset with the mismanagement."

Malcolm Kirkpatrick, a math tutor and former DOE teacher, said his top priority would be putting parents in control of education decisions. "The closer you get to parents the better the system will perform," Kirkpatrick said. "Anything that strengthens the parents' voice would be good."

Kirkpatrick favors increasing choices for parents, including school vouchers, charter schools and subsidized home schooling. He also said the board should let parents decide which schools should receive their taxes.

Karen Knudsen, a BOE member since 1990 and a director at the East-West Center, said the board needs to push the department to follow its literacy policy to make sure all students are reading at their grade levels, get behind the federal No Child Left Behind Act and make sure the state continues to comply with the Felix consent decree, which calls for improvements in special-education services.

Knudsen said it is critical for the board to develop a better relationship with the rest of the state government. "We have a new governor and a new Legislature," Knudsen said. "It's going to be critical to work with all elected officials."

Marcia Linville, a retired teacher and librarian, said smaller class sizes with teachers qualified to teach in their subject areas should be a top priority for the state. She would also like to see early identification and remediation of children with mental, social, physical and emotional learning problems.

"Other children should be given the attention their special needs deserve. Many children are gifted in the arts, drama, music or athletics," Linville said. "There should be enhanced programs for that."

Phil Robertson said his major interest is in seeing a voucher system developed and in improving parent involvement in the schools.

"I think the grades kindergarten through 12th should have to compete just like the colleges and the preschools," Robertson said. "Why should the state have any kind of monopoly over education? They should have to improve themselves or perish. It's the way that American business operates."

Incumbent Keith Sakata, an industrial construction inspector seeking his third board term, said the BOE must make sure there is no backsliding in recent efforts to improve the special-education system. He would also like to see more character education in the schools and better teacher salaries.

The No Child Left Behind Act also could force improvements in student achievement, he said. "I think this will be an opportune time to improve our education system and make everybody accountable, including the board," Sakata said.

Candidate Kenneth Segawa did not respond to calls from The Advertiser.

Marla Wade, a minister, said character education should be woven into the school curriculum. "Besides not having enough money in their classrooms, the teachers say the students are very disrespectful," Wade said. "I think character is the only thing that leads to success."

Wade would also like to see smaller class sizes, especially in situations in which teachers are dealing with ability levels that range from special education to gifted and talented. "We have to decide what our priorities are in the state," she said. "We say it's education, but the money isn't following."

Randall Yee, an attorney, said he would work on streamlining the DOE and expanding the use and acceptance of charter schools. "They've had their share of problems, but I think it's a really good concept because of the parent involvement," Yee said.

The board also needs to focus on improving student respect for teachers, perhaps filling a role families and churches used to, he said. "The education system is still geared to how things were done in the past," Yee said. "Schools cannot do the same things now that they did when mothers stayed home and everyone had a two-parent family."

Central

Grace Dixon, a community volunteer, homemaker and libraries advocate, said improving education for immigrant students is her top priority. She would also like to see more money spent at the classroom level, better support for principals and libraries as literacy-training centers.

"We shouldn't worry about the governance and the bureaucracy," Dixon said. "We should worry about what's happening at the classroom level."

Ollie Lunasco, a former state representative and a foster parent, said he is running because he is fed up with the education system.

"I don't even know what the function of the board is," Lunasco said. "Every meeting I go to I leave with a sour taste in my mouth. I think the board should be done away with. It seems like if nobody checks out the DOE, why do you have the board?"

The top issues for Shirley Robinson, a homemaker and volunteer, are gaining autonomy for the DOE, improving teacher pay and decreasing class size.

"Everybody — the teachers, the DOE, BOE, the community and the students — need to work together to pinpoint the top priorities," Robinson said.

Windward

James Kuroiwa Jr., a labor union organizer, said the DOE should shift more control over budgeting to the school complexes, which are made up of high schools and their feeder schools. The complexes should be able to make hiring decisions and have authority over repairs and maintenance, he said. Parental involvement would also improve if the governance were at a lower level, he said.

"Some people say, 'What if they make mistakes?' I say that's fine," Kuroiwa said. "If they make mistakes they can fix it quicker at that level than they can in the state bureaucracy."

Laura H. Thielen, an attorney and school volunteer, would like to keep statewide funding and academic standards, but shift control from the central system to the districts and schools. "There's a lot the DOE could do to give control to the schools," Thielen said. "The schools are the ones that would be the most motivated and innovative in doing what their kids need. It would probably result in more creative programs."

Thielen would also have an outside audit done on the DOE and wants to see an expansion of the A-Plus after-school program.

Terrance Tom, an attorney and former state representative, said the board needs to have a better relationship with the governor, the Legislature and other state agencies to make sure there is more money for schools. He is also interested in special needs children and the Felix consent decree.

"I feel strongly that the board needs to take a more prominent role in its responsibility for the education of our kids," Tom said. "I hope I can put my years in the Legislature to use in being a strong voice for public education."

Reach Jennifer Hiller at jhiller@honoluluadvertiser.com or 525-8084.