ISLAND VOICES
An end to an era in education

By Karen Ginoza

My time as president of the Hawai'i State Teachers Association ends today. These have been five of the most challenging and rewarding years of my life. Every day I learned something new and exciting about a school, a teacher, a parent or a student.

But the most important lesson I discovered as president was one that I learned in my first days as a teacher, almost 35 years ago — the people of Hawai'i love their public schools and want them to succeed.

Public schools are succeeding. There are still obstacles to climb, but the positives far outshine the negatives. Public school teachers educate and guide 185,000 students a year. The overwhelming majority of these students will, with little fanfare, mature into productive and conscientious members of their communities, forming the base for a prosperous and diversified economy.

Underlying it all are quality schools filled with caring and qualified teachers. This is why I have always been proud to be a public school teacher and why the last five years have been a time I will always cherish.

It was an era in which teachers united in the face of unprecedented adversity in their fight for better schools. We raised the bar for professionalism and accountability by leading the development of the Hawai'i Teacher Standards Board. We rewarded teachers' professional growth and high achievement through incentives. We piloted a mentoring program designed expressly to help support and retain new educators.

Soon a new president at the association will take up the fight to keep making our schools better and better. I wish him well and will cheer him on from Royal School in my new role as a special-education teacher focused on reading and math skills.

In many ways, today's classroom is a different place than when I last taught. Teachers are tugged in many different directions, each demanding its fair share of attention.

And yet the profession's essence remains the same: guiding children on a path that will allow them to utilize their full potential. There is nothing more satisfying than to see a former student, grown up and happy with his or her life. I recently became reacquainted with a student from my very first year as a teacher. All it took was a simple thank you from him to bring a smile to my face.

And now I say to the public school teachers of Hawai'i, thank you.

Karen Ginoza is outgoing president of the Hawai'i State Teachers Association.