Posted on: Friday, December 3, 2004

Governor releases $4.3 million for schools

By Derrick DePledge
Advertiser Capitol Bureau

Gov. Linda Lingle has released the last of the money approved by the state Legislature last session for education reform, including $1.7 million for parent coordinators at public schools.

The governor had released most of the $12 million in July, with money for new math textbooks and to lower class sizes, but had upset many educators and Democratic lawmakers by withholding some of the money until the state Department of Education could justify why it was necessary.

Democrats had approved the reform law over Lingle's veto, and some believed she was keeping the money for political reasons. But Lingle explained that she withheld the money because the projects "have no direct relationship to education reform and should be submitted in the normal budget review process."

Lingle released the final portion — $4.3 million — on Wednesday after several exchanges between the DOE and the state Department of Budget and Finance. The governor and her senior policy adviser, Linda Smith, met on Monday with state schools superintendent Pat Hamamoto and state Board of Education chairman Breene Harimoto.

"There was an adequate enough explanation for her to release the money," Smith said.

Hamamoto said she wished all of the money had been available at the start of the school year but thanked Lingle in an e-mail yesterday. "It's like we were bridesmaids waiting and now the wedding is going to start," the superintendent said in an interview.

Along with the money for parent coordinators, the governor freed $2 million for technology support for a new electronic student information system, $460,000 to put high-school student activities coordinators on year-round schedules, and $100,000 to help parents of students with social or behavioral problems.

An outside audit of the state's most troubled public schools released earlier this year found that a lack of parental support was a significant factor in school performance.

"We just want to let people know that parents have a stake in this," said Vivian Ing, who used to lead parent coordinators for the DOE before she retired this year.

Parent coordinators are paid for a maximum of 17 hours a week but many work longer hours, greeting students when they arrive at school and listening to parents who may be reluctant to raise their concerns with a teacher or principal. They recruit parent volunteers and do outreach in the community to help schools with fund-raising and private-sector support.

"We feel like we're the pawns," said June Kawamura, who works with parent coordinators in Honolulu district schools. "They say that family involvement is so important, but the money is never there."

The Lingle administration still wants the DOE to justify the spending. The governor has asked the department for a report at the end of the fiscal year explaining how the money she released had measurable results on student achievement.

Although the DOE had complained for months about not getting the money — which became available at the start of July — 75 percent of public schools already have parent coordinators. The $1.7 million in new money will pay for coordinators at 69 schools and supplies and equipment for coordinators at other schools.

Over the summer, the DOE gave high-school student activity coordinators the option of converting to year-round schedules this school year but made it clear that the jobs would be year-round for the 2005-2006 school year.

The DOE's intent was to comply with the education-reform law regardless of whether Lingle released all of the money. But the department and some lawmakers had also warned that withholding the money could undermine progress.

"It felt political," said state Sen. Gary Hooser, D-7th (Kaua'i, Ni'ihau), the vice chair of the Senate Education and Military Affairs Committee. "The delay seemed excessive."

The state senator also said that it has been well-established among educators that parent involvement in schools can improve student performance. "I think it's unquestionable that there is a direct link between student achievement and family support," he said.

The reform law creates a new student spending formula and new school community councils at public schools. Pilot schools are testing some of the changes this school year but schools will not make the transition into the new councils until next school year.

The new formula will not take effect until the 2006-2007 school year.

Reach Derrick DePledge at ddepledge@honoluluadvertiser.com or 525-8070.