Posted on: Saturday, January 22, 2005
Lawmakers weigh full-time salaries for BOE
By Derrick DePledge
Advertiser Capitol Bureau
The state Board of Education, which had to defend its existence during the last session of the state Legislature, may get paid after this session.
House and Senate Democrats will consider whether state school board members should receive a salary, similar to state lawmakers — who earn $34,200 — or state Office of Hawaiian Affairs trustees — who make $32,000. School board members now get $100 a meeting — or about $5,000 a year — and transportation costs.
The volunteer nature of the school board has been a challenge for some members, especially those who have to balance full-time jobs with the increasing expectations of the board.
Hawai'i is the only state with a public school system overseen by one school board. While board members are elected, critics have faulted the board for being out of touch with school-level problems and ineffective at monitoring the state Department of Education's immense bureaucracy.
Gov. Linda Lingle unsuccessfully tried to abolish the school board last session and break the DOE into seven school districts with locally elected boards. Instead, lawmakers approved an education-reform law with a new school spending formula and new school community councils. The board is responsible for tracking the DOE as it makes the changes. The board is also expected to make sure the DOE meets the federal No Child Left Behind law, which requires schools to make annual progress so all students are proficient in core subjects by 2014.
"It seems as if it's an awful lot to ask people to volunteer for such an important job," said Kristi Matson, whose son is in first-grade at Wai'alae Elementary charter school. "It would seem logical to pay them, although I don't know exactly where we would get the money."
A salary, some lawmakers say, would put board members on equal footing with the Legislature and could bring more professionalism and accountability to the board. It may also attract a greater variety of candidates and more attention to school board elections.
The two lawmakers who lead the education committees, Rep. Roy Takumi, D-36th (Pearl City, Palisades), and Sen. Norman Sakamoto, D-15th (Waimalu, Airport, Salt Lake), both said they would consider paying the school board this session. The salary may be decided by a commission, according to early drafts, but the intent is that board members would get about the same amount as lawmakers and OHA trustees.
State schools superintendent Pat Hamamoto said she would welcome a paid school board, which is not uncommon on the Mainland. But some board members have had mixed feelings about whether they should receive a salary. Some worry that they would have to agree to take on two full-time jobs.
"To do it right, it's really a full-time job," said Breene Harimoto, the school board's chairman. "I'm leaning toward agreeing that it should be paid."
But some said it is bad timing to talk about paying the board so soon after such a bitter debate over whether a single-state school board should exist at all. "It's not about compensation," said Sen. Bob Hogue, R-24th (Kailua, Kane'ohe). "It's about doing what's right for our kids."
Reach Derrick DePledge at ddepledge@honoluluadvertiser.com or 525-8070.
