Teacher of the year announced
Congratulations to Sung Man Park, a math teacher at Washington Middle School, who was honored as the 2017 Hawaii State Teacher of the Year Friday.
"There is no wealth like knowledge and there is no other act more noble than sharing," Park said, explaining the beliefs that drive him as a teacher.
He has taught in public schools for 12 years, and coached Washington Middle's MATHCOUNTS team since 2010. Every year since, his team has won the state championship.
HSTA President Corey Rosenlee said, "Sung Man Park brings out the best of our students. His devotion to Hawaii's keiki has lead to a dominance of Washington Middle School's math teams."
Rosenlee attended Friday's ceremony along with Gov. David Ige and Schools Superintendent Kathryn Matayoshi at Washington Place.
At the same event, the Department of Education's 2017 District Teachers of the Year and Public Charter School Teacher of the Year were also honored.
They are:
- Honolulu: Sung Man Park, Washington Middle
- Central: Tracey Idica, Aiea High School
- Leeward: Luane Higuchi, Waianae Intermediate
- Windward: Kristi Kusunoki, Kailua Intermediate
- Hawaii: Lauria Ann O'Brien, Keeau High
- Maui: Jennifer Suzuki, Maui Waena Intermediate
- Kauai: David Mireles, Kapaa High
- Public Charter School: Kay Beach, The School for Examining Essential Questions of Sustainability
Mahalo to these fine teachers -- and so many others statewide -- who serve their students with distinction!
Negotiations update
The HSTA Negotiations Team held its second bargaining session with the state earlier this week on Oct. 5, when both sides met for several hours.
Both parties asked clarifying questions about each other's proposals.The HSTA team gave answers to the employer's questions at the meeting. The employer will return with answers to HSTA's questions at the next bargaining session.
Wes Machida, Director of Budget and Finance, gave a follow-up presentation on the state's financial situation with updated numbers based on the September Council on Revenues' revised upward projections.
The next bargaining session is set for Friday, Oct. 28, and will include a presentation to the employer from the HSTA representatives on the State Special Education Committee, the joint DOE-HSTA fact-finding and problem-solving panel.
The next Negotiations Committee meeting is Saturday, Oct. 22, at McKinley High.
Teachers call on BOE to improve troubled EES system
About 50 public school teachers from around the state turned out at a Board of Education meeting Tuesday night when HSTA teacher leaders called for the board to revamp its ineffective and burdensome Educator Effectiveness System (EES) that they called a “failure.” Watch a video summary of teachers' BOE testimony about EES here.“Please amend the board’s teacher evaluation policy to enable HSTA to negotiate a smart, supportive and evidence-based evaluation system that improves the working conditions of our teachers and the learning environment of our students,” testified Alan Isbell, a fourth-grade teacher at Wailuku Elementary and president of HSTA’s Maui Chapter, with more than 1,400 teachers. 
Osa Tui, a teacher and registrar at McKinley High, chairs HSTA’s Negotiations Committee, and said EES has “onerous top-down mandates,” is “exceedingly prescriptive and does not allow for the negotiation of a more sane and rational evaluation instrument.”
By removing the outdated and onerous parts of EES, “we can seize an opportunity to improve teacher morale,” said HSTA President Corey Rosenlee, a longtime social studies teacher. “We can improve teacher quality. We can treat our teachers as professionals and truly entrust them with our children’s future.”
More teachers showed up at the BOE’s Kailua Tuesday night meeting than have attended a BOE meeting in years, with most of them wearing red HSTA t-shirts. 
While nine teachers testified in person about EES Tuesday, dozens of others were there in a show of force and another 38 teachers from across the state turned in written testimony to the BOE about the controversial program. Read teachers' BOE EES testimony here.
Rosenlee and 24 other NEA presidents study Finland's successful school systemHSTA President Corey Rosenlee joined 24 other state presidents from across the country on a five-day trip to Finland last month to learn more about the public school system that many consider to be one of the best in the world. Finland’s education reform was designed by teachers and based on educational theory and research, much of it from the United States. Finnish teachers are responsible for key decisions, public school students take no standardized tests until college entrance exams and Finland emphasizes “whole-child” education with an emphasis on collaboration and equity. Finland also does not have high-stakes teacher evaluations, instead taking a collaborative approach with administrators supporting teachers to help them in the classroom. There is an emphasis on bottom-up, school-based personalization of curriculum based on shared national objectives. “Trust is the reason public schools are so successful in Finland,” Rosenlee said. “Teachers are trusted and empowered to do their jobs.” Read more about NEA presidents' fact-finding trip to Finland and how it could benefit Hawaii schools.
Kapolei Middle's Shirley Yamauchi wins economics teaching award
Congratulations to Kapolei Middle School teacher Shirley Yamauchi, who receives the 2016 Economics Teacher of the Year award from the Hawaii Council on Economic Education during a ceremony this weekend at the Sheraton Waikiki.
She regularly goes above and beyond to make sure her students are learning, having fun and achieving mastery. Yamauchi’s students were especially excited about their daily online Stock Market Challenge assignment in the spring semester of 2016. She guides her students through the Stock Market Challenge this year with a new group of students who are equally excited and were recently featured on KFVE. She has also planned and implemented an outreach program for all military students on campus and developed positive relationships with parents. She does a remarkable job of motivating students.
Yamauchi recently participated in the 2016 National Education Association’s Representative Assembly, held in Washington, D.C., representing Leeward Oahu district teachers. She regularly implements leadership strategies in her position as Kapolei Middle’s HSTA representative and serves on HSTA's Board of Directors representing teachers in the Leeward Chapter.
New educators: Register for free October Professional Learning Conference
The HSTA Fall 2016 Professional Learning Conference is a 3-PD credit course offered by the HSTA and other partners which is free of charge to most HSTA members. The goal of this course is to support the professional growth of new educators in Hawaii by providing targeted professional development and opportunities for ongoing networking and collaboration. While spanning the 2016-2017 school year, this course begins with a virtual keynote on Friday evening, Oct. 28. On Saturday, Oct. 29, teachers will attend three breakout sessions (either virtually or face-to-face) focused on various aspects of the teaching profession which impact new educators and student learning. Following the virtual keynote and one-day conference, participants will continue their learning by participating in professional learning communities either face-to-face through colleague circles or online via NEA’s EdCommunities website. At the beginning of October, all participants who have paid and registered for this course will receive an EventBrite link to register for specific breakout sessions at the October 29 portion of the class. Any new teacher (begins employment in 2016-2017 school year) who joined HSTA before October 1, 2016 will receive a coupon to attend this $150 course for free. The coupon will be mailed to the home address that is written on your HSTA Enrollment Card. Registration deadline is Oct. 14. All NEA Student Program members in Hawaii will receive a coupon to attend this course for free (no portfolio required or required attendance at colleague circles). Click here for info on the free Professional Learning Conference. Scheduled breakouts include: Supporting English Language Learners; Let’s Get Googley!; Creative Learning; Teaching Physics by Building and Testing Model Cars; Promoting Resilience Through Children’s Literature; Legos for Literacy; Introduction to Inclusion and Working with Students from Economically Diverse Communities.
Gov's ESSA team unveils draft blueprint to improve schools, asks for feedback
Gov. David Ige’s Every Student Succeeds Act Task Force has begun holding follow-up community forums statewide to share findings and focus on a draft blueprint for public education in Hawaii. Teachers are encouraged to attend and give feedback on the initial plan for improving Hawaii public schools.
“First, we will share the findings of input and feedback received from town hall meetings. Second, we will unveil a working draft or outline for a new blueprint for public education in Hawaii,” said Darrel Galera, a retired public school principal who chairs the ESSA Task Force. “We also want to collect more specific input, feedback and advice for a final version of a blueprint for public education in Hawaii.”
Here is the updated schedule:
Benefits of Belonging
Come find out your benefits of belonging to HSTA and how we are here to support you.
Get connected to:
- Our HSTA community and member benefits
- HSTA VEBA Trust insurance plans and protection
- Our HYPE (Hawaii Young Professional Educators) program for new educators
- Professional development courses
Benefits of Belonging meetings will be held:
Maui Chapter
Thursday, Oct. 20
Maui High School Library, 660 Lono Ave., Kahului
4:30 to 6:30 p.m.
RSVP for Oct. 20 Maui Benefits of Belonging no later than Friday, Oct.14
Kona Chapter
Thursday, Nov. 17
Kealakehe Intermediate Library Workroom
74-5062 Onipaa St., Kailua-Kona
4:30 to 6:30 p.m.
Sign up for Nov. 17 Kona Benefits of Belonging
Chamber Music Hawaii offers discount tickets to teachers, free student tix
Chamber Music Hawaii invites HSTA members to attend its fall concerts at the UH West Oahu campus in the school’s beautiful new library at a special introductory price.
Performance dates, times and artists are:
Tuesday, Oct. 11, 7 p.m. Galliard String Quartet
Tuesday, Nov. 22, 7 p.m. Spring Wind Quintet
Tuesday, Dec. 6, 7 p.m. Christmas with Honolulu Brass
Teacher ticket prices for these concerts are $20 each, a $10 discount off the regular $30 price available at the door with your school ID or HSTA green membership card. Students attend concerts free – feel free to bring some with you!
Special pricing only valid at the UH West Oahu venue. For more information, please go to ChamberMusicHawaii.org or call Jane Campbell at 254-4885.
In honor of Life Insurance Awareness month, check out the National Education Association's Live. Love. Protect. Sweepstakes featuring $2,500 in prizes. Enter by Oct. 15, 2016 for your chance to win. Visit mynealife.com for details or call 1-855-NEA-LIFE (1-855-632-5433).
Fall HSTA RA and exec board dates
updated
Here are the Representative Assembly (RA) and Executive Board (EB) dates for October and November. They are subject to change. Please check with your chapter president or school level leader to confirm dates, times and locations.
October 2016
October 4: Honolulu EB
October 4: Kohala RA
October 4: Leeward EB
October 18: Central EB
October 18: Hamakua RA
October 18: Leeward RA
October 18: Maui EB
October 18: Molokai EB
October 18: Windward EB
October 20: Central RA
October 20: Kona EB
October 20: Maui RA
October 25: Hilo RA
October 25: Honolulu RA
October 25: Kauai RA
October 25: Lanai RA
October 25: Maui RA
October 25: Molokai RA - Listening Tour
October 25: Windward RA
October 27: Kona RA
November 2016
November 1: Kohala RA
November 7: Leeward EB
November 15: Hamakua RA
November 15: Honolulu EB
November 15: Kauai RA
November 15: Kona EB
November 15: Maui EB
November 17: Kona RA
November 22: Leeward RA
November 22: Maui RA
November 29: Honolulu RA
November 29: Windward EB
Hope Street student career readiness survey: deadline Oct. 7
Hope Street Group, a non-partisan education organization devoted to raising teacher voice and their Hawaii state teacher fellows who work in partnership with HIDOE and HSTA, are gathering teacher input to learn what is needed at the school level to strengthen quality career readiness for all students from elementary through high school.
Please take this Hope Street student career readiness survey. All Hawaii public school teachers are welcome to participate. The survey will only take a few minutes to complete and the opinions you share are instrumental in informing education policy in the islands. All responses are confidential. The survey will be open until Friday, Oct. 7.
Focus groups are also happening across the state. Contact kelly@hopestreetgroup.org if you'd like to find one in your community to attend. However, please also note that there is an option to answer focus group questions online after the survey if you choose to do so.
For more about Hope Street's program, you can visit its website. Applications for the upcoming cohort of teacher fellows will start in Winter 2016.
HSTA recommends General Election political candidates; be sure to register to vote by Oct. 10
After a lengthy process that included a candidate questionnaire, interviews, and a review of voting history, HSTA’s Board of Directors, in concurrence with the HSTA Government Relations Committee, recommends teachers vote for the following candidates in the Nov. 8 General Election.
“We carefully reviewed their stances on important issues,” said HSTA President Corey Rosenlee. “So we are confident these candidates deserve teachers’ votes.”
In the presidential race, the HSTA recommends Hillary Clinton, a Democrat.
Teacher Institute moved from October to February
For many years, HSTA held Teacher Institute days around the state in the fall but this school year institute days will be held in February.
As a professional day, it is a work day, and teacher attendance is required.
Here are the dates by island, for your long-range planning:
Monday, Feb. 13, Oahu
Tuesday, Feb. 14, Molokai
Wednesday, Feb. 15, Maui and Lanai
Thursday, Feb. 16, Big Island
Friday, Feb. 17, Kauai
Happy Fall Break!
Many HSTA members have the next week off from school. Enjoy your time off. Member Matters will not be produced next week. Look for your next Member Matters in your email inbox Oct. 21 or 22.
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