HSTA searching for core organizers; Apply now!

The Hawaii State Teachers Association seeks members who are trusted and respected among their colleagues to help lead the work of our association. The HSTA believes a strong union is one to which members want to belong and participate. Members are encouraged to apply to become an HSTA State Level Core Organizer.

Core Organizers will go out and build meaningful relationships with teacher members through face-to-face meetings and other methods of communication. Applications are due by Jan. 15, 2018. Core Organizers will participate in mandatory training and will be absent from work (on union release time) for training as well as organizing activities.

Read the HSTA Core Organizer position description.

Apply to become an HSTA State Level Core Organizer.

Join us for MLK parade this Monday!

For those coming out to support YHCR and HSTA in the annual Martin Luther King, Jr. parade on Monday, Jan. 15, here are a few reminders:

If you park at Kapiolani Park, please be there by 7:30 a.m. There will be a trolley leaving the Monsarrat Ave. side of the park to go to Ala Moana Beach Park leaving around 7:30 a.m.

If you park at Ala Moana Beach Park, enter through the Ewa entrance. We are gathering at 8 a.m. Look for our group near the entrance to the Magic Island parking lot.

The trolley will make a return trip from Kapiolani Park to Ala Moana Beach Park at the end of the parade to get you back to your car.

The trolley will be in the parade – for those unable to walk the parade, they can ride in the trolley and wave.
Wear any RED HSTA shirt. And use sunscreen, too.

Absentee ballots available from Jan. 16 - 26

HSTA members can request an absentee ballot for the upcoming state and chapter elections which will be held at Institute in February.

Click here for the absentee ballot request form which will not open until 12:01 a.m. on Tuesday, Jan. 16.

Again, this form will only be available from Tuesday, Jan. 16 at 12:01 a.m. HST until 11:59 p.m. on Friday, Jan. 26.

Free workshops on Hawaiian issues for teachers

Sign up now for a free upcoming spring workshop series aimed at better equipping teachers to teach about Hawaiian history, culture and politics. The Kupono series is organized by Halau Ku Mana, a public charter school on Oahu. The workshops will provide teachers more resources to teach about Hawaiian issues, historical and contemporary. While PD credit will not be given for these workshops, they will provide teachers important enrichment and historical perspectives that will help improve lessons in and out of the classroom. Email Hina Kaopua at hinakc@gmail.com with any questions and to RSVP.

HSTA Institute schedules revealed; Come to learn about Janus, win prizes

Teacher Institute Day is more important than ever this year, since anti-union forces are trying to weaken us with the Janus Case before the Supreme Court. Learn how the case could have an effect on the power of the union and what you can do to keep HSTA strong! Institute is the single largest professional development day on the school calendar, covering a variety of topics – for professional and personal growth – and featuring noteworthy keynote speakers. As a professional day, it is a work day and teacher attendance is expected. Voting for state and chapter officers and delegates to the HSTA Convention and NEA RA will take place in the morning. Teachers attending Institute will be eligible to win iPads and other teacher tools!

Here are the Institute dates across the state:
Oahu, Monday, Feb. 12 - Register for free bus service from Kaneohe, Kahuku, Mililani and Kapolei.
Kauai, Tuesday, Feb. 13
Molokai, Wednesday, Feb. 14
Maui/Lanai, Thursday, Feb. 15
Hawaii Island, Friday, Feb. 16

Read the HSTA Institute schedule for your chapter.

Labor of Love effort focuses on Waianae Elementary

Teachers, come join members of other labor unions in January as the Labor of Love project targets Waianae Elementary. They're looking for between 250 and and 300 volunteers to spend the morning of Saturday, Jan. 20 working to improve the school, mainly by painting some of its facilities. Waianae Elementary has 100 percent enrollment in the Free and Reduced Lunch Program, so it's a school whose students could use a boost of help from the community.

Date/Time: Saturday, Jan. 20, 8 a.m to 12 noon (check-in begins at 7:30 a.m.in the cafeteria)
Location: Waianae Elementary, 85-220 McArthur Street
RSVP by Jan. 12

Email or fax this registration form for Labor of Love at Waianae Elementary by Jan. 12 (Sign up deadline extended from Dec. 29 until Jan. 12)

From The Washington Post: Public school buildings are falling apart and students are suffering for it

HSTA leadership positions open!

Want to make a difference? Want to help steer the direction of your chapter and your association? Looking for an opportunity to advocate for your students, school and the profession?

Be on the look-out for information from your faculty representative about elected positions open in your chapter. Also check out the members-only side of the HSTA website for your chapter’s nomination packet at http://www.hsta.org/governance/elections >> Governance >>Elections for more information.

Nominations for state elections opened Dec. 4, while nominations for chapter elections begin Jan. 23.

State elections timeline

Chapter elections timeline

HSTA peace circle event on Molokai Jan. 14

Peace circles, rooted in indigenous practices, engage in relationship building and shared power as a means to transform school and community culture. Parents, students, educators, and community members are all invited to attend HSTA's peace circle event Sunday Jan. 14 on Molokai. Breakfast and lunch provided.

Register for HSTA's peace circle event Sunday, Jan. 14 on Molokai

Bay Watershed Education and Training Hawaii Program

The B-WET Hawaii Program is an environmental education program that promotes locally relevant, experiential learning primarily for grades K-12 on priority topics, such as understanding climate change, earth sciences, and community resilience to hazards. The B-WET Hawai'i competitive grants are awarded annually to fund projects that provide meaningful watershed educational experiences for students, related professional development for teachers and service learning opportunities for students that support regional education and environmental priorities.

NOAA is now seeking proposals for the B-WET Hawaii Program. The full FY18 Federal Funding Opportunity (FFO) is posted at Grants.gov under funding opportunity number NOAA-NOS-OCM-2018-2005344. Full proposals must be submitted in Grants.gov by 6:59.p.m. Hawaii Time on February 1, 2018.

Eligible funding applicants are K-12 public and independent schools and school systems, institutions of higher education, commercial and nonprofit organizations, state or local government agencies, and Indian tribal governments conducting projects in Hawaii (Islands of Hawaii, Maui, Lanai, Molokai, Oahu, Kauai, Kahoolawe, Niihau, and/or the Northwestern Hawaiian Islands).

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