Hawaii Board of Education
​Queen Liliuokalani Building  
The Hawaii State Board of Education ("Board") was established by the Hawaii State Constitution, which grants the Board the power to formulate statewide educational policy.  The Board appoints the executive officers of the public school system and public library system and the members of the State Public Charter School Commission. 

ANNOUNCEMENTS


2023 APPLICATION FOR CHARTERING AUTHORITY OPEN

The Board of Education ("Board") may grant chatering authority to eligible entities to allow them to authorize charter schools in Hawaii. Eligible entities interested in becoming charter school authorizers must receive approval from the Board. The first step is submitting an Intent to Apply Packet by 4:30 p.m. HST on June 5, 2023. See the charter school page for more details.

KAMALANI ACADEMY APPEAL FINAL DECISION

The Board of Education (“Board”) heard oral arguments on Kamalani Academy’s appeal of the State Public Charter School Commission’s (“Commission”) decision to not renew Kamalani Academy’s charter contract on April 27, 2023. At the end of its proceedings, the Board issued a decision orally where it reversed the Commission's decision with directions for the parties to execute a renewed charter contract. The Board has now issued its written decision, the Final Decision of the Board of Education (“Final Decision”), which explains the basis for the Board's decision and the Board’s conclusions of law, and states:  

“Accordingly, the Board, after reviewing the evidence of record and by unanimous vote of its members who were present and voting . . . reverses the Commission’s decision to not renew the Appellant’s charter contract. The Board’s decision shall not be construed as determining a particular form or term length for Kamalani’s renewed charter contract, nor shall the Board’s decision be deemed to dictate whatever conditions the Commission determines as appropriate. The parties shall make their best efforts to execute a renewed charter contract in accordance with law subject to whatever terms and conditions the Commission determines in its sole discretion. If the parties fail to execute a renewed charter contract by the current charter contract’s termination date of June 30, 2023, Kamalani’s current charter contract shall be deemed as renewed for one year with a termination date of June 30, 2024.” Final Decision, p. 12 (emphasis added).

In accordance with law, the parties cannot appeal this decision to any other body, including the courts. 

The Board expedited the issuance of the Final Decision (in advance of its May 23, 2023 deadline) and reversed the decision instead of remanding it because, “[w]hile the Board would prefer to remand the Commission’s decision with further instructions, time is of the essence in this case. The Board is concerned that a remand would prolong the process far too long for families and staff of the school and would produce a forgone conclusion, essentially a de facto closure of the school. Students and families should not be prejudiced by the Commission’s errors of law and procedure.” Final Decision, p.12. 

The Board’s issuance of its Final Decision concludes this appeal.

TESTIMONY FOR VIRTUAL & IN-PERSON MEETINGS

The Board will be accepting in-person and remote oral testimony at its June 1, 2023 meeting. Effective March 23, 2023, the Board will switch to the WebEx Webinar platform. There will be a slightly different look, but all of the same features will be available and there will be some added capabilities. There is one significant difference for individuals providing remote oral testimony via WebEx. When your name is called to testify, a prompt will appear on your screen letting you know that the host is asking to unmute you. You must click on the unmute button to begin testifying. For more information on providing oral testimony via WebEx, please review these instructions.  


NOTE CHANGES TO ACCEPTING WRITTEN TESTIMONY DUE TO SUNSHINE LAW CHANGES: Written testimony is strongly encouraged as the primary means of submitting testimony and may be submitted on any agenda item up to the start of the meeting by emailing it to Testimony.BOE@boe.hawaii.gov. Testimony received 49 hours before the relevant meeting will be posted on the Board's website and a notification will be sent to the Board's agenda mailing list. Testimony received after 49 hours but before the meeting start time will be posted on the Board's website. Testimony sent to any other email address or testimony submitted after the meeting start time will be processed as late testimony and will be posted after the meeting. The Board highly recommends that you submit written testimony in addition to your oral testimony. If you experience technical difficulties while trying to provide oral testimony, written testimony ensures your comments get to the Board. If you would like to submit written testimony, please review these instructions.

MEETING RECORDINGS

The Board offers temporary audio and video recordings of its most recent general business and committee meetings until meeting minutes are approved and available. Click on any of the links below to listen to that meeting's recording. 


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