Gov. Josh Green signed several education-related bills into law on Monday that will impact educators, keiki and facilities throughout the state.
The laws are designed to expand pre-kindergarten eligibility and facilities, address teacher workforce housing, consider mandating computer science as a graduation requirement, and increase which health care services schools can provide to students.
“We are doing systemic reform,” Green said during the signing, noting the laws will have an impact on all of the 168,634 students currently enrolled in the state Department of Education. “The most important thing we can do is care for (our kids) and provide them great education, and these bills are going to reaffirm that.”
Act 175 will provide the School Facilities Special Fund with $200 million for new facilities to expand Pre-K access to eligible students.
Both Act 171 and Act 169 will also address early learning by expanding the Preschool Open Doors policy, allowing 3-year-old keiki to enroll while easing accreditation requirements for service providers.
The laws all coincide with Lt. Gov. Sylvia Luke’s ongoing Ready Keiki initiative, which plans to offer free pre-K to all Hawaii Island 3- and 4-year olds by 2032.
“Currently, half our kids, 3- and 4-year-olds, don’t have access to Pre-K,” Luke said on Monday. “The acts Governor Green signed today will not only focus on our youngest learners, but provide economic stability to local families and support the state’s early education workforce.”
Act 172 will allocate $50 million to launch a new workforce housing program for the DOE, which is designed to help with the current 1,200 teacher shortage in Hawaii.
“We were allocated much more generously $170 million by the Legislature, but the trick was, what can we spend in the first year?” Green said, who opted to lower the amount to $50 million and to defer to the legislature in the coming years for additional funds.
The bill was championed by Senate Committee Education Chair Michelle Kidani of Oahu, who added the School Facilities Authority will now be able to enter into partnerships with public and private agencies to develop on- and off-campus housing for teachers, educators and DOE staff.
“Providing financial incentives and affordable housing options for our teachers is crucial to attract and retain talented educators,” Kidani said at the signing.
Green added the workforce housing plan may be expanded to other industries as well.
“We have not done a lot of specialized housing for disciplines as of yet in Hawaii, but we thought there would be no better place than for teacher housing,” he said. “I do expect us to really invest in teacher housing in the coming years, and other shortage areas too.”
Act 174 will require the Board of Education to work with the DOE to determine if computer science should be a graduation requirement, with implementation set for no later than the 2030-2031 school year.
“From artificial intelligence to advances in health care, renewable energy, and agriculture, the current and future impact of technology cannot be overstated,” said David Sun-Miyashiro, executive director of HawaiiKidsCAN, a nonprofit advocating for high-quality education in Hawaii. “That is why computer science is a foundational area of education in 2023 and beyond.”
Act 173 will increase health care services available to students by allowing School Health Assistants to administer medication to students.
Approval for administering medications would still be needed from a health care professional either within the DOE, Department of Health, or another health care service via a written agreement with the DOE.
In addition to the bills signed during the ceremony, Green also signed into law Act 166, which switches the DOE’s required quarterly report on autism spectrum disorder to an annual report; Act 167, which eases licensing requirements for certain teachers working in collaboration with a licensed behavior analyst or psychologist; Act 1045, which requires a parent or legal guardian instead of a student to produce the required records needed for transferring schools; and Act 170, which requires the Early Learning Board to consist of individuals from each county.
“Education is about assuring that all of our keiki are lifted up,” said House Committee on Education Chair Representative Justin Woodson. “These bills highlight how we can build a stronger world-class education system in Hawaii.”
Email Grant Phillips at gphillips@hawaiitribune-herald.com