Strategic Maneuvers and Collaboration

Association officials faced the future, as it was defined in 1988, with as much vigor, vision and determination as those who confronted the challenges and obstacles of the tumultuous early days of HSTA.

The first Strategic Planning document, issued in 1988, defined both the mission statement and the strategic vision of the organization and its members. By establishing these cornerstones of HSTA philosophy, the Association brought the teachers perspective on the future of teaching and public education into sharp relief. With this clarity of vision fresh in their minds, the Association's Strategic Planning Committee set about establishing a series of clearly definable manageable objectives.

Through it all, the face of HSTA membership continued to change. The thousands of teachers who had "grown up" professionally with HSTA and who understood the basic necessity of collective action were moving out of the education arena. In their place, a wave of new teachers with very different needs and interests infused the organization, bringing a whole range of new issues and concerns to the forefront of the Association's agenda.

Ironically, it was the strike action taken by one of the other public worker unions, HGEA, that had the most profound impact on the process of re-culturing the ranks of new HSTA members with the basic message of collective action. This strike was the first time many of the Association's current members had ever seen one up close.

It was an excellent training ground, offering insight and hard lessons on the cost and value of standing together for the greater good. The strike gave Association leadership an opportunity to instill knowledge and understanding of the strike environment - effectively cementing teachers' appreciation of the process. Although it was not our battle the HGEA strike proved to be a powerful event in the history of HSTA.

Another pivotal moment for the Association occurred at about the same time. The 1993 Salary Compensation Task Force grew out of a one-time "gift" from the legislature that would give the Association an opportunity to completely change the structure of the teacher salary scale. This was the first time a performance-based salary schedule would be introduced in Hawaii, a concept that was against the positions of HSTA’s national parent, the National Education Association. Task force members added three additional performance-based salary levels into the traditional salary structure. The Senior Teacher level can be attained by presenting a portfolio of work. The Distinguished Teacher designation is earned through peer review. And all teachers obtaining an advanced degree will receive a pay differential to acknowledge their advancement.

A strong and genuine spirit of cooperation and collaboration between teachers and the employer continued then with the Labor Management Cooperative Committee. The committee was the first of its kind to focus attention away from the nature of the parties' relationship and toward the real issues at the heart of education. The group formulated a code of conduct for students and went on to work on similar codes of conduct for teachers, principals and parents. In sharp contrast to the first 20 years of HSTA/DOE relations, the work of the committee proved that the two organizations had much to gain from working together.


Coming Into Our Own

The raw force that Governor John Burns had faced was supplanted by the presence of a seasoned, savvy political operative, a person whose support was considered a worthy prize.

As an organization, HSTA really came into its own in the late 80s and early 90s. Leadership distanced itself from the necessary kill/kill mentality of the 1970s and focused instead on charting a path of honor, intelligent action and skillful use of power.
The first half of the 1990s was filled with signs that HSTA has achieved an enviable state of stability, strength and maturity. For the last five years, the Association has been able to concentrate a predominate part of its energy and resources on broad-based education issues. HSTA has been a front-line supporter of such innovations as site-based management, two-tiered bargaining and student-centered schools, while continuing to steadily oppose the undermining of public education by extremist groups, privatization, and vouchers, among other things.

The crowning achievement of a quarter century of HSTA history has been the development of the independent Teacher Standards Board. The Board establishes licensing standards and takes the power of determining the quality of Hawaii's teaching work force out of the hands of the Department of Education. The Board has the power to penalize if the DOE hires sub-standard teachers acts as a gatekeeper to ensure the qualifications and preparedness of every teacher in the classroom.

With the creation of this Board, the Association has managed to advance two of its long-term goals. The Board serves the needs of teachers by ensuring an atmosphere of professional parity. And, by the same token, better-trained teachers are better equipped to provide a quality education for students.

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