The union plans reclass breakout sessions at Institute in February
Posted: December 17, 2024
The Hawai‘i State Teachers Association has secured a two-and-a-half month extension for teachers to fill out their reclassification paperwork following Hawai‘i State Department of Education delays in publishing its reclassification memo.
Last month, HSTA notified members of its demand for bargaining related to the new professional development system and its concerns that the HIDOE failed to issue the school year 2024-2025 reclassification memo as the traditional due date of Oct. 30.
HSTA held two productive meetings with the HIDOE since that time, discussing the changes in requirements for professional development providers, the need to bargain changes in the language of the contract related to Professional Development Educate, Empower, and Excel (PDE3), and the delays in issuing the reclassification memo for this school year.
The parties have made some progress regarding concerns about new rules and procedures causing delays in access to coursework. HSTA will meet with the department again after winter break to continue our consultation and related negotiations.
The HIDOE tried to insert new requirements in the reclassification process, including an attempt to restrict emergency hires from reclassifying, in direct violation of HSTA’s contract. HSTA stopped such attempts, and we are happy to announce that the HIDOE finally published the memo outlining reclassification for school year 2024-25. All the related documents can be found on the HIDOE portal, linked here.
Because of the HIDOE delays, the HSTA also secured an extension of two and a half months for teachers to submit reclassification paperwork for fall 2024. If you missed the traditional deadline of the end of October, you can use the winter break to fill out your paperwork, get your forms in by January 15, 2025, and still be reclassified and given back pay from the start of fall 2024.
Please know that all other procedures for reclassification have stayed the same, and any request for reclassification in fall 2024 requires that coursework is completed before the start of the school year.
Charter schools reclassification is different
The developments above only apply to HIDOE Bargaining Unit 05 employees (teachers), and each charter school has to determine its own reclassification system. In some cases, charter schools pay the HIDOE to use the HIDOE reclassification system, making their reclass process identical. However, many others have their own custom system designed to meet their school’s unique needs.
If you are a charter teacher and have questions regarding reclassification, please contact your HSTA school-level leader or UniServ Director.
Learn more about Class VIII at Institute Day
Lastly, we have received multiple inquiries related to the upcoming addition of Class VIII to the salary schedule in school year 2025-2026.
HSTA’s Negotiations Committee will run breakout sessions at HSTA’s Teacher Institute Days for those wanting to learn more about reclassification and the specific rules related to reclassifying from Class VII to Class VIII. Neighbor island teachers will gather virtually for Institute on Monday, Feb. 10, while O‘ahu educators will hold their virtual Institute on Friday, Feb. 14. We will update you with more information on these efforts when it’s available.