Tell the Board of Education more needs to be done to support the Maui community

On Thursday, Aug. 24, at 1:30 p.m., the Board of Education will hold its regularly scheduled August general business meeting. On the agenda, Superintendent Keith Hayashi will report on Maui wildfire impacts. This is an opportunity for educators and community members affected by the Maui wildfires to make their voices heard regarding school-related planning for the weeks and months ahead.

This disaster demands effective, timely communication.

HSTA members have continued to express their concerns over the lack of timely communication from the Hawaiʻi State Department of Education, and that they are employing methods of communication largely inaccessible to those who remain in the Lahaina area.

In emergencies, communication needs to be disseminated in multiple ways with enough advance notice so school communities are not left in the dark until the last minute. The department must use on-the-ground connections — and not rely solely on web page updates or school emails — so people experiencing power, internet, and cell outages are able to receive important information. Announcements should also take into account that this community has been through a major catastrophe and is dealing with a lot of trauma.

In situations like these, campus visits are not enough. The department and the Board of Education must hold meetings to make sure the community’s needs and desires are being addressed.

We need crisis counseling.

One major need in the aftermath of these historic losses is crisis counseling for students and educators alike. As more information comes to light, the staggering magnitude of the situation will bring about trauma like no other event in modern Hawaiian history. Any crisis counselors brought in by the department should have experience dealing with large-scale catastrophes like the one experienced in Lahaina.

Schools must be safe.

The need for safe spaces is paramount, including clean air and clean water. Toxins that have proliferated the schools need to be appropriately disposed of using professionals who can do it in a safe way, rather than exposing well-meaning volunteers to possibly life-altering ailments. If running water isn’t safe, then the department needs to provide alternative methods to provide clean water.

Students must be afforded accommodations.

As best as possible, students in the Lahaina area want to remain in the Lahaina area to maintain their sense of community. The department must provide as much normalcy as possible during this chaotic time. While some are enrolling in other schools or into distance learning programs, setting up alternate sites on West Maui needs to happen as soon as possible. Hotels have vacant spaces that can be converted into classrooms. Portables can be set up similar to the effort in 2014 when lava threatened Keonepoko Elementary on Hawaiʻi Island and the school was relocated to a parking lot on the Keaʻau High School campus. Lāhaināluna High seniors should be afforded the opportunity to graduate as Lunas, even if they spend their final year at another school. Those who had approved geographic exceptions (GEs) should be assured that their GEs won’t be nullified if they temporarily attend another school while plans are put in place for schooling in West Maui.

Email your testimony by 12:30 p.m. Tuesday, Aug. 22, to Testimony.BOE@boe.hawaii.gov.

Be sure to write “Testimony” in the subject line and include in the email:

• Your name, position/title, and school or worksite. Note that all testimony is publicly posted. If you do not want your personal information posted, redact or omit all personal information, submit your testimony as an attachment instead and include “NO PERSONAL INFORMATION” in the subject line.
• Testimony for Aug. 24 General Business Meeting.
• Agenda Item III: Report of the Superintendent.
• Comment: [Insert your comments here.]

If your schedule allows and you have access to the internet, you can also provide remote oral testimony via WebEx when the meeting begins on Thursday at 1:30 p.m. Sign up here.

HSTA will collect handwritten testimony in West Maui on Friday, Aug. 18.

For those on Maui who are not able to access the internet to provide testimony, HSTA will collect handwritten testimony on Friday, Aug. 18, at Kahekili Beach Park (Airport Beach) as part of an HSTA gathering to discuss and provide fire relief aid and resources, and connect colleagues, friends, union leadership, and staff. Handwritten testimony will be scanned and submitted on behalf of those who cannot provide testimony themselves.