Hawaii’s public schools areconsidered the hearts of theircommunities. This is especiallytrue during times of crises andemergencies. On Aug. 6,principals at schools designatedas emergency shelters spranginto action when it becameapparent Hurricane Iselle wason track to hit the state. It’s a frenzied 24 to 48 hours

before shelters open, withschool administratorscommunicating with countycivil defense and the AmericanRed Cross, conferring with theirteams on campus, mobilizingvolunteers — while still takingcare of business at school.On Hawaii Island, Kea‘au

High assisted more than 300evacuees along with 25 animals

in the designated pet area.Principal Dean Cevallos notedit was an extraordinarily busytime as they housed people forthree days and still opened forthe Primary Election.Waiakea High staff displayed

extraordinary unselfishness inleaving their own homes tohouse and protect nearly 400people in the Warriors’classrooms and gym. “Workingwith a few Red Crossvolunteers and a group of

Department of Health publichealth nurses, Waiakea High’sshelter team manned areasthroughout the campus ensuringthe safety and welfare of thegeneral public,” said PrincipalKelcy Koga. “We are proudWarriors at WHS.” Hilo Highalso sheltered more than 170people and some pets.On Maui, Baldwin High

took in about 115 people.“Providing shelter is not just aduty but the right thing to do,”said Principal Catherine Kilborn.“I am grateful for the Red Crosspersonnel, who deserve the creditfor providing personal care forthe community.”“It was a total team effort,”

said Principal Justin Mew ofKaiser High on Oahu, whichtook in about 70 people. “Wehad help from my fellowcomplex area principals, ourPCNC — and our teachers weresimply outstanding.”

Hawaii’s public elementaryschools have made significantheadway in reducing thenumber of students chronicallyabsent, a strong predictor ofacademic success.“The significant reductions in

chronic absenteeism showschools are doing a better job atmaking instruction moreengaging and interesting,” saidDeputy Supt. Ronn Nozoe.“They are to be commended forworking with families andcommunity partners to providewrap-around services to addressattendance barriers like healthand transportation issues,intervening with at-risk students

based on data, and improvingschool culture.”Key findings from 2013-14:• The percent of students who

are chronically absent (15 daysor more) has dropped sevenpoints to 11 percent.• Students proficient in

science climbed six points to 40percent. Slight declines were

seen in reading (three-pointdrop to 69 percent) and mathproficiency (one-point drop to59 percent) as schools adjust tonew standards and an expectednew baseline for scores.• Graduation and college-

going rates are steady. Fourteen schools met the

criteria for highest-performingor highest-progress schools forthe first time: Pomaikai El,Puohala El, Hahaione El,Kilohana El, Enchanted LakeEl, Kaelepulu El, Mokapu El,Noelani El, Kaumualii El,Helemano El, Hickam El,Maunaloa El, de Silva El, andHokulani El.

STRIVE HI PERFORMANCE SYSTEM

Chronic absenteeism plummets 39%Opportunities

TEACHERS

The Fulbright DistinguishedAwards in Teaching Programprovides funding for highlyaccomplished U.S. primary andsecondary level educators totake part in an intensiveprofessional developmentprogram for three to six monthsabroad. Deadline for 2015-16cohort: Nov. 5, 2014. Visitwww.fulbrightteacherexchange.org/us-teachers.

Teach to Lead is an onlinecommunity of educators to shareand collaborate on promisingideas to advance teacherleadership and address pressingproblems in education. Membersare invited to submit short ideas— under 300 words — thatadvance teacher leadership intheir area and promote them onsocial media, helping to spur theconversation. Visit

teachtolead.ideascale.com.

SCHOOLS

Registration for the2015 Spelling Beeis open at

www.spellingbee.com.The cost for school

registration is $130. Registrationdeadline is Oct. 15. Schools holdtheir bees by Nov. 30, DistrictBees are held in January, andthe district winner and runner upcompete at the Hawaii StateSpelling Bee on March 20. Ourchampion competes in theNational Bee in May 2015. Goodluck, spellers! (Pictured, 2014Hawaii champion ChristianneAbella, Konawaena Middle.)

Superintendent’s

SeptemBer 2014

Hawaii State Department of eDucation @HIDOE808/HIDepartmentofEducationHawaiiPublicSchools.org

ONLINEbit.ly/StriveHI1314

SUPT’S CORNERImportant takeaways of theresults, by Supt. KathrynMatayoshi. BACK PAGE

HURRICANE ISELLE

Leadership in theface of the storm

Principal Justin Mew, left, withRed Cross volunteers at theKaiser High shelter during Iselle.

EDUCATION UPDATE

Our Strive HIPerformance System resultswere released to the public onAug. 25 — school and districtleaders had access a few weeksprior to analyze the data. Our elementary schools have

made huge gains in their fight toslash chronic absenteeism — 163of 169 schools improved, andour statewide rate plunged sevenpoints to 11 percent. Teachers, school leaders and support staffhave improved the chances ofsuccess for 5,500 students bydoing this. When this data first became

available to us, we celebrated.

Making chronicabsenteeism a

component of ourperformance system inspiredschools to accelerate theiroutreach, launch awarenesscampaigns and instill the valueof school with students andfamilies. Their work has paid off.We did see a small drop in

reading and math proficiency aswe transition to new standardsand the aligned assessments. Theone-point drop in math (to 59percent) and three-point drop inreading (to 69 percent) was notunexpected. A new baseline ofscores will be set this year that

will give us comparable datagoing forward. We can cheer thesix-point increase in scienceproficiency (to 40 percent).Our career and college

readiness indicators are steady:82 percent graduated highschool, 63 percent enrolled incollege. We are eager to see theserise. If we keep succeeding incutting chronic absenteeism, thatwill herald better results.It’s worth remembering why

we do this. Strive HI is a systemwe collaboratively developed inHawaii as a waiver to the federalNo Child Left Behind law, whichsanctioned schools that failed to

meet escalated reading and mathproficiency targets. While thosetest scores are important, we allknow those aren’t the solemeasures of a school’s success,or a student’s success. Strive HImeasures proficiency (includingscience!), growth, readiness andachievement gap. Taken together,we can strategically supportschools and students where theyneed it most.Our 2013-14 results are

available online:bit.ly/StriveHI1314

Education Update is a monthly newsletter by the Department of Education’s Communications and Community Affairs Office, distributedto schools, the first Board of Education meeting of the month and posted online at HawaiiPublicSchools.org. We welcome your

submissions: 1390 Miller Street, Rm 312, Honolulu, HI 96813. Phone: (808) 586-3232; E-mail: doe_info@hawaiidoe.org.

Supt.’s Corner

Hawaii State Department of eDucation @HIDOE808/HIDepartmentofEducationHawaiiPublicSchools.org

Answer: C

Don’t Miss This! EVENTS, DEADLINES & FUN STUFF

SMARTER BALANCED EXAM ›››

Smarter tHan a 7tH GraDer?Read the passage and complete thetask at right: Many experts will tell youthat television is bad for you. Yet this isan exaggeration. Many televisionprograms today are specifically gearedtowards improving physical fitness,making people smarter, or teaching themimportant things about the world. Thedays of limited programming with littleinteraction are gone. Public televisionand other stations have shows aboutscience, history, and technical topics.

SEPT 23

YoutH pHiLantHropY GrantYouth Service Hawaii has grant funds(up to $750) available to support servicelearning projects proposed by schoolstudents with teacher (grades 4-12) thataddress community needs such ashomelessness, the environment,disaster preparedness and more.Students must be directly involved inservice and will share theirexperience with educators in Spring2015. Details and application (due9/23) online: bit.ly/1pNYPlr

eDucation upDate › SeptemBer 2014 › BacK paGe

SEPT 12

top Staff HonoreDThe DOE’s Employee, Manager andTeam of the Year will be recognized atthe Hawaii State Capitol Auditorium forthe Department’s annual Incentive &Service Awards Program. Theprogram honors employees for specialand continued contributions to improvethe school services. Their dedicationinspires all of us who are working tomake Hawaii’s public schools better forall students. Staff and public arewelcome! Program starts at 3 p.m.

SEPT 30

reGiSter for Sotf!The 6th Annual Schools of the FutureConference convenes at the HawaiiConvention Center Nov. 6 & 7. More

than 80 best practicepresentations areavailable during this

collaborative learningevent to catapultschools to the next

level of education. Walk-in and late registration

pricing begin after Sept. 30.

Which sentence should be added to theparagraph to state the author’s main claim?

Watching television makes aperson healthy.

Watching television can be a signof intelligence.

Television can be a positiveinfluence on people.

Television has more variedprograms than ever before.

A

B

C

D

SEPT 19

we want Your feeDBacKStaff and the public can review testquestions aligned to the HawaiiCommon Core standards and helprecommend achievement levels forgrade-level proficiency. To register,please visit SmarterBalanced.org/OnlinePanel.