MEDIA RELEASE

The state Department of Education’s is off of Race to the Top (RTTT) “high-risk” status for its work on standards, assessments, and data system development and use.

The U.S. Department of Education notified state education officials late Friday about the change followed by an official letter to Gov. Neil Abercrombie.

“This is excellent news and the U.S. Department of Education is recognizing the important progress being made,” Abercrombie said. “Last week, I was inspired by the staff at Keaau Elementary School, where I also met with principals in the area. I saw first-hand the evidence of innovative change in the classrooms and positive student engagement. Our school leaders and teachers are transforming public education and we thank them for their commitment to educating our children.”

“This is a turning point for us as we continue our strategic transformation in our public schools,” Superintendent Kathryn Matayoshi said. “The progress being made gives us great hope that federal officials will acknowledge the improvements made in the other areas of the grant.”

In August 2010, the USDOE awarded Hawaii with a four-year $75 million RTTT grant. In December 2011, Hawaii was placed on high-risk status. With the removal of high-risk status in two of its Assurance Areas (B and C), the state remains on high-risk status in Assurance Areas A, D, and E.

According to the USDOE, “the Department has determined that the evidence provided is sufficient to meet the expectation of clear and compelling evidence of substantial progress in Assurance Area B and Assurance Area C and will remove high-risk status for Hawaii’s Race to the Top grant in these two assurance areas.”

“Hawaii is clearly making gains in its reform efforts, as evidenced in the implementation of the Common Core Standards and the progress of its students,” Council of Chief State School Officers Executive Director Chris Minnich said. “I applaud Superintendent Matayoshi, Department of Education staff, and educators around the state for their collaboration and determination to improve education for Hawaii students.”

On Feb. 1, 2013 the USDOE released its second-year RTTT report, which highlighted Hawaii’s progress made through August 2012. HIDOE received recognition for a number of major accomplishments over that time period.

Hawaii was also praised for making significant progress in implementing important reforms, including programs to support educator effectiveness.

“Getting off of high-risk status in those two Assurance Areas is really a tribute to our teachers and leaders, who have always put students first, and have committed to getting better results for our students,” Deputy Superintendent Ronn Nozoe said. “We’re hopeful that the same change in status will occur in the other Assurance Areas in the near future.”

A few highlights of DOE work on standards and assessments include:

* Common Core State Standards (CCSS): Hawaii is a leader in implementing CCSS in English language arts and mathematics in the United States. CCSS will be the basis for instruction in all classrooms in the 2013-2014 school year.

* Common Core Assessments: Hawaii joined 27 other states to form the Smarter Balanced Assessment Consortium (Smarter Balanced). Hawaii serves as a governing state, helping to lead the consortium.

* College- and Career-Ready (CCR) Diploma: The graduating class of 2016 will be the first to earn and graduate with the new, more rigorous CCR diploma, implemented two years ahead of schedule.

* Continuum of Proactive Student Supports: As part of the DOE’s Comprehensive Student Support System (CSSS), all schools now have access to an early warning system that identifies students at risk of falling behind based on attendance, course grades, and behavioral data. Teachers can use the data to identify and target interventions and supports for their students.

A few highlights of the DOE work on data systems and use include:

* High-Speed Broadband: Managed by the University of Hawaii (UH), the Broadband Technology Opportunities Program (BTOP) will bring high-speed fiber connectivity to every public school, public library, and higher education institution throughout the State of Hawaii. About 100 schools are ready for BTOP.

* Data for School Improvement (DSI): The DSI system provides teachers with a formative assessment tool to collect real time data on student achievement and inform instruction. It allows educators to set up and administer assessments using an online bank of more than 15,000 standards-aligned English language arts and mathematics items.

* Longitudinal Data System (LDS): This data warehouse longitudinally tracks students from kindergarten through high school, and provides data to inform decision-making for governance, management, resource allocation, educational pathways, curriculum, and instruction.

Federal officials will be visiting Hawaii in April to review first hand the work that is being done in all of its RTTT Assurance Areas.

To learn more about the Hawaii’s RTTT accomplishments, visit: http://hawaiidoereform.org/

Read about the HIDOE and Board of Education Strategic Plan at: http://doe.k12.hi.us/curriculum/strategicplan2011-2018/2012_update/index.htm.

Full letter from U.S. Department of Education:

February 8, 2013

Dear Governor Abercrombie:

I am writing in response to Hawaii’s request to review its high-risk status on its Race to the Top grant. On December 21, 2011, the U.S. Department of Education (Department) placed Hawaii’s Race to the Top grant on high-risk status under 34 CFR 80.12 and, as a condition of high-risk status, placed the grant on a cost reimbursement basis. At that time, the State had not demonstrated adequate progress implementing its approved plans in the first year of the grant.

To remove high-risk status the State must provide clear and compelling evidence of substantial progress across its Race to the Top plan. After a March 2012 on-site review, the Department determined that the State had taken steps in the right direction and removed it from cost reimbursement status, but kept the State on high-risk status because of, as stated in the Department’s May 4, 2012 letter, the “… preliminary nature of most of [the] activities and the lack of necessary sustaining conditions for reform …”

After preliminary conversations, it was mutually determined that the State did not have sufficient evidence to demonstrate substantial progress to remove high-risk status across its entire grant at this time; instead, on January 11, 2013, the State submitted evidence demonstrating progress in projects in Assurance Area B, “Standards and Assessments,” and Assurance Area C, “Data Systems.” On January 16, 2013, the State and Department held a
conference call to further discuss the evidence.

To determine whether partial removal of status could be granted, the Department reviewed and compared the evidence against the commitments, deliverables and targets in the State’s Race to the Top scope of work and plan in these assurance areas.

The Department has determined that the evidence provided is sufficient to meet the expectation of clear and compelling evidence of substantial progress in Assurance Area B and Assurance Area C and will remove high-risk status for Hawaii’s Race to the Top grant in these two assurance areas, effective with this letter.

Assurance Areas A, D, E and STEM of Hawaii’s Race to the Top grant remain on high-risk status. The Department will conduct an on-site review in April 2013 and looks forward to additional implementation and progress updates.

The Department recognizes Hawaii’s efforts to accelerate the progress of its Race to the Top plan. We will continue to provide assistance to Hawaii as it works to meet the commitments in
its grant.

Sincerely,
Ann Whalen
Director, Policy and Program Implementation
Implementation and Support Unit