Advertisement - Click to support our sponsors.

OHA settles
language-immersion
lawsuit; Hee
praises LeMahieu

By Pat Omandam
Star-Bulletin

The state Department of Education and the Office of Hawaiian Affairs have reached a settlement over a 5-year-old lawsuit that gives an additional $7.5 million to Hawaiian language immersion programs affiliated with the public school system.

Both sides agreed on a 2-to-1 funding partnership that requires the Education Department to spend between $800,000 and $1 million a year for the next five years on immersion education.

OHA would give $400,000 to $500,000 annually for the same period, said OHA Chairman Clayton Hee.

"This state, in my view, owes a debt to (Schools Superintendent) Paul LeMahieu because of his willingness to move forward, his proactive ability to sift through the arguments and a will to find a way," Hee said.

OHA in 1995 filed a lawsuit in Circuit Court against the Department of Education because of its declining immersion funding. The program began in 1987 with two school sites and $50,000, but its enrollment outpaced funding over the years. Spending per student fell from $1,845 in 1991-1992 to $764 this year.

LeMahieu said the additional money will help accommodate the growing number of students who want their public school education in the Hawaiian language. There are about 1,800 students in the immersion program this year and that number is expected to reach 2,000 students this fall.

The department operates 17 immersion sites statewide. This year's budget for the program is $1.3 million.

LeMahieu said the additional money represents an "institutional commitment" to the immersion program. It will be used for curriculum, professional development for teachers, instruction, and classroom assessment, as well as other things.

Use of the money will be guided by a master plan that was recently revised by the Board of Education. LeMahieu said there may be some program expansion and new start-ups are possible.

Board of Education Chairman Mitsugi Nakashima said the board is happy the case didn't go to trial and also praised LeMahieu's effort to settle with OHA.

"He's a great compromiser, and a finder of solutions to bridge many, many issues and bring the parties together to agreement," Nakashima said.

Under the agreement, the additional money must be used for operational support of the immersion program and not for capital improvement projects.

The Department of Education and the Board of Education will create a three-member Hawaiian language immersion advisory panel to oversee the funding.

The parties also agreed the department is solely responsible for the immersion program. It must submit to OHA quarterly financial and progress reports on the program for the next five years.

LeMahieu said the success of the immersion program relies on the cooperation of everyone involved.

"So for my money, what is uniquely significant at this moment is the establishment of that sort of partnership," he said.

"That's what gives me the greatest optimism for continued support even throughout the term of the agreement we sign here today."

OHA Special

Rice vs. Cayetano arguments

Rice vs. Cayetano decision

Holo I Mua: Sovereignty Roundtable

---