Honorable Robert Bunda

President of the Senate

Twenty-First State Legislature

Regular Session of 2002

State of Hawaii

Sir:

Your Committee on Education, to which was referred S.B. No. 2927 entitled:

begs leave to report as follows:

The purpose of this measure is to appropriate funds for 43 off-ratio teacher positions and one middle level educational policy implementation specialist position.

Your Committee heard testimony in support of the measure from the Superintendent of Education.

Your Committee finds that the middle school years are crucial to the development of the physical, social, emotional, moral, and cognitive faculties of children. Funding these positions will greatly facilitate the implementation by the Department of Education of the Board of Education's Middle Level Education Policy, which is designed to maximize the enhancement of these faculties.

Your Committee further finds that eight funded off-ratio teacher positions for the Honolulu District of the Department of Education were recently cut by order of the Governor, which were the only such positions funded.

Your Committee has amended this measure by including the recently cut off-ratio teacher positions of the Honolulu District within the larger department-wide request.

As affirmed by the record of votes of the members of your Committee on Education that is attached to this report, your Committee is in accord with the intent and purpose of S.B. No. 2927, as amended herein, and recommends that it pass Second Reading in the form attached hereto as S.B. No. 2927, S.D. 1, and be referred to the Committee on Ways and Means.