SB1931

SECTION 1. (a) There is established an educational workforce working group that shall convene no later than August 1, 2007, to examine and address the following issues:

(1) How well the workforce needs of Hawaii are currently being met;

(2) How prepared the State is to meet the workforce needs of the future;

(3) What recommendations can be made to improve Hawaii's educational system to fulfill the workforce needs of the future;

(4) What is the current relationship between public schools and emerging industries;

(5) What percentage of high school students participate in any form of vocational or professional training outside of the school setting;

(6) What aspects of high school curriculum, standards, and assessment strategies have a direct relationship to the State's future workforce needs;

(7) What are the challenges or impediments to creating a more direct relationship between schools and economic driving industries of the State;

(8) How might autonomous schools-within-schools, magnet schools, specialized schools, and charter schools be better utilized to create more direct links between high schools and economic driving industries of the State; and

(9) How might the size of public schools, the distribution of discretionary funding, the decentralized authority of school community councils or charter school local school boards, and other organizational reforms be better utilized to satisfy the workforce development needs of the information and technology age.

(b) The educational workforce working group shall submit a report on its findings and recommendations regarding the issues set forth in subsection (a), including any recommendations and proposed legislation, to the legislature no later than twenty days prior to the convening of the regular session of 2008.

(1) The president of the senate or the president's designee;

(2) The speaker of the house of representatives or the speaker's designee;

(3) The superintendent of education or the superintendent's designee;

(4) The executive director of the charter school administrative office, or the director's designee;

(5) The director of business, economic development, and tourism or the director's designee;

(6) A representative of the high technology sector, to be selected by the governor from a list provided by the president of the senate;

(7) A representative of the healthcare sector, to be selected by the governor from a list provided by the president of the senate;

(8) A representative of the agricultural sector, to be selected by the governor from a list provided by the president of the senate;

(9) A representative of the human services sector, to be selected by the governor from a list provided by the president of the senate;

(10) A representative of the tourism sector, to be selected by the governor from a list provided by the president of the senate;

(11) A representative from the college of education of the University of Hawaii, to be selected by the governor from a list provided by the speaker of the house of representatives;

(12) A representative of the Work Force Development Council, to be selected by the governor from a list provided by the speaker of the house of representatives;

(13) A representative of the Hawaii Business Roundtable, to be selected by the governor from a list provided by the speaker of the house of representatives; and

(14) A representative of Enterprise Honolulu, to be selected by the governor from a list provided by the speaker of the house of representatives.

(d) The director of business, economic development, and tourism or the director's designee shall convene the first meeting of the education workforce working group, at which time the members shall select a chair.

SECTION 2. There is appropriated out of the general revenues of the State of Hawaii the sum of $25,000, or so much thereof as may be necessary for fiscal year 2007-2008, for the education workforce working group.

The sum appropriated shall be expended by the department of business, economic development, and tourism for the purposes of section 1.

SECTION 3. The department of education shall create a five-year plan to ensure optimal use of technology for administration, data collection, and data sharing related to educational and workforce needs, and to create individualized student learning plans that will have a direct link to economic and workforce needs.

The department of education shall submit a report containing its five-year plan to the legislature no later than twenty days prior to the convening of the regular session of 2008.

SECTION 4. The University of Hawaii shall create a five-year plan, within each of the University of Hawaii system campuses, to ensure optimal use of technology for administration, data collection, and data sharing related to educational and workforce needs, and to create individualized student learning plans that will have a direct link to economic and workforce needs.

The University of Hawaii shall submit a report on its five-year plan to the legislature no later than twenty days prior to the convening of the regular session of 2008.

SECTION 5. This Act shall take effect on July 1, 2007.

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THE SENATE	S.B. NO.	1931
TWENTY-FOURTH LEGISLATURE, 2007
STATE OF HAWAII