STAND. COM. REP. NO. 238

Honolulu, Hawaii

RE:    S.B. No. 1931

       S.D. 1

Honorable Colleen Hanabusa

President of the Senate

Twenty-Fourth State Legislature

Regular Session of 2007

State of Hawaii

Madam:

     Your Committee on Education, to which was referred S.B. No. 1931 entitled:

"A BILL FOR AN ACT RELATING TO EDUCATION,"

begs leave to report as follows:

     The purpose of this measure is to establish an Educational Workforce Working Group to address and examine workforce needs in Hawaii and how these needs are being and can be met.

     This measure also requires the preparation of five-year plans by the Department of Education and the University of Hawaii 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.

     Testimony in support of this measure was submitted by the Department of Education and the Department of Business, Economic Development, and Tourism.  Comments on the measure were also provided by the University of Hawaii (UH) System.

     Your Committee finds that current workforce needs in the State are not being adequately met and it is unclear as to whether comprehensive, focused, and concerted efforts for workforce development are being undertaken by the DOE and the UH System.  Your Committee further finds that, although other entities currently exist to address workforce development issues, there is still a lack of understanding as to where the needs are, how they are being met, and what can be done to better meet the current and future workforce needs of the State.  This measure establishes a working group to explore the aforementioned and other issues and to report to the Legislature so that focused efforts can be made in the future to address workforce needs.  Your Committee determines that in order to cull relevant information from other existing entities involved in workforce development, the composition of the working group members should be reconsidered.

     Additionally, this measure requires the DOE and the UH to develop five-year plans for optimizing technology, collecting data, and developing individualized student plans to address workforce needs.  Testimony provided expressed confusion over the use of the term individualized plans, believing that this referenced individualized education programs required for special education students.  However, this was not the intent of the measure; instead, the intent was that personalized plans be developed for students to address workforce needs.  Testimony provided by the UH System also indicated that the development of a five-year plan by the UH would not comport with its current strategic planning requirements.  Therefore, your Committee believes that the UH should provide other relevant information on the UH's efforts to address workforce development needs and its plans for improving those efforts in the future.

     Your Committee also heard a related measure, Senate Bill No. 225, which appropriated funds for a workforce academy liaison in the Department of Education.  The workforce academy liaison would be responsible for coordinating workforce development efforts with the academies to provide students with career exploration, awareness, and mentoring.  Your Committee believes that a comprehensive approach should be taken to coordinate and expand workforce development efforts in the State to meet the current and future needs of both the public and private sectors.  These efforts will require additional staff to address and facilitate workforce development that utilizes resources in and meets the needs of the public and private sectors.

     Accordingly, your Committee has amended this measure by:

     (1)  Changing the composition of the Education Workforce Working Group;

     (2)  Replacing the reference to "individualized student learning plans" with "personalized student learning plans;

     (3)  Deleting the requirement that the UH create a five-year plan on educational and workforce needs;

     (4)  Requiring the UH to report to the Legislature on workforce development programs and plans for addressing current and future workforce demands, which shall include but not be limited to the following:

          (A)  Current workforce development programs of the University of Hawaii community college system, detailing how these programs are structured to meet current and future workforce needs within the State;

          (B)  Efforts of the University of Hawaii community college system to target specific workforce area needs;

          (C)  Current priorities for addressing workforce shortage areas, including how priorities are determined; and

          (D)  Plans for improving workforce development efforts through the development of personalized student learning plans that will have a direct link to economic and workforce needs; and

     (5)  Including an appropriation for two workforce development liaison positions and one support staff position to coordinate workforce development efforts between the Department of Education and departments, agencies, businesses, and organizations in the State.

     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. 1931, as amended herein, and recommends that it pass Second Reading in the form attached hereto as S.B. No. 1931, S.D. 1, and be referred to the Committee on Ways and Means.

Respectfully submitted on behalf of the members of the Committee on Education,

____________________________

NORMAN SAKAMOTO, Chair