STAND. COM. REP. NO. 2053

Honolulu, Hawaii

RE:    S.B. No. 2096

       S.D. 1

Honorable Colleen Hanabusa

President of the Senate

Twenty-Fifth State Legislature

Regular Session of 2010

State of Hawaii

Madam:

     Your Committee on Education and Housing, to which was referred S.B. No. 2096 entitled:

"A BILL FOR AN ACT RELATING TO EDUCATION,"

begs leave to report as follows:

     The purpose of this measure is to establish a voluntary career mentoring program in the Department of Education to provide high school students with contact information for retirees who volunteer to share experience and knowledge about potential careers.

     Testimony in opposition to this measure was submitted by one state agency.  Written testimony presented to the Committee may be reviewed on the Legislature's website.

     Your Committee was informed through testimony of an existing volunteers and partners program through the Department of Education that matches qualified volunteers with schools that have particular needs.  Your Committee finds that the volunteers and partners program provides a network through which schools and volunteers may partner to provide not only career mentoring opportunities, but also coaching, advising, tutoring, campus beautification, traffic supervision, fundraising, and other experience and knowledge to students and schools. 

     Your Committee finds that the volunteers and partners program has been successful and should be expanded to other public schools.  The Department of Education indicates that the cost of implementing the volunteers and partners program in a school would be approximately $250,000 in the first year, after which the costs would drop off substantially due to less training and technical support needs.

     In accordance with the findings, your Committee has amended this measure by:

     (1)  Replacing the contents of this measure with support for the Department of Education's existing volunteers and partners program;

     (2)  Inserting an appropriation with an unspecified dollar amount for determination by the Committee on Ways and Means using the estimated cost provided by the Department of Education;

     (3)  Requiring the Department of Education to adopt rules to expand the volunteers and partners program to other schools and report to the Legislature on its progress in expanding the program; and

     (4)  Changing the effective date from upon approval to July 1, 2010.

     As affirmed by the record of votes of the members of your Committee on Education and Housing that is attached to this report, your Committee is in accord with the intent and purpose of S.B. No. 2096, as amended herein, and recommends that it pass Second Reading in the form attached hereto as S.B. No. 2096, 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 and Housing,

____________________________

NORMAN SAKAMOTO, Chair