Aloha!

Hawai'i's Children First is a group of concerned citizens, parents and voters who feel it is urgent for us to step forward and start acting to reform/improve our public school system. The events of the past year, especially the now-infamous “Furlough Fridays,” have demonstrated that public education in Hawaii has fallen about as low as it can go. Despite the best efforts of dedicated teachers, principals, staff and parents, our public schools are simply not accomplishing their purpose anymore: to educate our youth and prepare them to be contributing members of our community. 



THEREFORE, we must stand up, be counted and act! Future generations are depending on us.

 For a variety of reasons, the system we have now with 1) a Board of Education selected in elections in which blank votes total hundreds of thousands, 2) a governor who controls the money but is at odds with the board, and 3) a superintendent hired by the BOE but not even a member of the governor’s cabinet, is a recipe for continued infighting and disaster.

How can we fix this mess? It will take a long time and a lot of work. But after much discussion, study and strategizing, we believe that a first important step toward wholesale reform and rebuilding of public education is a critical change in governance. The first step is changing the elected BOE to an appointed BOE, accountable and responsible to one person – the governor. The ballot initiative for this year’s General Election in November will accomplish this. Please visit the rest of this website and learn more about the reasons we feel this must happen, why we think it will help, and what you can do to support this important mission!



Mahalo!

FIX OUR SCHOOLS!
In the November election, VOTE YES to the special ballot question:

"Shall the Board of Education be changed to a board appointed by the Governor, with the advice and consent of the Senate, as provided by law?"