BOE challengers: New ways needed

Herbert Watanabe, the Big Island district incumbent on the Board of Education, is a veteran of the board and Department of Education whose challengers say has failed to provide the direction that's needed.

In a primary contest Saturday that will whittle down a field of four to two for the Nov. 4 general election, the three men seeking to unseat Watanabe are a businessman, an art critic and a dad of six. Although this is the Hawaii district seat, Maui County voters will be casting votes in this race.

All three say they want change in the state's public schools, and they all charge that Watanabe, a 12-year BOE veteran, has not delivered.

"He's become part of the problem, not the solution," said J. William "Bill" Sanborn, a 61-year-old real estate and mortgage professional from Waimea. "I think it's time to have some new thinking."

Paul Bryant, an author, art critic and farmer, said the Board of Education and the state Department of Education are working with "failing ideas."

"We need a revitalized look at how schools are run," said Bryant, 63, of Laupahoehoe.

Patrick Walsh, 46, of Keaau, also talks about the need for change as he speaks about the 80-year-old Watanabe, a retired educator with 40 years of service for Hawaii's Education Department.

"My focus is on family," Walsh said, adding that he believes the Board of Education does not hold parents accountable for their children in the public schools.

"I don't see this as the emerging trend with the Board of Education, and I think it should be," Walsh said.

As the second vice chairman for the school board, the policymaking panel for Hawaii's 250-plus public schools, Watanabe said change is easier said than done.

"If they think they can change the system, they're going to be surprised," the Hilo resident said about his critics.

Incumbency will provide Watanabe the advantage of name recognition since the Hawaii District board member is elected by voters in the three Neighbor Island districts - Maui, Kauai and Hawaii. The two candidates with the most votes in Saturday's primary will face off on Nov. 4.

Incumbent Board Member Maggie Cox of Lihue, who holds the Kauai District seat, is also seeking re-election this year. But her race won't come up until the general election when she faces one opponent, Larry Fillhart of Kapaa.

In his defense, Watanabe said he has been involved in changes in the public school system. He points to the implementation of the Hawaii Content Performance Standards, which has undergone at least three phases in ensuring that the Department of Education has set guidelines on what each student in the state's public schools should learn.

"Ours is tough, and I'm all for it," Watanabe said.

He also points to the board's work on policies and said about a third of the ones on the books have been purged because of duplication.

Today, the Board of Education is working toward changing administrative rules affecting student discipline and addressing issues such as whether school lockers are included in searches and seizures.

"There's still more work to be done," Watanabe said.

Sanborn agrees, and says "real changes on the Board of Education could redirect efforts for better results."

In his role as grandfather, Sanborn has volunteered on the Waimea Elementary School Community Council. That experience has led him to believe that despite legislative initiatives such as Act 51, public schools still lack the direct control they need to operate effectively. Act 51 was supposed to give principals more control over their budgets, but most spending is still determined by board policies or state Department of Education mandates.

Sanborn said he would advocate for more home rule and less administrative control from Honolulu. He said he supports funding more alternative programs such as increasing the number of charter schools.

Sanborn said while he would be elected as a Neighbor Island representative, he believes all Board of Education members need to consider the welfare of the entire public school system and not be isolated to a specific district or cause.

Also advocating more home rule within schools, Walsh emphasized his belief that there needs to be more parent and family participation in the classrooms, saying that education is "squarely the responsibility of parents." He said the department needs to establish programs that support community involvement in schools and working relationships among parents, students and teachers.

He charged that the DOE has failed to provide measures for discipline in the classroom and failed to provide an adequate curriculum and support for teachers.

Walsh said he and his wife, Natalie, home-schooled their children for many years and operate as many as five laptops in their home but don't need a television set.

"We have a TV and after four years we tried to turn it on, and it wouldn't work," he said.

Walsh said breakdowns in families affect student achievement, and he would like to see programs in the Department of Education that support the relationship between child and parents, and student and teacher.

"We have to hold parents accountable," he said

He had no specific proposals for doing that but said programs should provide parents with tools to support their children. Whatever program is adopted, it would have to be implemented in phases, he said.

Bryant, too, said he believes in active community participation in public schools. He has served as a community member of the School Community Based Council in Laupahoehoe. The problem, Bryant said, was that there wasn't enough financial or administrative support to back up school community council decisions.

"The structure is there. I just don't think it's being utilized," he said.

He said he would support breaking the Board of Education's makeup so that one panel covers schools in rural areas and another covers urban places.

"The Board of Education has the opportunity to really act, and I would like its members to get more involved directly in the schools. . . . If you aren't responsive to your constituents, then who are going to be responsive to?"

Claudine San Nicolas can be reached at claudine@mauinews.com.