HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES	H.R. NO.	37
TWENTY-EIGHTH LEGISLATURE, 2016
STATE OF HAWAII

HOUSE RESOLUTION

 

 

URGING THE DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION TO INCLUDE NEIGHBOR ISLAND SCHOOL COMPLEXES IN HEAT ABATEMENT STUDIES, USE SCIENTIFIC DATA AND METHODS TO DETERMINE HEAT ABATEMENT PRIORITY RANKINGS OF SCHOOLS, AND INCREASE TRANSPARENCY IN THE METHODOLOGY USED TO DETERMINE PRIORITY RANKINGS.

 

 

 

     WHEREAS, across the State of Hawaii, students have been subjected to hot classrooms, which make it difficult for students to concentrate on learning; and

 

     WHEREAS, the Department of Education's heat abatement efforts include identifying schools that require cooling strategies, fast-tracking the schools that are in urgent need of relief, and working with the Legislature to provide emergency funding; and

 

     WHEREAS, while the Department of Education collects data on factors such as temperature, noise, dust, and pollution, it is not known how each factor is weighted in the assessment of priority heat abatement rankings; and

 

     WHEREAS, the Department of Education has a heat abatement list that indicates which schools the department has determined to be high priority and therefore first in line to benefit from heat abatement measures; and

 

     WHEREAS, it is not clear whether the Department of Education's data collection includes all the school complexes statewide; and

 

     WHEREAS, temperature should be the most important factor in determining the priority list, so that schools with the highest temperatures during school hours should rank highest on the list; and

 

     WHEREAS, surprisingly, some areas of the State known to consistently have the highest temperatures have no schools on the priority list; and

 

     WHEREAS, there is deep concern about the accuracy of the priority ranking of the schools for heat abatement, especially when neighbor island school complexes are evaluated; now, therefore,

 

     BE IT RESOLVED by the House of Representatives of the Twenty-eighth Legislature of the State of Hawaii, Regular Session of 2016, that the Department of Education is urged to include all neighbor island school complexes in future heat abatement studies; and

 

     BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Department of Education is urged to ensure the use of scientific data and methods to determine the heat abatement priority rankings of schools; and

 

     BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Department of Education is urged to verify the information received with all school complexes before making any decisions regarding the heat abatement priority rankings of schools; and

 

     BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Department of Education is urged to make publicly available the data and the methodology used to determine the heat abatement priority rankings of schools; and

 

     BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that certified copies of this Resolution be transmitted to the Governor; the Chairperson of the Board of Education; the Superintendent of Education; and each Complex Area Superintendent in the State of Hawaii.

 

 

 

	OFFERED BY:	_____________________________

Report Title: 

Department of Education; Heat Abatement; Priority