Hawaii Board of Education Report On Superintendent Search

DAVID Y.
IGE CATHERINE PAYNE

GOVERNOR CHAIRPERSON
STATE OF HAWAI‘I
BOARD OF EDUCATION
P.O. BOX 2360
HONOLULU, HAWAI‘I 96804
May 19, 2022
TO: Board of Education
FROM: Catherine Payne

Chairperson, Board of Education
AGENDA ITEM: Board Action on findings and recommendations of Investigative

Committee (a permitted interaction group pursuant to Hawaii
Revised Statutes, Section 92-2.5(b)(1)) investigating issues relating
to search for a superintendent: selection of superintendent
I. EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
• At its May 5, 2022 meeting, the Board of Education (“Board”) received a

recommendation of three finalists to consider for the position of superintendent.
In accordance with Sunshine Law, the Board did not deliberate or take action
on the finalists at the May 5 meeting.
• Today, the Board will interview and deliberate on the finalists using the process
it adopted (Exhibit 1) and the schedule outlined in this memorandum. In
accordance with the process, Board members signed up for position
competencies on which to base interview questions (Exhibit 2). Board
members may use a notetaking form based on the competencies in the position
description to help them keep track of their observations (Exhibit 3). The
position competencies are found in the Board-adopted superintendent position
description (Exhibit 4).
• Should the Board select a finalist to hire as the next superintendent, I

recommend making the hiring dependent upon a clean background check and
the execution of an employment contract. I also recommend authorizing me, as
the Board Chairperson, to negotiate an employment contract to bring to the
Board for approval.
II. BACKGROUND
On June 3, 2021, the Board formed an investigative committee (a permitted

interaction group pursuant to Hawaii Revised Statutes Section 92-2.5(b)(1)) tasked
with investigating issues related to the search for a superintendent in accordance
with the process and timeline approved by the Board (this investigative committee is
herein referred to as the “Search Committee”). At the Board’s December 16, 2021
meeting, the Search Committee reported that it is operating on the following timeline:
Date Activity
Establish foundation for superintendent search (desired
December 2021—
traits, skills, and abilities in the superintendent; desired
January 2022
outcomes of state education system)
By February 2022 Establish desired outcomes for the superintendent
By March 2022 Publish superintendent job announcement
By April 2022 Interview superintendent candidates
By May 2022 Board selects superintendent
At its March 3, 2022 general business meeting, the Board adopted a job description
for the superintendent position, attached as Exhibit 4.
At its May 5, 2022 general business meeting, the Board adopted a structured
process it will use to interview superintendent finalists, attached as Exhibit 1. At the
same meeting, each Board member, the student representative, and the military
representative signed up for one core competency in the Board-adopted job
description on which to base a main interview question, attached as Exhibit 2.
At the May 5, 2022 general business meeting, the Search Committee recommended
three finalists for the Board’s consideration: Darrel Galera, Keith Hayashi, and
Caprice Young. The Search Committee’s report, along with the finalists’ cover
letters, resumes, and written responses, are attached as Exhibit 5. This report
concluded the work of the Search Committee. In accordance with Sunshine Law, the
Board did not discuss or take action on the Search Committee’s recommendation at
the meeting.
2
III. RECOMMENDATION
I have established the following schedule for today’s proceedings in accordance with
the Board’s interview process. Finalists appear in alphabetical order by last name.
8:45 a.m. • Meeting called to order

• Brief explanation of process and schedule
9:00 a.m.–10:30 a.m. Darrel Galera

• 15-minute presentation (interview process step 1)
• Interview (interview process steps 2–4)
10:30 a.m.–10:45 a.m. Transition break (recess)
10:45 a.m.–12:15 p.m. Keith Hayashi

12:15 p.m.–12:45 p.m. Lunch break (recess)
12:45 p.m.–2:15 p.m. Caprice Young

2:15 p.m.–2:30 p.m. Transition break (recess)
2:30 p.m.– TBD Public testimony (time limit to be determined based on

number of testifiers signed up)
Time TBD (30 minutes) Mandatory recess (interview process step 5)
Time TBD Board deliberates (interview process steps 6–9)
Time TBD Late public testimony
The Board-adopted interview process authorizes me, as Board Chairperson, to

design and administer a performance task. The 15-minute presentation on the above
schedule is the performance task. For this presentation, finalists must address the
following prompt:
“As the Hawaii State Superintendent, you will be responsible for assisting the
Board of Education with its development of the state’s strategic plan for
educational quality and equity as well as designing the Department of
Education’s plan to implement the state’s strategic plan. You have 15 minutes
3
to present to the Board how you would approach these tasks to improve
student achievement and equity and the role of strategic planning in
designing the work of the Department of Education.”
Finalists have had over a week to prepare their presentations. Any accompanying
slide decks or handouts will be attached to this memorandum as follows on the
morning of May 19 before the Board meeting is called to order:
• Exhibit 6: Darrel Galera’s presentation slide deck and/or handouts

• Exhibit 7: Keith Hayashi’s presentation slide deck and/or handouts
• Exhibit 8: Caprice Young’s presentation slide deck and/or handouts
Robert Hull, former Chief Executive Officer and current Senior Advisor for the
National Association of State Boards of Education, will be present at the Board’s
meeting to assist with the process. Mr. Hull put together a notetaking form, attached
as Exhibit 3, to help Board members keep track of their observations throughout the
presentations and interviews. The note organizer uses the core competencies from
the superintendent job description.
Once the interview process is over and the Board has completed its deliberations,
the Board may select a finalist as the next superintendent. While a consensus is
preferable, only a simple majority of Board members is necessary to make a
selection.
Should the Board select a finalist to hire as the next superintendent, I recommend
making the hiring dependent upon a clean background check and the execution of
an employment contract. I also recommend authorizing me, as the Board
Chairperson, to negotiate an employment contract to bring to the Board for approval
at a future Board meeting.
Proposed motion: “Move to (1) hire ______ as superintendent of the

Department of Education, pending a clean background check and the
execution of an employment contract with the Board and (2) authorize the
Board Chairperson to negotiate an employment contract for Board approval.”
4
Exhibit 1
Board of Education Interview Process of Superintendent Finalists

Exhibit 1
Board of Education Interview Process of Superintendent Finalists
1. On the day of the interviews, each finalist will participate in a performance

task that will measure the finalist’s communication skills, analytical skills, and
other competencies as appropriate. The Board Chairperson or her designee
design and administer the performance task.
2. The Board will interview each finalist one at a time using a single round of
questions.
3. Each Board member, the Board student representative, and the Board
military representative may ask one main question on the core competencies
in the Board-adopted job description. The main question must be related to
the competency for which the Board member signed up in advance at the
May 5, 2022 General Business Meeting.
4. Immediately after the finalist’s response to the main question, the Board
member that asked the main question may ask one follow-up question directly
relating to the main question or to the finalist’s answer to the main question.
While Board members must ask every finalist the same main question, the
follow-up questions may differ because they will depend heavily on the
finalist’s response.
5. After the final interview is complete, the Board will recess to allow each Board
member time to individually consider:
a. Information provided by the Search Committee (cover letters and
resumes, written responses, and summarized Advisory Group
feedback);
b. The performance task;
c. Finalist interviews;
d. Public testimony; and
e. Any other relevant information.
6. After Board members have had time to consider all available information, the
Board will reconvene and take a non-binding straw poll to determine Board
members’ initial assessments.
7. After the straw poll, Board members will deliberate and discuss the finalists.
No motion will be necessary to conduct straw polls or to enter deliberation.
During deliberation, Board members must speak only in the affirmative and
may not make negative statements about finalists.
8. After deliberation is complete, the Board will take another non-binding straw
poll. If no finalist appears to have a majority of Board members in favor, the
Board will enter deliberation again. It will repeat this process until a straw poll
indicates that a finalist has a majority of Board members in favor.
9. When the Board is ready, a Board member makes a motion and the Board
votes.
Exhibit 2
Board Member Main Question Sign-up Sheet

Exhibit 2
Board Member Main Question Sign-up Sheet
Each Board member, Board student representative, and Board military representative should sign up for one competency from the
superintendent job description around which to design a main interview question for superintendent finalists. Each competency
should have only one name associated with it.
Competency Name
1. Demonstrates commitment to developing a culturally responsive, internationally Board Member Shanty Asher
competitive, student-centered education curriculum and instructional program for all
students and families.
2. Exhibits an understanding of complex organizations and how to produce successful Board Member Bruce Voss
change management and educational reform.
3. Demonstrates understanding of the structure, roles, and responsibilities of the Board Member Bill Arakaki
Department’s state, complex area, and school-level system of education.
4. Has a demonstrated ability to make large-scale positive impacts for students and a history Board Member Lynn Fallin
of establishing effective processes and organizational systems to achieve desired
outcomes.
5. Is cognizant of national and international trends, best practices, policies, and research on Board Member Lauren Moriarty
ensuring student success.
6. Has a record of excellent decision making based on a thorough understanding of the Board Member Kaimana
issues and of incorporating multiple stakeholder voices in the process. Barcarse
7. Has a deep understanding of Hawaii’s history, culture, and values, including the key role Board Member Kili Namau‘u
that Kaiapuni education plays, and has incorporated this understanding in leadership
decisions, actions, and style.
8. Has credibility and builds positive relationships with all stakeholders. Military Rep. Col. Angenene
Robertson
9. Demonstrates a commitment to lifelong learning as a reflective and self-aware leader. Board Chairperson Catherine
Payne
10. Has a demonstrated ability to fully understand a diverse and unique education system. Student Rep. Kyla Musso
11. Has a demonstrated ability to hire and manage competent people in key positions, Board Vice Chairperson Kenneth
including finance and budget, facilities, human resources, and information technology. Uemura
Exhibit 3
Interview Note Organizer

Exhibit 3
Hawaii State Board of Education Superintendent Interview Note Organizer

Candidate:
Core Competency Notes
Demonstrates commitment to
developing a culturally responsive,
internationally competitive, student-
centered education curriculum and
instructional program for all students
and families.
Exhibits an understanding of complex

organizations and how to produce
successful change management and
educational reform.
Exhibit 3
Demonstrates understanding of the
structure, roles, and responsibilities of
the Department’s state, complex area,
and school-level system of education.
Has a demonstrated ability to make

large-scale positive impacts for
students and a history of establishing
effective processes and organizational
systems to achieve desired outcomes.
Exhibit 3
Is cognizant of national and
international trends, best practices,
policies, and research on ensuring
student success.
Has a record of excellent decision

making based on a thorough
understanding of the issues and of
incorporating multiple stakeholder
voices in the process.
Exhibit 3
Has a deep understanding of Hawaii’s
history, culture, and values, including
the key role that Kaiapuni education
plays, and has incorporated this
understanding in leadership decisions,
actions, and style.
Has credibility and builds positive

relationships with all stakeholders.
Exhibit 3
Demonstrates a commitment to
lifelong learning as a reflective and
self-aware leader.
Has a demonstrated ability to fully

understand a diverse and unique
education system.
Exhibit 3
Has a demonstrated ability to hire and
manage competent people in key
positions, including finance and
budget, facilities, human resources,
and information technology.
ADDITIONAL NOTES:
Exhibit 4
Superintendent of Education Position Description

Exhibit 4
State of Hawaii Department of Education

POSITION DESCRIPTION – SUPERINTENDENT OF EDUCATION
Position Summary: The Hawaii State Superintendent of Education serves as the chief executive officer
of the statewide public school system and is responsible for both the State Education Agency and Local
Education Agency functions of the Hawaii State Department of Education (“Department”). Hawaii has
257 Department schools and 37 charter schools organized into 15 complex areas on six islands, with
over 171,000 students (159,000+ in Department schools and over 12,000 in charter schools),
approximately 22,600 permanent employees, approximately 20,000 casual hires and substitute
employees, and an annual operating budget of more than $2 billion. Reporting to the State Board of
Education (”Board”), the Superintendent is accountable for achieving the goals established in the
statewide strategic plan for education as approved by the Board and guided by the Board’s vision,
mission, and policies.
Education. Master’s degree from an accredited college or university in education, business, public
administration, or a closely related field. Alternatives to the education qualifications may be considered
as the Board deems appropriate and acceptable.
Experience. Minimum of ten years in progressively increasing leadership roles with history of
successfully handling the increased responsibilities associated with each promotion earned. At least five
years shall have been as a chief executive officer or similar position of leadership. Experience in a similar
sized organization desired.
Competencies.
• Demonstrates commitment to developing a culturally responsive, internationally competitive,
student-centered education curriculum and instructional program for all students and families.
• Exhibits an understanding of complex organizations and how to produce successful change
management and educational reform.
• Demonstrates understanding of the structure, roles, and responsibilities of the Department’s
state, complex area, and school-level system of education.
• Has a demonstrated ability to make large-scale positive impacts for students and a history of
establishing effective processes and organizational systems to achieve desired outcomes.
• Is cognizant of national and international trends, best practices, policies, and research on
ensuring student success.
• Has a record of excellent decision making based on a thorough understanding of the issues and
of incorporating multiple stakeholder voices in the process.
• Has a deep understanding of Hawaii’s history, culture, and values, including the key role that
Kaiapuni education plays, and has incorporated this understanding in leadership decisions,
actions, and style.
• Has credibility and builds positive relationships with all stakeholders.
• Demonstrates a commitment to lifelong learning as a reflective and self-aware leader.
• Has a demonstrated ability to fully understand a diverse and unique education system.
• Has a demonstrated ability to hire and manage competent people in key positions, including
finance and budget, facilities, human resources, and information technology.
1
Exhibit 4
Primary Responsibilities
Visionary Leadership and Organizational Culture. The Superintendent promotes the success of all
students by articulating and implementing a vision of learning, developing and modeling a positive
organizational culture and school climate throughout the Department, and sustaining instructional
programs conducive to student learning and staff professional growth. The Superintendent:
• Is the public face of educational excellence and embraces this role by sharing a bold, future-
oriented vision for the state education system based on the vision, mission, and goals and
priorities set by the Board;
• Clearly aligns leadership actions, staffing, and resources to a student-centered vision that is
evident in the culture of all schools;
• Collaboratively builds, nurtures, and sustains an organizational culture that supports a system
that serves all students;
• Creates and implements a HĀ-based, focused plan for achieving strategic plan goals and
objectives supported by resources;
• Builds an executive team that complements and adds to his/her skill set and experience and can
offer diverse perspectives and advice;
• Fosters innovative continuous improvement and effectiveness at all levels;
• Develops and nurtures leaders and empowers employees;
• Listens to and incorporates diverse perspectives in all decision-making processes;
• Develops, nurtures, sustains, and models trust, collaboration, learning, and elevated
expectations by empowering and collaborating with state, complex area, and school leadership,
and teacher leaders to make decisions that improve student learning;
• Leads and supports the use of quantitative and qualitative data to identify priorities, assess
organizational effectiveness, identify effective practices, promote continuous organizational
learning, and inform instruction; and
• Ensures that all staff receive relevant and continuous professional development, including
leadership development (especially at the complex area and school levels), that directly
enhances their performance.
Operations, Resource, and Personnel Management. The Superintendent manages operations and
implements sound personnel practices to promote a safe, trusting, respectful, effective learning
environment for students and staff and to ensure the fiscal fidelity and efficiency of the Department.
The Superintendent:
• Monitors and evaluates operational systems to ensure the effective, efficient use of human,
fiscal, capital, and technological resources;
• Develops and ensures the effective implementation of processes, procedures, and structures to
support compliance with local, state, and federal laws and regulations;
• Implements personnel procedures and employee performance programs to effectively recruit,
hire, develop, and retain highly effective teachers, administrators, and personnel;
• Articulates and implements a comprehensive plan for educator recruitment and retention;
• Manages fiscal planning and budget development, makes strategic recommendations based
upon the Department’s current fiscal position and future needs, prepares operating and
2
Exhibit 4
financial budgets that align with the Board’s strategic plan and makes sound fiscal decisions
aligned with the strategic plan goals and objectives, and establishes clear, transparent systems
of fiscal control and accountability;
• Monitors facilities use and needs, makes facilities recommendations as needed to the Board and
Legislature, promotes safety across the state, and ensures that a facilities management plan is in
place; and
• Provides timely, relevant, and strategic information and advice to the Board during labor
negotiations, effectively collaborates with the exclusive representatives of public employee
bargaining units, and actively seeks to improve collective bargaining outcomes that best serve
students and the public education system.
Board Governance and Policy. With an understanding of how their distinct roles promote student
success, the Superintendent partners effectively with the Board to ensure a high-quality education for
every student and leads and manages the Department consistent with Board policies, promoting
transparency, fairness, and trust. The Superintendent:
• Collaborates with the Board to shape a joint vision, mission, and strategic goals, with
measurable objectives of elevated expectations for student achievement;
• Communicates the impact of federal policy and regulations on state operations and local policy
decisions;
• Articulates the state’s system of public-school governance, differentiates policymaking and
administrative roles, interprets and executes the intent of Board policies, and advises the Board
on the need for new or revised policies in a timely manner;
• Advocates for and represents the Board’s and Department’s position on legislative initiatives
and works effectively with local, state, and federal leaders and public officials;
• Offers professional perspective to the Board, with recommendations based on thorough study
and analysis, and keeps the Board regularly informed with relevant quantitative and qualitative
data, reports, and information that enable it to make effective, timely decisions on policies and
strategic goal development; and
• Collaborates with the Board to define and deploy multiple-measure accountability systems that
consider whole child development.
Communication and Community Relations. The Superintendent establishes effective communication

and engagement processes with students, parents, teachers, and the community at large and seeks
understanding of cultural, political, social, economic, and legal contexts to respond effectively to
internal and external stakeholder feedback, build staunch support for the public education system, and
promote the success of all students. The Superintendent:
• Uses effective public information strategies to communicate with all stakeholders in an
appropriate and timely manner, manage internal and external perceptions of the Board and
Department, and promote a positive image of the public education system with families, the
media, federal and state officials, and the community at large;
• Engages meaningfully, proactively, and strategically with media;
• Communicates with diverse audiences in a timely manner to achieve desired results and
practices;
• Works with staff, federal and state agencies, and other community members to secure
resources and build partnerships to support strategic plan goals and student success;
3
Exhibit 4
• Works with state legislators, governor, and other state-level policymakers to ensure continuity
of vision and coherence of policy implementation;
• Establishes effective communication within the Department, promotes positive interpersonal
relations among staff, and creates a HĀ-based atmosphere of trust and respect with staff,
families, and community members;
• Works with birth-prekindergarten early learning partners to ensure K-12 school readiness and
student success;
• Collaborates with higher education institution and business leaders to ensure smooth
transitions for high school graduates and development of appropriate career pathways for
students;
• Exercises cultural competence in all communications, interactions, and community engagement;
and
• Maintains an open, honest, transparent relationship with the Board always.
Equity Advocacy. The Superintendent advocates for equitable opportunities and conditions and builds a
foundation rooted in the promise of equity, integrity, and fairness for every student and every staff
member. The Superintendent:
• Maintains a primary focus on equity and excellence in all aspects of the job;
• Champions and builds a diverse, equitable, inclusive environment in schools and throughout the
Department and advocates for equity and fair play among student groups, schools, complexes,
and state offices;
• Promotes social-emotional wellness of students, staff, and community;
• Promotes social justice and civil rights, ensuring that schools are safe learning environments free
of inequities and injustices; and
• Ensures equitable distribution of resources, both human and fiscal.
Other Duties and Responsibilities

• Works with the Board to select and administer statewide assessments aligned with Board-
approved state standards.
• Executes a comprehensive planning process to manage short- and long-term crises, including
processes and systems to communicate regularly with the Board, educators, parents, and other
stakeholders.
• Approves the appointment of all education officers and hires, recommends Board approval for
Department executives, makes final decisions on actions where serious disciplinary action is
considered for an employee, and engages in labor negotiations.
• Administers agencies attached to the Department, as provided by law, including the Executive
Office on Early Learning, the Hawaii Teacher Standards Board, the State Public Charter School
Commission, and the Hawaii State Public Library System.
4
Exhibit 5
Search Committee’s May 5, 2022 report of findings and recommendations on

finalists for the position of superintendent
Exhibit 5
DAVID Y. IGE CATHERINE PAYNE

GOVERNOR CHAIRPERSON
STATE OF HAWAI‘I
BOARD OF EDUCATION
P.O. BOX 2360
HONOLULU, HAWAI‘I 96804
May 5, 2022
TO: Board of Education
FROM: Catherine Payne

Chairperson, Superintendent Search Investigative Committee
AGENDA ITEM: Investigative committee (a permitted interaction group pursuant to

Hawaii Revised Statutes Section 92-2.5(b)(1)) investigating issues
relating to search for a superintendent: findings and
recommendations on finalists
I. EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
• The Board of Education (“Board”) established a committee to, among other

things, recommend finalists for the position of superintendent.
• Today, the committee is presenting the names of three finalists for the
superintendent position. In accordance with Sunshine Law, the Board cannot
deliberate or take action on this at this meeting.
• The Board will interview and deliberate on the finalists on May 19, 2022.
II. BACKGROUND
On June 3, 2021, the Board formed an investigative committee (a permitted

interaction group pursuant to Hawaii Revised Statutes Section 92-2.5(b)(1)) tasked
with investigating issues related to the search for a superintendent in accordance
with the process and timeline approved by the Board (this investigative committee is
herein referred to as the “Search Committee”). The Board assigned Board Members
Kaimana Barcarse, Lynn Fallin, Kili Namau‘u, and myself to the investigative
committee, with me serving as committee chairperson.
Exhibit 5
On May 20, 2021, the Board adopted a general timeline and process for searching
for and selecting a long-term superintendent, provided that the Search Committee
may make any revisions necessary to complete its tasks. 1 The process includes
public input through various means, including an advisory group consisting of
individuals representing key stakeholder groups with significant interest in public
education (herein referred to as the “Advisory Group”).
On August 19, 2021, the Search Committee provided the Board with an update on
the composition of the Advisory Group. 2 On December 16, 2021, the Search
Committee updated the Board on the Advisory Group’s responsibilities and the
process for selecting members to the Advisory Group. 3
On October 21, 2021, the Board accepted grant funds from the Harold K.L. Castle
Foundation and The Learning Coalition for various services from the National
Association of State Boards of Education (“NASBE”), including assistance with the
search and selection of a state superintendent. 4 As a part of the same action, the
Board also approved a general timeline for NASBE services, which, in effect
amended the May 20, 2021 timeline for the search process so that the Board is
scheduled to select a superintendent in May 2022 instead of March 2022. At the
Board’s December 16, 2021 meeting, the Search Committee reported that it is
operating on the following timeline:
Date Activity
Establish foundation for superintendent search (desired
December 2021—
traits, skills, and abilities in the superintendent; desired
January 2022
outcomes of state education system)
By February 2022 Establish desired outcomes for the superintendent
1
My memorandum dated April 15, 2021 contains the original timeline and process adopted by the Board,
available here:
https://boe.hawaii.gov/Meetings/Notices/Meeting%20Material%20Library/GBM_20210520_Action%20on
%20Investigative%20Committee%20on%20Transition%20and%20Search%20Process%20findings%20a
nd%20recommendations.pdf.
2
My memorandum dated August 19, 2021 contains the stakeholder groups that comprise the Advisory
Group, available here:
https://boe.hawaii.gov/Meetings/Notices/Meeting%20Material%20Library/GBM_20210819_Update%20on
%20Investigative%20Committee%20on%20Superintendent%20Search%20-
%20Advisory%20Group%20stakeholders.pdf.
3
See my memorandum dated December 16, 2021, for more information, available here:
%20Investigative%20Committee%20on%20Superintendent%20Search.pdf.
4
See my memorandum dated October 21, 2021, for more information, available here:
%20Grant%20and%20NASBE%20Contract.pdf.
2
Exhibit 5
Date Activity
By March 2022 Publish superintendent job announcement
By April 2022 Interview superintendent candidates
By May 2022 Board selects superintendent
At the Board’s January 20, 2022 General Business Meeting, the Search Committee
notified the Board that it had completed its selection of the Advisory Group. Advisory
Group members and stakeholder groups are listed below. 5
Stakeholder Organization/
Name Position in organization
Group Individual
Hawaii State Parent
Teacher Student Hawaii State PTSA
Parents Patti Rabacal
Association (“Hawaii President
State PTSA”)
Hawaii State Kauai HSTA Chapter Vice
Teachers President; Chiefess
Teachers (1) Sarah Tochiki
Association Kamakahelei Middle School
(“HSTA”) teacher
2022 Hawaii State Teacher
Hawaii State
Teachers (2) Whitney Aragaki of the Year; Waiakea High
Teacher Fellows
School teacher
Hawaii Government
School Employees HGEA Bargaining Unit 6
Derek Minakami
Administrators Association President and Director
(“HGEA”)
Hui for Excellence in
Community/
Education (“HEʻE”) Cheri Nakamura HEʻE Executive Director
Non-profits
Coalition
Hawaiian
ʻAha Kauleo Kahele Dukelow ʻAha Kauleo Luna Ho‘omalu
Education
Hawaii Public HPCSN Board Member;
Charter
Charter Schools Jenn Hiro Innovations Public Charter
Education
Network (“HPCSN”) School Teacher Director
5
See my memorandum dated January 20, 2022 for more information, available here:
%20Investigative%20Committee%20on%20Superintendent%20Search.pdf.
3
Exhibit 5
Stakeholder Organization/
Name Position in organization
Group Individual
Family Hui Hawaii
Early Learning
Early Education Cherilyn Shiinoki Executive Director
Board
McKinley Community
Adult Education Individual Dane Yonamine
School for Adults teacher
University of Hawaiʻi
Higher
Individual David Lassner President
Education
Director of Manpower and

Military Individual Angenene Robertson Personnel Directorate, U.S.
Indo-Pacific Command
Chief Operating Officer of
Business Individual Toby Taniguchi
KTA Super Stores
Professor and Chair of
Department of Curriculum
English Learners Individual Patricia Halagao Studies, College of
Education, University of
Hawaiʻi, Mānoa
Special Education
Special
Advisory Council of Martha Guinan SEAC Chairperson
Education
Hawaii (“SEAC”)
On February 17, 2022, the Search Committee updated the Board on the stakeholder
input process and results for the development of the superintendent job description.
The Search Committee gathered feedback on the education system’s greatest
needs, areas of growth, and desired outcomes through meetings with its Advisory
Group, focus groups, and meetings with key legislative committee chairpersons. The
Search Committee presented a revised job description to the Board based on the
feedback gathered. 6
At its March 3, 2022 General Business Meeting, the Board adopted the job
description but with additional revisions. The Board added competencies that state,
“Has a demonstrated ability to fully understand a diverse and unique education
system” and “Has a demonstrated ability to hire and manage competent people in
6
See my memorandum dated February 17, 2022 for more information, including the proposed job
description, available here:
https://boe.hawaii.gov/Meetings/Notices/Meeting%20Material%20Library/GBM_20220217_Superintenden
t%20Search%20update%20and%20findings%20and%20recommendations%20job%20description.pdf.
4
Exhibit 5
key positions, including finance and budget, facilities, human resources and
information technology.” The Board also changed the “Experience” section to state,
“Minimum of ten years in progressively increasing leadership roles with history of
successfully handling the increased responsibilities associated with each promotion
earned. At least five years shall have been as a chief executive officer or similar
position of leadership. Experience in a similar sized organization desired.”
On March 7, 2022, NASBE posted a call for applications with the job description on
its website, shared it with its network, and put it in various publications. The Search
Committee posted a call for applications on the Board’s website and distributed a
news release. The Search Committee received 27 applications by the original
deadline of April 1. Due to the lower-than-expected volume of applications,
particularly from Hawaii-based applicants, the Search Committee extended the
deadline to April 12 and issued another news release with the announcement. The
Search Committee received another eight applications by the extended deadline for
a total of 35.
III. UPDATE
Finalists selection. Robert Hull, former president and chief executive officer of
NASBE and current senior advisor, ranked applicants into three tiers based on
qualifications and provided the full list of applicants, this initial ranking, and all
applications to the Search Committee for review. Through consensus, the Search
Committee determined which applicants to interview.
The Search Committee conducted initial virtual interviews with seven candidates.
The Search Committee also asked each of these candidates to provide written
responses to questions determined by the Search Committee. After conducting all
interviews and reading all written responses, the Search Committee selected four
top candidates.
The Search Committee asked the Advisory Group to watch recorded interviews of
the four top candidates and provide feedback. The Search Committee used the
Advisory Group’s feedback to finalize its recommendation for finalists to the Board.
5
Exhibit 5
Final selection timeline. The following timeline describes the remainder of the
process after the Search Committee selects the finalists:
Date Activity
The Search Committee reports its final recommendation on
the finalists. This report will complete the work of the
May 5, 2022 General committee and it will cease to exist.
Business Meeting
The Board adopts a process for interviewing the finalists
(see below for more details).
May 19, 2022
The Board interviews and takes action on the finalists.
Special Meeting
(Note that I, in my capacity as Board Chairperson, rescheduled the May 19 General

Business Meeting to May 5, and instead, I am scheduling a Special Meeting on May
19 dedicated to the selection of the superintendent.)
Board Interview Process. At the April 21, 2022 general business meeting, the
Search Committee recommended a structured process the Board would use to
interview finalists. 7 In accordance with Sunshine Law, the Board did not take action
or deliberate on the Search Committee’s recommendations at its April 21, 2022
meeting. At its May 5, 2022 meeting, the Board will consider adopting the process
the Search Committee proposed. 8 If adopted, the Board will use the process to
interview the finalists on May 19, 2022.
IV. FINDINGS
The Search Committee finds that the Board should consider three superintendent
finalists. The Search Committee implemented a process that gathered and
incorporated feedback from its Advisory Group, focus groups, key legislative
committee chairpersons, and Board members. The Search Committee has worked
diligently, with the assistance of NASBE and Robert Hull, to narrow the field from 35
7
See my memorandum dated April 21, 2022 for more information, including the proposed search
process, available here:
https://boe.hawaii.gov/Meetings/Notices/Meeting%20Material%20Library/GBM_20220421_Report%20on
%20Superintendent%20Search%20findings%20and%20recommendations%20on%20interview%20proce
ss.pdf
8
See my memorandum dated May 5, 2022, which includes my memorandum dated April 21, 2022,
available here:
%20Superintendent%20Search%20findings%20and%20recommendations%20on%20interview%20proce
ss.pdf
6
Exhibit 5
applicants, to seven interviewees, to four top candidates, and finally, to three

finalists. The Search Committee spent numerous hours meeting and deliberating
and has met the deadline it set in October 2021 of providing finalists to the Board in
May.
The Search Committee extends its deepest appreciation to the members of the
Advisory Group who dedicated many hours to this search, provided invaluable
insights and thought-provoking comments, and shared their communities and
contacts.
V. RECOMMENDATION
In its final memorandum to the Board, the Search Committee recommends three
finalists: Darrel Galera, Keith Hayashi, and Caprice Young.
The Search Committee has included the redacted cover letter and resume and
written responses to a set of general questions for each finalist. The Search
Committee also included the questions it used for interviews and summarized
Advisory Group feedback on the interviews. The information is included as exhibits
to this memorandum:
• Darrel Galera’s cover letter, resume, and written responses (Exhibit A)

• Keith Hayashi’s cover letter, resume, and written responses (Exhibit B)
• Caprice Young’s cover letter, resume, and written responses (Exhibit C)
• Search Committee’s interview questions (Exhibit D)
• Advisory Group feedback on interviews (Exhibit E)
In accordance with Sunshine Law, Board Members cannot discuss or take action on
the Search Committee’s recommendation at this meeting but can do so at the
Board’s May 19, 2022 General Business Meeting.
Proposed motion: “Move to recommend that the Board consider three

superintendent finalists: (1) Darrel Galera, (2) Keith Hayashi, and (3) Caprice
Young.”
This report completes the work of the Search Committee.
7
Exhibit 5
Exhibit A
Darrel Galera
Cover Letter, Resume, and Written Responses
Exhibit 5
April 1, 2022
Catherine Payne
Chairperson, State of Hawaii Board of Education
P.O. Box 2360
Honolulu, Hawaii 96804
Dear Chairperson Payne and the Members of the Hawaii State Board of Education:
Thank you for the opportunity to apply for and be considered for the Superintendent of the State
of Hawaii Department of Education. My service to public education in Hawaii spans forty (40)
years including more than three (3) decades of educational leadership roles including executive
leadership at all levels of the Hawaii education system. I have served as a Board of Education
member, as Deputy District Superintendent for Leeward Oahu, as school Principal/CEO of one
of the highest performing high schools in state history, as state educational specialist in the
Leadership Institute, as leader of the Hawaii High School Principals Compact, as Executive
Director of the Education Institute of Hawaii, and as the leader of the team responsible for
creating the Hawaii Blueprint for Public Education. I am presently a leadership consultant and
executive coach for school principals, vice principals, and teacher leaders. I am a proud
graduate of the Hawaii public school system. I have a son who graduated from the public
schools and a stepdaughter who presently attends a Hawaii DOE school.
My interest in applying to become Superintendent is driven by a vision of Hawaii becoming the
top public education system in the nation. My specific interest is in building and leading a
strength-based team of the most talented and innovative education leaders from Hawaii to
implement the policies of the Hawaii State Board of Education with integrity and fidelity. My
interest is providing the leadership for a trusting culture of collective efficacy, innovation, and
excellence. The Hawaii public education system is a cup that is overflowing with strengths that
are unique and exceptional:
• The Board of Education has set high expectations for excellence through the approval of
key policies that can transform the system when fully implemented by the Department of
Education.
• The Hawaii Blueprint for Public Education is a model of community engagement for a
shared vision for excellence for our public schools.
• We are the only state to have a “Aloha Spirit” statute that legally defines our
expectations of kindness, compassion, and caring.
• Hawaii is a single state school system, a single district with the ability to be agile,
responsive, and future focused.
• Our teachers and school principals are among the most talented, dedicated, and caring
in our nation.
I am a Gallup Certified Strengths Coach and my “top five strengths” are Futuristic, Relator,
Learner, Analytical, and Arranger. Accordingly, the strengths and leadership skills that I
possess and will apply as Superintendent include the ability to:
• emotionally anticipate and visualize a better future to inspire others to new heights,
• form solid, genuine, and mutually rewarding relationships that are close, caring and
trusting,
Exhibit 5
• intuitively know how to learn best and learn quickly to keep the team and organization on
the cutting edge,
• uncover the essential facts needed to provide clarity and attain excellence,
• align and realign resources and strategies until they are arranged in the most productive
configuration possible.
My motivation to apply for the position of superintendent is extremely high because I feel that
my experiences, strengths, and skills are a perfect fit to lead a state school system striving to
achieve performance excellence. As the Superintendent, our leadership team will be driven by
the core belief that when we focus on weaknesses (and deficits) it can lead to improvement, but
it will not lead to excellence. It will be our core belief that it is essential to focus on strengths to
achieve excellence. My motivation is to make the vision of the Hawaii Blueprint for Public
Education a reality.
The past two years of Covid19 have magnified many existing challenges in our schools. But if
the pandemic has magnified the problems, it has also provided key lessons and identified new
strengths that can lead to huge opportunities. As Superintendent, I would take advantage of
the following opportunities from the pandemic: (a) leverage the heightened appreciation and
recognition for teachers to elevate the teaching profession to end the teacher shortage, (b)
leverage the system’s ability to pivot quickly and effectively for distance learning to do the same
to accelerate equity for English Learners (EL), and, (c) leverage the Hawaii DOE’s heightened
efforts to partner with other state agencies to create new aligned resources and programs for
parents, families and communities.
Given the accelerating change caused by the pandemic, the future of public education in Hawaii
is now at a key junction. As Superintendent, I will provide the visionary leadership to a
destination of excellence and equity, on a road paved with strengths, engagement, trust, and
innovation.
Sincerely,
Darrel M. Galera
Darrel M. Galera
Exhibit 5
Darrel M. Galera
E XPERIENCES I N E XECUTIVE L EADERSHIP
Member of the Hawaii State Board of Education (2016-2017)
Deputy District Superintendent, Leeward Oahu District (1999 to 2000)

Served as Deputy District Superintendent for a district serving more than
forty (40) schools and more than thirty five thousand (35,000) students.
CEO / Principal, Moanalua High School (2000 to 2013)

Served as CEO/School Principal for one of the largest public high schools in
the State of Hawaii with approximately 2,100 students and 150 teachers
and staff members. During this period, the school was one of the highest
performing schools in the State of Hawaii and was nationally recognized as
a “Model” school. Additionally, served as the CEO/Principal of Castle
High School, King Intermediate School, and Aiea Elementary School.
“What happens when a strong Chairperson, Hawaii High School Principals Forum (2007 to 2014)
principal, involved parents and Served as the leader and facilitator of the Hawaii High School Principals
Forum, organizing and coordinating monthly forums for approximately 50
motivated teachers come together?
high school principals for seven years.
Moanalua High School is a good Chairperson of the Governor’s Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA) Team
example. (2016 to 2018 )
Selected by the Governor as the leader of the Governor’s ESSA Team to
The school has been selected as one of engage stakeholders across the State of Hawaii to create a Hawaii Blueprint
for Public Education. Responsible for forming and facilitating the
15 model high schools for 2011 by the Governor’s blueprint team that consisted of State Legislators, Board of
International Center for Leadership in Education Members, CEOs / Business Leaders, Complex Area
Education. Superintendents, Principals, Teachers, Students, Parents, University of Hawaii
Professors, and Community Leaders. This was one of the most extensive
and far reaching efforts to successfully engage thousands of stakeholders on
The teachers attribute it to Galera's all islands and all communities in creating a shared vision for education for
visionary leadership. Galera attributes the next decade.
it to a collaborative faculty and
Leader of the Governor’s Emergency Education Relief (GEER) Advisory
involved parents.” Group (2020-2022)
Selected as the leader of the Governor’s GEER Advisor group to create a
Katherine Poythress, Civil Beat, Hawaii GEER Plan as part of CARES federal funding for COVID-19.
May 17, 2011 Responsible for forming and facilitating the Governor’s team that consisted
of the University of Hawaii President, DOE Superintendent, DOE Assistant
Superintendent, Board of Education Chairperson, Executive Director of
Charter Schools, Executive Director of Hawaii Independent Schools,
Principals, and Community Leaders.
E D U C AT I O N , C E R T I F I C AT I O N
Gallup Certified Strengths Coach, 2018 to Present
Professional School Administrator Certified, State of Hawaii DOE, 1991
M.Ed. Educational Administration, University of Hawaii at Manoa, 1990
B.Ed Secondary Social Studies, University of Hawaii at Manoa, 1981
1
Exhibit 5
P ROFESSIONAL E XPERIENCES I N E DUCATION
2014 to 2022
Hawaii Center for Instructional Leadership (HCIL)
Leadership Consultant, Executive Strengths Coach, Systems Analyst
2014 to 2016
Education Institute of Hawaii, Executive Director
2015 to 2016
Achieve3000, Hawaii State Implementation Director
July 2013 to December 2013

Castle High School, Acting Principal/CEO
January 2013 to June 2013

PDERI / Leadership Institute
State Educational Specialist, Hawaii Principals Academy, New Principals
Academy
2007 to 2013
Hawaii High School Principals Leadership Compact & Forum
“Moanalua High School has developed a Co-Chairperson
professional learning structure that has
been widely recognized as the gold July 2000 to January 2013
Moanalua High School, Principal/CEO
standard model for how a large, ethnically
diverse urban school can undertake 1999 to 2000
professional learning to improve Leeward Oahu District, Hawaii DOE , Deputy District Superintendent
instruction and student achievement.” 1998 to 1999
Office of Information & Technology Services
Jan Burgess, Other Duties As Assigned, State Educational Specialist, Magnet E Academy
ASCD, 2009
1996 to 1998
Aiea Elementary School, Principal/CEO
1997 to 1998
Electronic Collaborative Educational Learning Lab (ECELL), Director
January 1996 to June 1996

King Intermediate School, Principal/CEO
1992 to 1996
Moanalua High School, Vice Principal
1991 to 1992
Radford High School, Vice Principal (Cohort Intern)
1990 to 1991
Washington Middle School, Acting Vice Principal
1982 to 1990
Moanalua High School
Teacher (Department Chair, Class Advisor, SAC, Mock Trial Team Coach)
2
Exhibit 5
A WARDS & R ECOGNITION
Moanalua High School Kina’ole Award, 2017
KIPP School Leadership Design Fellow, 2013
Hawaii State Principal of the Year, 2010
Central District Principal of the Year, 2004 and 2010
Moanalua High School Teacher of the Year, 1984
COMMUNITY ACTIVITIES
GEER Innovation Team Leader, 2021-2022

• Coordinating 31 GEER Innovation Projects Statewide
“A huge mahalo nui loa to the members of
Governor’s Education Emergency Relief Advisory Group Leader, 2020 to 2022
the Governor’s ESSA Task Force for • Facilitator for GEER Advisory Group
crafting such a bold, innovative and • Created Hawaii State GEER Plan
far-reaching vision for the future of public Leadership By Design Professional Learning Community, 2020 to 2022
education in Hawaii in its recently • Mentor and executive coach for teacher leaders, vice principals,
and aspiring / new school principals
released “Blueprint for Education.”
Governor’s ESSA Team Chairperson, 2016 to 2017
The all-volunteer group worked countless • Lead the creation of the Hawaii Blueprint for Public Education
• Planned & Implemented Hawaii Education Summit, July 9, 2016
hours and solicited input through 30 (1000 attendees)
community forums to ensure that concerns • Planned & Implemented 20 Town Hall / Community Forums
were heard and the community’s hopes and Hawaii State Board of Education, October 2016 to March 2017
expectations for their children were
Education Institute of Hawaii
included in the blueprint.”
• Planned & Implemented School Empowerment Tour 2014
(LAUSD, Alliance Schools, Clark County, Edmonton Public
Roberta Mayor, Star Advertiser, Island Schools)
Voices, December 14, 2016 • 4 School Empowerment Community Conferences 2014-2017
3
Exhibit 5
Superintendent Search Committee

Hawaii State Board of Education
Written Response Activity for DARREL M. GALERA
Thank you for your interest in the Hawaii State Superintendent of Education position. The Search
Committee has reviewed your initial application materials and have included you in the initial pool of
first round applicants. The next step of the selection process is to obtain your responses to a series of
questions pertaining to the core competencies and primary responsibilities for the superintendent.
Please provide a succinct written response to the following questions. Responses should be limited to
no more than 250 characters each and returned to Robert Hull at
1. Discuss a time in a previous leadership assignment when you successfully built support for
your vision. Include examples of how your vision impacted positive change in both the
organization and the individuals you served.
In 2000, as principal of Moanalua High School, I communicated the following vision - To create and
sustain a school culture of excellence through an engaging professional learning community focused on
personalized learning, and lead by the best instructional leadership team in the state.
We successfully built support for this vision by:

• creating and empowering a talented leadership team for professional development
• communicating a clear vision that inspired and motivated
• being data driven and research based
• creating the conditions for trust, engagement, and collective efficacy
By 2010, the results were unprecedented. This vision manifested in impacting positive changes in
teachers and administrators including:
• significantly higher levels of teacher self-efficacy in curriculum, instruction, assessment, and
grading
• significantly higher levels of collective teacher efficacy in PD teams and data teams
• bold innovations (math restacking, “Physics First” science curriculum, senior projects measured
by General Learner Outcomes )
• Career and Academic Plan (CAP): a model PTP program for equity and personalized learning
ensuring student connection with a significant adult for every student in the school
Equally important, this vision impacted positive changes in students including:

• higher levels of belonging and satisfaction
• significant increases in student achievement and learning
• high graduation rates
• high college going rates
1
Exhibit 5
The positive impact included an influence on state education policy and direction:
• how to implement the Personal Transition Plan (PTP) as a requirement for graduation
• implementation of the ACT and ACT Plan statewide
• implementation data teams statewide
• implementation of a standards-based grading pilot for secondary schools in the state.
2
Exhibit 5
2. Discuss how you identified major changes that needed to occur within a system. How did you
work through the process with those who would be expected to manage the
implementation? Include challenges and long-term outcomes.
On April 28, 2016, Governor David Ige challenged the newly formed Hawaii ESSA Team with the urgent
task to create a blueprint for public education,
“ We have the opportunity to create the best public school system in the country
and I am committed to doing that … this gives us the opportunity to
start with a clean sheet of paper and really think about what is important
for our public school system.”
Governor David Ige
We formed a high performing team who would not only create the plan but would also manage the
implementation. The composition of the team would include board of education members, state
legislators, complex superintendent, school principals, teachers, students, parents, state educational
specialist, education professor from higher education, charter school leader, private school leader, and
business and community leaders.
The identification of major changes needed was achieved through:

• Formal briefings from leaders and experts
• Data/evidence collection and analysis
• Town Hall meetings to collect input
• Community Forums to collect feedback
• A Hawaii Education Summit to determine focus areas and design principles
• Joint meetings between the Hawaii ESSA Team and the Department of Education leadership
Challenges included confusion from concurrent strategic planning activities. For example, as the ESSA
Team was creating a blueprint, the Hawaii Department of Education was creating a state ESSA plan.
The Blueprint inspired long term outcomes included new efforts to expand early learning, a new focus
on innovation through new DOE grants, and new Hawaii GEER Plan to address Covid-19.
3
Exhibit 5
3. Discuss how you assess personnel needs to implement and sustain an organization’s mission.
Specifically, how do you assemble, motivate, and manage a leadership team to deliver on the
key goals of the organization?
I effectively assess personnel needs to implement and sustain the mission of an organization by doing a
systems analysis to understand the potential levers for success and the root causes of dysfunction, for
the purpose of aligning the unique fit of talent and need. My assessment of prospective personnel
includes exhaustive research into individual backgrounds and experiences and through rigorous
screening and performance interviews.
I would assemble, motivate, and manage a leadership team to deliver high performance by:
• communicating a clear and inspiring vision that fully embraces HĀ: Nā Hopena A’o to attract
innovative and future focused leaders with expertise in execution and implementation.
• resourcefully using my knowledge base, networks, relationships in Hawaii and beyond to seek all
potential candidates.
• relentlessly recruiting the best talent in Hawaii and beyond. Depart from the tradition of being
Oahu centric. We have many outstanding leaders who do not reside on Oahu.
• creating a culture of psychological safety, trust, and collective efficacy for a “challenge team”
that is fearless about questioning the way things have always been done and sharing diverse
perspectives.
• focusing on data analysis and evidence-based practices
• proactively preparing for building leadership capacity and succession
To motivate and effectively manage a new leadership team, I would intentionally incorporate the four
sources of collective efficacy: experiencing success, observing success of others, using feedback to learn
from each other, and providing a safe space for debate and collaboration. Forming and empowering a
new leadership team is the essential step to transforming the school system.
4
Exhibit 5
4. Describe how you addressed equity issues you identified through both achievement and social
emotional data. Include information about the continuing impact of the approaches and
strategies you implemented.
In 2016, I served as the Chairperson of the Hawaii ESSA Team charged with the responsibility of creating
a new education blueprint for Hawaii. A key area of focus was English Language Learners and the need
for equity. We identified significant equity issues by analyzing all available data from the Hawaii
Department of Education. From 2008 to 2015, the graduation rate for English Language Learners had
decreased 34% (80% in 2008 to 46% in 2015). ELL Reading proficiency decreased from 19% (2013) to
6.2% (2016). ELL Math Proficiency decreased from 20.1% (2013) to 9.1% (2016).
To address this equity issue, I led the team’s effort to highlight a call to action. As a result, the Blueprint
communicated strong guidance to address the inequities for ELL students:
“… all levels will work together to increase resources to improve ELL services … Resources will be provided
to increase ELL staffing at the central office to provide stronger systemic support… Resources will be
provided at the school level for more professional development, curricula, translators and interpreters,
and outreach support for families … Resources will be provided toward dual language programs …
Hawaii will develop a monitoring system to ensure that there are qualified teachers …”
Hawaii Blueprint for Public Education, page 17
Fast forward to 2020, and the ELL graduation rate increased to 69%. ELL reading proficiency is 14% and
ELL math proficiency is 11%. Although there has been improvement, this remains a serious equity issue
that needs to be a leadership priority.
5
Exhibit 5
5. Like most educational systems, Hawaii faces the challenges of learning loss and ensuring the
success of diverse learners. Progress and trends on adopted target metrics—including student
achievement and absenteeism, especially with English learners, special education and
disadvantaged students—show no improvement and regression in some geographical areas.
Discuss how you would use a comprehensive systems management approach to organize the
Department of Education and schools to provide the support and resources needed by
classroom teachers, students, and families to foster greater achievement. How would you
gauge success?
I would use a comprehensive systems management approach to organize the Department of Education
in the following ways:
• System Coherence: Fully embrace HĀ: Nā Hopena A’o in all programs and processes.
• Total Well-Being and Belonging of Students: This is the most important metric to gauge school
success for next school year.
• Total Well-Being and Resilience of Principals and Teachers: A recent study indicates that
teacher satisfaction is now at 12% - an all time low. Reframe any message about learning loss.
Principals and teachers have worked harder and done more during the last two years than at
any other time in our history. Celebrate and appreciate their efforts instead. This is the second
most important metric to gauge success.
• Accelerate Learning: Introduce evidence-based strategies to accelerate learning systemwide
including, (1) creating assessment capable learners (d=1.33) and (2) creating collective teacher
efficacy (d=1.36).
• Alignment: Align system resources to meet system needs. Create a Secondary Division to
address the decreasing levels of engagement and learning that occurs as students move from
elementary to secondary schools.
• Gauge Success in the Future: Seek to implement a new Hawaii High School Diploma that
requires a senior exhibition, project, or capstone that demonstrates the outcomes of HĀ: Nā
Hopena A’o and seek to implement WASC accreditation as a complex. Use these meaningful
outcomes to gauge system success.
• Innovation: Create the conditions for school academic plans are focused on innovation instead
of compliance. Have Hawaii join “Learning 2025” to learn how other progressive school districts
are innovating.
6
Exhibit 5
Exhibit B
Keith Hayashi
9
Exhibit 5
April 1, 2022
SUBMITTED VIA EMAIL TO nasbesearch@nasbe.org
Catherine Payne
Chair, Search Committee
State of Hawai‘i Board of Education
P.O. Box 2360
Honolulu, Hawai‘i 96804
Dear Chair Payne and Board Search Committee members:
It has been a privilege serving in Hawai‘i’s public schools for the past 33 years. My
experiences as a teacher, district resource teacher, intermediate and high school vice-
principal, elementary and high school principal, complex area superintendent, interim
deputy superintendent, and interim state superintendent has afforded me the distinct
opportunity to impact our youth and their educational journey, and to celebrate their
success. Furthermore, as a father, I saw my daughters develop in their educational
journey; it was a proud moment to award my eldest daughter her Waipahū High School
diploma in 2018. My passion for helping Hawai‘i’s students through their educational
journey is what drives me to want to continue serving in Hawaiʻi’s public school system.
Over the last three decades in progressively increasing leadership roles, I have worked
collaboratively with all stakeholders towards a robust and student-centered public
education system, which I believe is the key to economic and social prosperity for the
citizenry of Hawai‘i. This system is focused on equity, academic achievement, social
and emotional supports, and is grounded in Nā Hopena A‘o. The end goal is to
successfully prepare our students to be productive and contributing community
members by ensuring their successful transition into higher education and Hawai‘i’s
workforce, and by empowering them to make a life for themselves and their families in
Hawai‘i, our home.
Building an educational system that leverages our geopolitical location is a priority. It

can be accomplished by working together with public and private partnerships, and to
consciously connect education and workforce readiness to economic development. This
will allow our students and educators to engage interdependently with national and
international partners in a learning exchange, while embracing the values of Nā Hopena
A‘o and achieving our General Learner Outcomes.
I understand and appreciate the key leadership role of the State Superintendent of
Education in creating an innovative educational system. I am committed and prepared
to work together with the Hawai‘i State Board of Education and stakeholders at the
local, state and federal levels.
Exhibit 5
As our public school system makes necessary shifts in recovering from the last two
years, I have a keen awareness of what is at stake.
Now is the time to take advantage of available state and federal funding to equitably
support all students and educators within our system using four primary pillars: Healthy
Habits, Healthy Schools; Action Oriented Data Decision Making; Responsive Capacity
Building, and; Effective Academic Practices. These are the processes that our system
will utilize to provide supports for all students to recover from the challenges of the
global pandemic.
I have developed comprehensive short- and long-term goals that include implementing
strategies to accelerate learning for all students, and putting them on a path towards
high school graduation that leads to a successful professional and personal life.
I’m excited to continue to work with a dynamic team of senior leaders and school
principals. We are fortunate to have excellent leaders at the department and school
levels. In aligning our strategies, we will have a school, complex area and state tri-level
approach that avoids duplication of efforts. I look forward to continuing to refine
expectations and improve communication between the Department, schools and the
community. Communication of timely and accurate information is critical to our success
in supporting our students, teachers, and staff.
I am confident that my career experiences have prepared me to lead our public school
system during one of the most challenging times for education in our state and
nationally. Having served as Interim Superintendent for the last eight months has been
an honor, and I am committed to continue to serve and lead so that each child will have
a quality education that prepares them for success in life. I look forward to the
opportunity to share more with the Board’s Search Committee.
Sincerely,
Keith T. Hayashi
Exhibit 5
KEITH T. HAYASHI
RESUME
Education
● Master of Education. Educational Administration, University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa, 1999
● Master of Education. Curriculum and Instruction, University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa, 1990
● Bachelor of Education. Elementary Education, University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa, 1988
Professional Experience in the State of Hawai‘i Department of Education

● Interim State Superintendent (August 2021- current; July 2017)
● Interim Deputy State Superintendent (March – June 2017)
● Waipahū High School Principal (June 2009 – March 2017; August 2017 – July 2021)
● Pearl City/Waipahū Complex Area Superintendent (July 2006 – June 2009)
● Waipahū Elementary School Principal (March 2003 – July 2006)
● Waipahū High School Vice-Principal (August 1998 – March 2003)
● Waipahū Intermediate School Vice-Principal Trainee (August 1997 – August 1998)
● Leeward District Literacy Resource Teacher (August 1995 – August 1997)
● Lehua Elementary School Teacher (August 1989 – August 1995)
Professional Accomplishments & Recognitions

● Shirley B. Gordon Award of Distinction, Phi Theta Kappa Honor Society, 2021
● Long Story Short with Leslie Wilcox, PBS Hawai‘i, 2020
● Administrator of the Year, Hawai‘i Association of Career and Technical Education, 2019
● Black Book: Education, Hawaiʻi Business Magazine, 2017
● Governor’s Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA) Task Force, 2016
● Distinguished Alumnus, University of Hawaiʻi College of Education, 2016
● 20 for the Next 20 – Hawaiʻi’s People to Watch, Hawai‘i Business Magazine, 2016
● Hawaiʻi High School Principal of the Year, National Association of Secondary School Principals, 2014
● Grand Marshal, Waipahū Community Association Christmas Parade, 2014
● Masayuki Tokioka Excellence in School Leadership Award, Public Schools of Hawaiʻi Foundation,
2013
● Economics Teacher of the Year, Hawaiʻi Council on Economic Education, 1994
Competencies
Demonstrates commitment to developing a culturally responsive, internationally competitive, student-
centered education curriculum and instructional program for all students and families.
1
Exhibit 5
As state and district administrator:

● Serves as lifelong educator and learner in Hawaiʻi's public schools, empowering students and
educators to elevate their aspirations and achieve their goals through quality teaching and
learning, culturally responsive curriculum and pedagogy, internationally competitive targets,
family and community engagement, future-focused outcomes, and student-centered support.
● Created an inclusive and organized process for large numbers of educators and school leaders to
provide targeted input into the federal Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA) plan aligned with
Hawaiʻi State Department of Education (HIDOE) and BOE strategic plan.
● Coordinated the yearly Pearl City-Waipahū Complex Area Technology Showcase, featuring
student work from every school integrating 21st Century skills and technology.
● Organized and facilitated inter-district and intra-district workshops, visitations, and articulation
sessions for schools to share, reflect upon, and implement effective instructional strategies.
● Facilitated community-wide planning to develop comprehensive systems that improve student
literacy.
As principal of Waipahū High, a large and diverse high school in the state with student enrollment of
2,800 students and 160 teachers:
● Developed core motto “My Voice • My Choice • My Future” that drives a positive student-
centered culture at the high school.
● Created learning opportunities through nationally recognized career academies that provide
students with rigorous academics, college expectations and workplace culture.
● Facilitated change in bell schedule to provide additional meeting times for teachers to
collaborate, plan, and share strategies for student success.
● Worked collaboratively with Waipahū Complex principals to establish official National Honor
Society Chapters at the elementary, intermediate, high school, and collegiate levels to recognize
excellence in student achievement. Together with the West Pearl Harbor Rotary, supported Phi
Theta Kappa mentoring opportunities between students at all levels.
● Chartered the first Phi Theta Kappa (PTK) National Honor Society Chapter on a high school
campus in the nation, Waipahū High School’s Beta Chi Omega (BXΩ). Current membership is
nearly 200 high school students including the first high school students serving as a PTK
International Division IV Vice-President and a Pacific Region Vice-President.
Exhibits an understanding of complex organizations and how to produce successful change

management and educational reform.
● As Interim State Superintendent, served as the chief executive officer of the only statewide
public school system in the nation, with responsibility for both the State Education Agency and
the Local Education Agency roles for 257 schools (15 complex areas) as well as for 37 charter
schools governed by the Charter School Commission on seven economically and geographically
diverse islands. Responsible for over 175,000 multi-ethnic students in grades K-12,
approximately 22,300 permanent employees, thousands of casual/substitute employees, and an
annual operating budget in excess of $2.1 billion.
2
Exhibit 5
● As complex area superintendent, led the development and implementation of intensive

professional development for teachers relating to 21st century technologies in partnership with
Apple.
● As principal of one of the state’s largest high schools, Waipahū High School, led transformational
change that increased student and teacher engagement, catalyzed partnerships with local and
national organizations, improved student outcomes, and managed a school budget of over $20
million (2020-21).
● As Waipahū Elementary School Principal, a school of 1,070 students, implemented a system for
professional development to support student learning based on quantitative and qualitative
student data and initiated school-wide instructional strategies to support over 500 English
Language Learners which resulted in students demonstrating annual growth on the Hawaiʻi
State Assessment in reading and mathematics for every sub-group.
Demonstrates understanding of the structure, roles, and responsibilities of the Department’s state,
complex area, and school-level system of education.
Led at all levels of the Department of Education’s tri-level system:
● School-level: Teacher, Vice Principal and Principal
● Complex area-level: Complex Area Superintendent and Resource Teacher
● State-level: Interim Superintendent and Interim Deputy Superintendent
Has a demonstrated ability to make large-scale positive impacts for students and a history of
establishing effective processes and organizational systems to achieve desired outcomes.
● As Interim Superintendent, collaborated with the Hawaiʻi State Department of Health (DOH),
Governor, unions, schools and community organizations to provide in-person learning with
safety measures during 2021-22 school year amidst the COVID-19 pandemic. Partnered with the
DOH and partners to offer PCR and surveillance testing and vaccination clinics at schools
statewide. Established procedures to resume student extra-curricular activities, including inter-
scholastic athletics, in Fall 2021. Achieved 91% vaccination rate among HIDOE employees.
● Developed proof of concept for significant educational reforms at Waipahū High School – early
college and nationally accredited career academies – which were adopted at 47 HIDOE and
charter high schools statewide. In the school year 2021-22, 3,279 students are taking 388 early
college classes.
● As Waipahū High School Principal, initiated Hawaiʻi’s early college program with the vision of
every student earning college credit. With support from the McInerny Foundation, implemented
the state's first Early College High School program in Hawaiʻi resulting in over 3000 students
having earned college credits at Waipahū High School. Currently there are over 600 students
participating this semester. 49 “Olympians” earned Associate Degrees in Arts, Science in
Teaching, Natural Sciences, and Natural Sciences - Pre-Engineering prior to high school
graduation. Increased the proportion of Waipahū graduates earning college credit from 4%
(2011) to 37% (2021). Implemented a “hub” concept to connect rural high schools that share
early college classes with Leeward Community College and UH West Oʻahu. Statewide, 41 public
3
Exhibit 5
schools now offer early college programs and 2,625 students graduated with college credit last
year.
● As Waipahū High School Principal, led school in decreasing average daily absences from 10.9
days (2011-12) to 9.2 (2018-19 - last pre-pandemic year); increasing on-time graduation rate
from 80% (2016) to 86% (2021); and increasing four-year college going rate from 27% (2016) to
33% (2021).
Is cognizant of national and international trends, best practices, policies, and research on ensuring
student success.
● Established nationally recognized model career academies, including the Arts and
Communication, Health and Sciences, Industrial and Engineering Technology, Natural Resources,
the ʻOhana of Excellence, and the Professional and Public Services, so that each Waipahū High
School student participates in an academy. All six wall-to-wall academies have received National
Model certification (4 with distinction), by the National Career Academy Coalition. Every
academy is supported by advisory boards composed of industry, higher education, and
community partners; parents and students; and school educators to support and guide each
robust academy. The ʻOhana of Excellence is the first national model academy in the country to
support students with varying degrees of significant disabilities.
Has a record of excellent decision making based on a thorough understanding of the issues and of
incorporating multiple stakeholder voices in the process.
● Participates actively, as Interim Superintendent, on various boards, engaging stakeholders to
understand and design solutions to support well-being and learning for students and staff.
Boards include Joint Ventures Education Forum, Teacher Education Coordinating Council,
Hawaiʻi P-20 Council, Hawaiʻi Business Roundtable and Hawaiʻi Executive Collaborative.
● Demonstrated understanding and resolution of multiple complex issues and consideration of
many stakeholder viewpoints in leading Initiatives and leadership roles outlined in other
sections (including Early College, Career Academies, COVID response, ESSA input process).
● Experienced in working with a wide range of stakeholders, and record of leadership at all levels
of the HIDOE, as evidenced by the range of partnerships and collaboration with private, public,
nonprofit and philanthropic organizations as described in other sections.
Has a deep understanding of Hawaiʻi’s history, culture, and values, including the key role that Kaiapuni
education plays, and has incorporated this understanding in leadership decisions, actions, and style.
● Employs practices that promote conditions of safety, empowerment and flexibility which allows
for a leadership mindset to prevail in the actions of those on his team. In doing so, the following
outputs have been realized:
○ Implemented a Kaiapuni Distance Learning Program and Plan to address the need for
the Department to provide an equitable distance learning option for Kaiapuni students
during COVID-19 pandemic.
○ Prioritized Nā Hopena Aʻo (HĀ) with the HIDOE executive leadership team. Provided HĀ
training for the leadership team. Encouraged leadership team to promote and
4
Exhibit 5
incorporate HĀ in their policies and practices to increase system-wide readiness for

community engagement, shared leadership and relevant learning opportunities for
teaching and learning.
● Incorporated the elements of HĀ (Belonging, Responsibility, Excellence, Aloha, Total Well-Being,
a sense of Hawaiʻi) into the culture of Waipahū High School.
● Established programs and culture supporting multilingualism, especially for students’ heritage
languages. At Waipahū High School, 220 students earned 319 Seal of Biliteracy (SB)
designations since its adoption by the Hawai‘i State Board of Education in 2017. Among
Waipahū High’s Class of 2021, 82 students earned the Seal of Biliteracy, with 33 of them
trilingual, and 1 student quadrilingual. Additionally, 8 “unofficial” Seals have been earned in
Kosraean, Pompeian, Tongan, Pangasinan, and Visayan, reflecting the diverse population of
Waipahū’s community.
Has credibility and builds positive relationships with all stakeholders.

● Led development of Hawaiʻi’s federal Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA) plan, incorporating
significant teacher, principal and public input (~8,000 views of the draft plan and ~500
respondents to survey), and resulting in rapid federal approval.
As Waipahū High School principal:

● Built effective partnerships to support student learning with the University of Hawai‘i at Mānoa;
the University of Hawaiʻi West Oʻahu; Leeward, Honolulu, and Kapiʻolani Community Colleges;
Public School of Hawaiʻi Foundation; McInerny Foundation; Waipahū Community Foundation;
Hawaiʻi Pacific Health; Queens Medical Center; Federal Bureau of Investigation; Honolulu Police
Department, ʻOlelo Public Television; and many other committed industry and business
partners. Developed opportunities for students to earn 27 national and local industry
certifications in areas such as: Medical Assisting; Pharmacy Technicians; Community Health
Worker; CISCO; IT Essentials; OSHA 10 Construction; Cyber Awareness, ServSafe Food Handler,
Wilderness CPR, and First Aid/CPR/AED. Waipahu’s Class of 2020 earned 270 industry and
business certifications.
● Partnered with Hawaiʻi Pacific Health to pilot the medical assistant national certification course
at Waipahū High School for students from five different high schools during the school day.
● Partnered with Leeward Community College and the State of Hawaiʻi Department of Human
Resources Development to offer Office Assistant courses to Waipahū and Leilehua High Schools
to provide opportunity for students to be hired as Office Assistants for the State of Hawaiʻi.
● Secured funding to support progressive student learning opportunities through effective
partnerships with state legislators, state and city departments, and philanthropy.
● Initiated construction for the first Integrated Academy Learning Facility in Hawaiʻi aligned to
industry needs. Facility combines natural resources production with artificial intelligence; an
innovation, design, STEM, and computer lab; and a culinary specialized hospitality dining area,
the Marauder Café.
5
Exhibit 5
● Initiated construction for the first Academic Health Center on a high school campus in the
country. Working in collaboration with Hawaiʻi Pacific Health to service the Waipahū Community
and to provide authentic learning internship opportunities for students.
● Initiated construction for the first research observatory in Hawaiʻi on a high school campus to
support astrophysics and students in the Early College astronomy program. The courses are
taught by a Waipahū teacher trained at Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory in
astrophysics. As a result, in early 2022, six students were accepted into the prestigious Mauna
Kea Scholars program, with 12 students since 2015. Students have also been published in the
Journal of Double Star Observations.
● Offered a Biotechnology and DNA sequencing program, in partnership with Rutgers University
and facilitated by Waipahū teachers trained at the Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory.
Students’ and teachers’ research findings were published in the National Center for
Biotechnology Information Database at Rutgers.
● Relocated and redesigned our HawaiiUSA Student Operated Credit Union on campus utilizing an
integrated academy collaboration process.
● Implemented the Professional Development School concept in partnership with the University
of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa’s College of Education, leading to the first Professional Development
Complex in the country. Preservice teachers were partnered with exemplary mentor teachers.
Waipahū’s mentor teachers were provided the opportunity to pursue graduate degrees for
continual learning.
As complex area superintendent:

● Partnered with Hawaiian Telcom and Cisco Systems to transition to a Unified Communication
System for the Complex Area to support learning and collaboration.
● Partnered with Apple to provide intensive professional development and leadership
development in integrating 21st Century Technology.
As vice principal:
● Worked collaboratively with Honolulu Police Department, the Family Court, the Prosecutor’s
Office, the Attorney General’s Office, the Federal Bureau of Investigation, and the other
community agencies to address school related issues. Served on the State of Hawaiʻi Office of
Youth Services gang sub-committee.
● Served in leadership roles in national and local professional organizations including National
Career Academy Coalition Operating Board, National Association of Secondary School Principals,
Hawaiʻi Association of Secondary School Administrators, American Association of School
Administrators, Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development, Association of Career
and Technical Education, and Hawaiʻi Association of Career and Technical Education.
● Served in leadership roles in community organizations: Waipahū Community Foundation Drill
Team Hawaiʻi, and OCEANIT Foundation.
6
Exhibit 5
Demonstrates a commitment to lifelong learning as a reflective and self-aware leader.

Initiatives described in other sections required constant reflection on the needs of students, faculty and
staff at all levels: school, complex area, state offices, as well as a deep connection and awareness of our
community and the businesses and organizations that support innovation in public education, such as
the Career Academies.
Demonstrated the ability to fully understand a diverse and unique education system.
Initiatives described in other sections demonstrate the ability to recognize opportunities and design
solutions for a school or complex area that can be scaled up in Hawai‘i’s diverse and unique education.
For example, pioneered early college at Waipahū High, which requires collaboration between public
high schools and the University of Hawaiʻi, and embraced Seal of Biliteracy at Waipahū High School to
recognize and uplift diverse student populations.
● Recognized and expanded the unique opportunities in Hawaiʻi’s public schools, including
creating the Tagnawa Learning Center at Waipahū High which is comprised yearly of 25 Early
College alumni and supported by Americorp VISTA grants that provided “home grown,”
culturally aligned in-person and virtual academic support for Early College students at Waipahū
and rural high schools participating in the “hub” for early college support. Tagnawa staff
professional development delivered by Tagnawa alumni coordinators which focused on
academic support, service, and mentorship.
● Created, implemented, and assessed, as Complex Area Superintendent, for systemic
implementation plans in 18 schools to effectively address student learning; professional
development; safety; fiscal and facility planning, and parent and community relations.
Coordinated district-wide contracts for Achieve3000 to improve reading comprehension and the
New Teacher Center to support beginning teachers through induction and mentoring.
Developed district-wide programs supporting English Language Learners, autistic students, and
A-Plus after school students. Initiated the complex area-wide articulation and implementation of
Rigor, Relevance, and Relationships to support 21st Century Learning.
● Managed, implemented and oversaw, as Complex Area Superintendent, significant federal
funding programs: Title I, Title II, Title III, Title IV, and Title IX.
Demonstrated ability to hire and manage competent people in key positions, including finance and
budget, facilities, human resources, and information technology.
● Led HIDOE Leadership Team of assistant superintendents and complex area superintendents to
return teachers and students to in person learning, advocated for an online school for students
who thrive in this instructional modality, and resumed school sports and extra-curricular
activities safely during pandemic.
● Developed a strong team at Waipahū High School where each academy was led by an assistant
principal responsible for an academy. Led faculty and staff of 275. Managed budget of $20
million (2020-21).
7
Exhibit 5
Keith T. Hayashi
Hawai‘i Superintendent Application
April 15, 2022

Written Response Activity
Thank you for your interest in the Hawaii State Superintendent of Education position.
The Search Committee has reviewed your initial application materials and have
included you in the initial pool of first round applicants. The next step of the selection
process is to obtain your responses to a series of questions pertaining to the core
competencies and primary responsibilities for the superintendent.
Please provide a succinct written response to the following questions. Responses

should be limited to no more than 250 characters each and returned to Robert Hull
1. Discuss a time in a previous leadership assignment when you successfully

built support for your vision. Include examples of how your vision impacted
positive change in both the organization and the individuals you served.
As a new principal at Waipahū High School, I took the time to listen to teachers,
students and parents and learned that our young people needed a clearer sense of
purpose and hope, and that the campus culture and student outcomes needed
improvement.
My vision for each child is that they realize their full potential in reaching their
dreams. A key strategy to achieving this was establishing Early College, where
Waipahū students take University of Hawai‘i college courses, earn credits toward a
college degree, and prepare for their future careers at no cost to students.
Pioneering this program required developing a shared vision with Waipahū’s

teachers and staff and our neighbors at Leeward Community College. I identified or
hired key, knowledgeable, and passionate personnel as “champions” within the
school. We collaborated with LCC in selecting instructors and rigorous college-level
courses for a range of students. From the beginning, the Early College opportunity
was extended to all juniors and seniors, not just the highest academic achievers. We
also secured a $2 million philanthropic grant to support the program. Today, over
600 students annually enroll in Waipahū’s Early College program, with approximately
20 students earning their associate’s degree before their high school graduation.
1
Exhibit 5
Keith T. Hayashi
April 15, 2022
The Early College initiative has changed thousands of young people’s lives. It also
improved the school’s culture and transformed its reputation in the community as a
leader in helping to positively shape educational futures. Waipahū’s experience
informed and inspired Early College to expand statewide and secure legislative
funding.
2. Discuss how you identified major changes that needed to occur within a
system. How did you work through the process with those who would be
expected to manage the implementation? Include challenges and long-term
outcomes.
Throughout the pandemic, the government’s guidance for K-12 schools changed
often and drastically. As a principal, I knew the importance of in-person learning for
students to have a consistent, safe place to learn and interact with peers and trusted
adults.
When I became Interim Superintendent in August 2021, I worked closely with the
state Department of Health to prioritize the return to consistent, safe in-person
learning. Together, we examined trend data and perceptions of our students, families
and staff and made major changes in HIDOE’s COVID response. We met regularly
with labor union leaders and policymakers. We established new and consistent
safety protocols and provided support for school leaders to implement guidelines.
Together with our community partners, we communicated clear expectations about
the priority for safe, in-person learning.
Through the hard work of educators and in partnership with families, we kept
schools open through challenging times. We also returned to most extracurricular
activities, providing students with critical opportunities to engage and learn.
Our commitment to keeping Hawai‘i’s public schools open and safe is prioritized in
our plan for federal relief funding. A key statewide strategy of the plan– Healthy
Habits, Healthy Schools–focuses on supporting the physical, social and emotional
well-being of students and employees through support at the school and complex
areas. As we start to emerge from the pandemic and conditions normalize, I expect
that our student outcomes will likewise improve and accelerate on an upward
trajectory because of increased learning opportunities. We will continuously review
progress and make adjustments.
2
Exhibit 5
Keith T. Hayashi
April 15, 2022
3. Discuss how you assess personnel needs to implement and sustain an

organization’s mission. Specifically, how do you assemble, motivate, and
manage a leadership team to deliver on the key goals of the organization?
As a lifelong educator, my leadership experiences include leading fellow principals in

Hawai‘i Academies, within the community as Waipahū High’s principal, as Interim
Superintendent, and as part of the National Career Academies Coalition. I recognize
my strengths and value the strengths of others in developing a strong leadership
team.
Having a clear organizational mission is critical to set a common purpose. For an

education mission, I look for a shared and deep commitment to students. Team
members must possess the skills, talents, experience and passion for public
education; leaders’ commitment to students is the foundation of their intrinsic
motivation to learn and persist.
Under Nā Hopena A‘o, I’ve learned that setting the right conditions is key to our
system authentically embodying HĀ. Development of trust and collaboration allows
for various perspectives. I believe leaders should have flexibility to lead in their
kuleana, showcasing their own decision-making abilities. It’s also critical that the
leaders are accountable to one another, to me and to the community for making
good decisions, continuously improving in process, and achieving desired outcomes.
As Interim Superintendent, I have learned about current leaders’ strengths, styles

and effectiveness and will work with them to determine interest and fit for their
service. As Superintendent, I will set clear direction with a new strategic plan that
addresses the need to emerge from the pandemic and to meet the needs of
students, families and the state for the future, and will align my leadership team to
achieve this goal.
4. Describe how you addressed equity issues you identified through both
achievement and social emotional data. Include information about the
continuing impact of the approaches and strategies you implemented.
In my 12 years at Waipahū High School I saw first-hand the persistent barriers to

equitable access for students. Waipahū has the state’s second-highest enrollment
and is very diverse: more than 50% of students receive meal assistance, 8% require
special education services, and 14% are English Language Learners (2021). At the
beginning of my principalship, academic achievement was low, as measured by test
scores, and students would often say they didn’t have hope or motivation to go
3
Exhibit 5
Keith T. Hayashi
April 15, 2022
beyond high school, which was evident in a low on-time graduation rate and low
college-going rate.
Turning around that mindset, culture and outcomes required all hands on deck over
a decade. We analyzed data intensively, developed a shared vision and commitment
to excellence and to students among administrators and staff, and partnered with
community organizations and businesses. We started with a plan that valued the
diverse heritage of students and built upon students’ assets–whether it was life
experience that developed their resilience or a home language that accelerated their
opportunity to be multilingual. When our students started to shine, it inspired their
peers, teachers, families and community, as well as other communities.
While there is more work to do, Waipahū has made great strides. More students are
engaged and graduating; on-time graduation rates rose from 75% to 84%. Notable
highlights from Waipahū’s Class of 2021 include: $31 million in merit-based
scholarships, 10 U.S. Presidential Scholar candidates and three semi-finalists, and
110 Seals of Biliteracy, with 33 students proficient in three languages.
5. Like most educational systems, Hawaii faces the challenges of learning loss
and ensuring the success of diverse learners. Progress and trends on
adopted target metrics—including student achievement and absenteeism,
especially with English learners, special education and disadvantaged
students—show no improvement and regression in some geographical areas.
Discuss how you would use a comprehensive systems management approach
to organize the Department of Education and schools to provide the support
and resources needed by classroom teachers, students, and families to foster
greater achievement. How would you gauge success?
Hawai‘i, like educational systems nationally, has faced the debilitating effects of the
global pandemic. Understanding and leveraging the interdependent systems within
the Department are essential to planning, navigating, assessing, and supporting all
of the components within HIDOE’s tri-level efforts. Since becoming Interim
Superintendent in August 2021, I have prioritized keeping our schools open for
in-person learning because we knew students and their families depended on the
services and stability our schools provide.
Under my leadership, schools made an initial assessment of students’

social-emotional and academic standing in Fall 2021. The Department’s
Action-Oriented Data Decision Making strategy focuses on using data for continuous
quality improvements through iterative cycles of intervention, monitoring and
learning. Schools continue to assess and monitor students’ progress and
4
Exhibit 5
Keith T. Hayashi
April 15, 2022
personalize supports for each learner. This strategy starts with tracking and
supporting student attendance and student and family engagement in education.
Complex areas and state offices also need to monitor schools’ progress, including
progress of different student sub-groups since the pandemic exacerbated challenges
faced by our state’s most vulnerable groups. Where school strategies are insufficient
to address stubborn gaps in equity, complex areas and the state offices need to
partner with community organizations and public agencies to address systemic
issues or activate new resources.
The ultimate indicator of success is the number of students who graduate engaged
and prepared to execute on their post-high school plans for employment, education
or training that allows them to fully develop their talents to thrive.
5
Exhibit 5
Exhibit C
Caprice Young
10
Exhibit 5
March 30, 2022
School Board Members

P.O. Box 2360 Honolulu HI 96804
Dear Honorable Members of the Hawaii State Board of Education:
My wish for all of Hawaii’s students is for each one to gain the courage to dream and the
skills and knowledge to make those dreams come true. To do this, adults must be 100 percent
student-centered, encouraging and inspiring young people by recognizing individual students’
strengths and potential, and by supporting them in achieving academic and personal success. This
is the heart of my education philosophy. Critical to students’ ability to dream is being deeply
rooted in their own culture, heritage, and identity and embracing the HĀ:BREATH as a framework
to enter the world with a sense of well-being and confidence.
While I am not Hawaiian, my parents fell in love with Hawaii in 1967 and raised me
steeped in the Hawaiian values of Aloha (compassion), Kuleana (responsibility), Kokua (assisting
others), Laulima (collaboration), and ‘Ohana (family). In 1995, they achieved their dream of
moving to Honolulu where my mother taught special education at Kalihi El while my father served
as a minister and, after retiring, as a docent at Hanauma Bay. My youngest brother graduated from
Farrington High School. Together, my parents fostered three dozen children and still sponsor
foreign exchange students. I attended neighborhood, magnet, and experimental schools, did a
semester of my 11th grade year in Washington, D.C. as a Senate Page for S.I. Hayakawa, and
slipped out of high school a semester early to travel in India and Mexico then work before college.
I saw how my foster siblings were mistreated in the system and how their safety-nets of adults
struggled to support them. My life’s work has been to cultivate educational justice through
excellence, equity, and engagement so that young people and educators really use all of their
creativity and power to improve the world.
Growing up in such a busy and diverse household, I became a listener and someone who
can move groups of people to reach consensus. I also learned to make decisions and hold myself
and my teams accountable for the outcomes of those decisions. This skill set has helped me
succeed as the superintendent and CEO of several charter school systems (ranging from 4,000 to
49,000 students). I have led profound transformations of academic programs and operations at all
grade levels in schools serving student bodies with 85 percent FRL eligibility, more than 40
percent English learners, more than 80 percent BIPOC enrollment, and 12 to 25 percent students
with special needs. Throughout my career, I have helped to open, build, or transform more than
500 schools. These ranged from tiny to humongous, Arts to STEM (and often STEAM), project-
based learning, dual language immersion, completely online, blended, back-to-basics, Core
Knowledge, IB, AP, independent study, CTE, and more. What they all have in common is a
commitment to deeply personal, excellent education for every learner.
Throughout my career, I have built strong cabinets with talented colleagues that included
curriculum and instruction, finance, human resources, policy, operations and facilities
professionals. I work closely with state officials, community-based organizations, labor, faith
leaders, philanthropists, and the business community, and love bringing together diverse
communities in collaboration to develop and affirm great schools, policies, and systems that meet
the needs of students with a variety of challenges, strengths, and interests. In addition, I am
experienced in managing large institutions responsible for developing and carrying out critical
Page 1 of 2
Exhibit 5
policies. The combined responsibility for state and district leadership embodied in the Hawaii
superintendency is what attracts me to this role.
I began my career in 1989 as a teacher in a Job Training and Placement Agency (JTPA)
civic education program for inner-city high school students. Unable to repay my student loans, I
transitioned into a decade-long career in public finance and technology. I was responsible for Los
Angeles’ multi-billion dollar transportation budget, facilitated over $3 billion in public bonds, and
led international technology projects for IBM. In 1999, I was elected to and served as president of
the Los Angeles Unified School District Board of Education, where I was re-bitten by the education
bug. I was so impressed by the educators I met as a board member and motivated by the profound
needs of students, that I went back to school and earned a doctorate in education while founding
and leading the California Charter Schools Association in 2003. Since then, it has been my
pleasure to lead three school systems, an education foundation, and an EdTech company, in
addition to serving various entities in a consulting capacity. This background in education,
finance, technology, business, and philanthropy makes me especially qualified to steward a
district/state agency of the size and complexity of the Hawaii Department of Education.
In my most recent role, I was the National Superintendent for a network of non-profit
charter schools specializing in providing trauma-informed, highly-personalized education to
49,000 formerly disengaged high school students (ages 14-24 years) in five states. Like most
school systems, we weathered the pandemic with nimbleness, technology, and a deep connection
to our families and staff. At the core, our ability to maintain student engagement came down to our
commitment to a school culture built on `Ike Pono. We always knew and adhered to what was
right from the perspective of our students’ well-being.
One of the roles of which I am most proud is the work I have done in teacher recruitment
and staff development. In 2011, the board of a STEM teacher recruitment and training institute
(https://encorps.org/) brought me in to conduct a turnaround. The program identifies business
professionals in STEM fields interested in transitioning into teaching. I continued a focus on that
work by investing in professional development programs as the Vice-President of the Arnold
Foundation over the following two years. As the National Superintendent at Learn4Life, I was
responsible for leading and mentoring eight area superintendents as we expanded their roles and
responsibilities.
Great principals attract, inspire, support, and sustain excellent teachers. Enabling principals
requires a combination of training, support, operational tools, true delegated authority, and
accountability. The principalship is arguable the most vital and complex role in education today
and ensuring their success is the most important role of any superintendent. I know that the quality
of and support for school leadership is the number one lever impacting student achievement,
innovation, and a school culture that warmly invites strong relationships among adults and youth.
Having been a traditional school board and a superintendent of charter school systems, I
know that, no matter the school type, our most important commitment is the one we make to
ensure that all students achieve their highest potential. We have tremendous challenges in
education today – mental health, teacher burn out, and learning lost to the pandemic. I am certain
that Hawaii’s school community has the resilience, creativity, perseverance, and empathy to use
this moment for positive momentum. It would be an honor to serve as your Superintendent.
Mahalo,
Caprice Young, Ed.D.
Attachments: resume and references
Page 2 of 2
Exhibit 5

My mission is to enable students to succeed in life by becoming academically achieving, creatively
empowered, technologically fearless, civically engaged, emotionally intelligent adults.

Education and Professional Development:
• Ed.D., 2008, University of California, Los Angeles
• M.P.A., 1991, University of Southern California, Ides of March Merit Scholarship
• B.A. (History), 1988, Yale University, Robinson Humanitarian Achievement Award
• California Educational Partnership Program, Equity Leadership Certification Program, anticipated 12/2022
• Broad Superintendents Academy, 2020
• Pahara Institute/Aspen Global Leaders Network, 2016
• IBM Certified Strategic Consultant, 1998
• Certificate in Management Effectiveness, 1989, University of Southern California
• Public Policy Fellow, Coro Foundation, Los Angeles, 1989

Employment:
• President, Education Growth Group (EGG), 9/2010-12/2019, 11/2021-Present Los Angeles, CA
(strategic planning, fundraising, and executive leadership)
EGG’s consulting projects focus on strategic planning for/with education and technology organizations, as
well as providing interim executive services, including:
o Interim President/COO, Edge Foundation, 1/2021-ongoing, remote/Seattle (non-profit
management)
o Interim Co-CEO, Parent Revolution, 12/2014-3/2015, Los Angeles, CA (parent outreach)
Parent Revolution supports parent training for education engagement.
o CEO and President, EnCorps STEM Teachers Program, 6/2011-12/2011, Los Angeles/San Francisco, CA
(teacher preparation)
Encorps recruits and trains business professionals transitioning to become Science, Technology,
Engineering and Math teachers.
o CEO, Inner City Education Foundation (ICEF) Public Schools, 9/2010-5/2011, Los Angeles, CA (school
system leadership, crisis management, finance, equity advocacy)
ICEF served 4,500 predominantly Black TK-12th grade students in Los Angeles.

• National Superintendent, Lifelong Learning and Learn4Life Schools, 1/2019-present, Lancaster, CA;
and Founding Superintendent, Stanza International Academy, 8/2020-10/2021, Lancaster, CA (non-
profit/school system leadership)
Served as the National Superintendent of Lifelong Learning, the support organization for Learn4Life, a
group of 20 nonprofit organizations serving nearly 49,000 students on 85 school sites that offer accredited
high school diploma programs, job training and flexible, personalized education for opportunity youth,
especially those who have faced traumatic challenges like homeless, foster care, systemic injustice,
incarceration, mental health issues, poverty, and human trafficking, barriers to learning English, special
education, or unrecognized giftedness. Our schools utilize online and in-person highly personalized one-
on-one and small group instruction with wrap-around, trauma-informed supports. In this role, Dr. Young
also nurtured relationships with public school district partners and developed innovative education
programs, including Stanza International Academy, Learn4Life Austin, and trauma-informed services.

Caprice Young, Ed.D. Page 1 of 3

Exhibit 5
• CEO and Superintendent, Magnolia Educational and Research Foundation Public Schools,
1/2015-6/2018, Los Angeles, CA (non-profit/school system leadership)
Magnolia is a non-profit charter management organization of 10 STEAM (Science, Technology,
Engineering, Arts and Math) focused schools in three counties in California serving 4,000 predominantly
socio-economically disadvantaged students. Magnolia has a $52 million annual budget and 375 full-time
staff members. Examples of achievements included ending litigation with the Los Angeles Unified School
District (LAUSD), implementing strategic operations reforms, successfully completing a comprehensive
audit by the State Auditor, earning the highest WASC accreditation, raising student achievement across all
socioeconomic subgroups, and building a new school building serving 880 students. Under her leadership,
all eligible Magnolia Science High School Academies received the US News & World Report Best High Schools
recognition and/or the Washington Post designation as the Most Challenging High Schools.

• Vice-President of Education, Laura and John Arnold Foundation, 1/2012-8/2013, Houston, TX
(philanthropy)
Managed a $110 million portfolio of education innovation grants concentrated on school development,
innovation, teacher training, and principal support.

• CEO and President, KC Distance Learning, 3/2009-8/2010, Portland, OR; Interim CEO, KC Distance
Learning and Vice President of Business Development and Alliances, Knowledge Universe,
10/2008-3/2009, Santa Monica, CA (business, technology, and private school system leadership)
KC Distance Learning (acquired by K12, Inc. 7/2010) was a private education subsidiary of the publicly
traded company Knowledge Universe Education serving traditional and charter public schools through its
digital curriculum and technology service brand Aventa Learning. It provided education management services
to iQ Academies and administered the international online secondary school Keystone Academies. Dr. Young
led the corporate advancement and successful sale of KC Distance Learning. In 2009-10, over 62,000 students
took courses from KC Distance Learning (more than 170,000 enrollments).

Earlier Roles:
• Founding CEO and President, California Charter Schools Association (CCSA), 7/2003-9/2008, Los Angeles,
CA (advocacy and school services)
• Director, Corporate and Foundation Relations, the UCLA Anderson School of Management, 12/2002-
7/2003, Los Angeles, CA (fund raising, higher education)
• Independent Consultant, Parents in Charge, 1/2002–11/2002, Los Angeles, CA (parent education)
• Managing Director, PeopleLink, 1/2000-12/2001, Los Angeles, CA (social media/online community and
data analytics)
• Senior Manager, IBM Global Service, 2/1997-1/2000, Los Angeles, CA (technology strategy and project
management)
• Assistant Deputy Mayor, Budget and Infrastructure, City of Los Angeles, 2/1994-2/1997, Los Angeles, CA
(municipal government)
• Acting Budget Director/Special Assistant to the CEO, Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation
Authority (MTA), 2/1990-2/1994, Los Angeles, CA (transportation operations, budget and finance)
• Teacher, Liaison Citizen (a JTPA program), 8/1989-2/1990, Los Angeles, CA (youth leadership development
and civic engagement program with students from Roosevelt, Jefferson and Bell High Schools)

Teaching:
• Lecturer, UCLA Graduate School of Education & Information Science, 2011-12 and 2018-2019
(ELP 450 Education Leadership for the third-year doctoral students)
• Lecturer, UCLA School of Extension, Charter School Operations, Governance and Finance, 2011-2012
• Lecturer, School Business Officers Program, University of Southern California, 2006-2009
• Faculty, Broad Institute for School Governance (CRSS), 2005 and 2006


Exhibit 5
Major Awards:
• Inducted into the National Charter School Hall of Fame, 2017
• XQ Super School team member, RISE High, 2016.
One of 10 teams awarded $10 million to develop an innovative school for serving homeless youth.
• Recognized as a California State University Los Angeles Distinguished Educator of the Year, 2016
• Court Appointed Special Advocates (CASA) Honoree, 2002
• Coro Crystal Eagle for excellence in public service, 2002

Board Governance and Community Service:
Þ Director and ESG Chair (private for-profit board), ALC, 7/2021-Present, Denver, CO
ALC is the North American leader of transportation, safety and data solutions that serve the most vulnerable
in our communities. ALC gives students with special transportation needs an equal opportunity to learn, grow,
and succeed. https://www.alcschools.com/
Þ Director (private not-for-profit board), Larta Institute, 5/2021-Present, Los Angeles, CA
Larta fosters science and technology innovation for a sustainable world. https://www.larta.org/
Þ Director (private for-profit board), Olivela, 1/2014-Present, London, UK
Olivela is an entirely new retail concept with a mission to provide funding to improve the lives of children
around the world. Olivela enables luxury brands the opportunity to transform inventory into measurable
impact and consumers to fund important children's causes simply by buying what they love.
https://www.olivela.com/
Þ Director (private not-for-profit foundation board), Thomas B. Fordham Foundation and Institute, 6/2009-
present, Washington, DC
The Thomas B. Fordham Institute and its affiliated Foundation promote educational excellence for every child
in America via quality research, analysis, and commentary, as well as advocacy and exemplary charter school
authorizing in Ohio. https://fordhaminstitute.org/
• Director (private for-profit board), Itslearning, 6/2012-12/2019, Bergen, Norway
• Executive Committee Member, Los Angeles Unified School District Special Education Local Planning Area
Charter Operated Programs 3, 2015-18
• President, National Public Charter Schools Association, 2010
• Member, Governor’s Advisory Committee on Education (CA), 2002
• Founder, CharterSafe, a not-for-profit Joint Powers Authority that provides insurance to schools, 2003
• Member and president (elected public board), Board of Education, Los Angeles Unified School District,
1999-2003
• Board Chair, Hollygrove Home for Abused and Neglected Children, 1994-1999
• Board Member, San Fernando Valley Mental Health Center, 1992-1998

Recent Publications and Interviews:
“Back to School Leader Q&A: Dr. Caprice Young on the Value of Building Relationships,” August 31, 2021, Ahead of the
Heard, https://aheadoftheheard.org/back-to-school-dr-caprice-young/
“Here’s how a trauma-informed approach to remote teaching can help students succeed,” May 6, 2020, Better
Conversation, https://educationpost.org/heres-how-a-trauma-informed-approach-to-remote-teaching-can-help-students-
succeed/
“Guidelines for teachers to avoid pitfalls teaching online,” Learn4Life, April 22, 2020,
https://learn4life.org/guidelines-for-teachers-to-avoid-pitfalls-teaching-online/
“Hey FCC, step up and make sure internet reaches the families who need it most,” April 21, 2020, Better Conversation,
https://educationpost.org/hey-fcc-step-up-and-make-sure-internet-reaches-the-families-who-need-it-most/
“Ensuring responsiveness to student needs at Learn4Life,” Elliot Levine, Aurora Institute, March 26, 2020,
https://aurora-institute.org/cw_post/ensuring-responsiveness-to-student-needs-at-learn4life-schools/
“Lessons from inspirational women,” Penny Bauder, Thrive Global, October 25, 2019,
https://thriveglobal.com/stories/lessons-from-inspirational-women-in-stem-without-women-well-miss-out-on-at-least-half-
of-the-perspective-and-talent-in-this-world-with-dr-caprice-young-and-penny-bauder/

Exhibit 5

Hawai‘i State Board of Education
Written Response Activity
Please provide a succinct written response to the following questions. Responses should be
limited to no more than 250 words each and returned to Robert Hull at
1. Discuss a time in a previous leadership assignment when you successfully built support for
your vision. Include examples of how your vision impacted positive change in both the
organization and the individuals you served.
As the Superintendent of the Magnolia Educational and Research Foundation public schools, one
of my major initiatives was to transform our ten schools serving 4,000 K-12 students from a focus
on Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math (STEM) to STEAM with the addition of Arts. The
board strongly encouraged the shift because of the importance of creativity and imagination as it
relates to innovation and invention, critical elements of STEM in practice. Most of the principals
and faculty were reluctant at first because they had never taught the arts or music and because
they saw it as “soft” or non-academic. Over a two year period, we worked with a local arts
foundation to co-create arts integrated lessons, we brought in experts to speak about brain
plasticity (especially the ability to learn new things), and industry leaders from NASA and the Jet
Propulsion Lab came to describe the role of creativity in the scientific method. The staff began to
feel more confident in their ability to teach art in the context of STEM and, when they saw how
much the students loved the new STEAM lessons, they became enthusiastic. Transitioning from
STEM to STEAM also increased our academic achievement overall as our attendance and
engagement went up. By year three, our schools were winning awards, US News and World
Reports and the Washington Post celebrated our high schools, and our test scores had risen. Most
of all, our school communities felt proud of the programs and progress.
2. Discuss how you identified major changes that needed to occur within a system. How did
you work through the process with those who would be expected to manage the
implementation? Include challenges and long-term outcomes.
Perhaps the biggest challenge all of us have faced during the last two years has been the
pandemic. In March 2020, we already had planned to implement a 1:1 laptop strategy for our
49,000 students, but we suddenly realized that we didn’t have a home broadband strategy to
match. Of course, the crisis made it abundantly clear how inequitable that oversight had been. I
immediately convened my “diagonal slice,” a focus group of 20 problem solvers from various
levels and roles within the organization to figure out how to get hotspots to all of the students who
needed them. The “diagonal slice” process was critical because school-based office managers,
teachers, community representatives, and principals, combined with central administrators from
accounting and asset management, purchasing, technology, instruction, and the Board secretary
all needed to be part of creating and vetting the plan. The “diagonal slice” ensured collaboration
Page 1 of 3
Exhibit 5
and implementation across all levels. Within ten days, 90 percent of students had fully operational
hot spots. For the ten percent who lived in rural or deeply urban neighborhoods with no cell
towers, we established a “sneaker network” of staff delivering assignments and tutoring students by
telephone. Like most superintendents, I am extraordinarily proud of the work my team did to
support students and families throughout the crisis. The “diagonal slice” planning process also
works well addressing challenging issues when there is not a crisis to provide motivation because
in ensures that various perspectives are taken into account from the beginning. This leads to a
better plan with more buy-in from the people doing the real work.
3. Discuss how you assess personnel needs to implement and sustain an organization’s
mission. Specifically, how do you assemble, motivate, and manage a leadership team to
deliver on the key goals of the organization?
I am a big believer in identifying and cultivating local talent. At the top levels of large
organizations in need of immediate change, sometimes it is necessary to bring in professionals
with complex or advanced skill sets, but the best long term plan is to develop and implement
career ladder strategies that explicitly cultivate internal talent by ensuring staff receive the training
they need to grow, are provided with a range of roles and experiences over time, and encouraged
to be actively engaged in their profession outside of the organization as well, so that they learn to
identify promising practices used by others that may be employed locally. As the National
Superintendent of Learn4Life, one of my major responsibilities was to upgrade the skill sets of the
eight regional vice presidents (each responsible for 8,000 to 12,000 students) and transition their
roles to become Area Superintendents. No longer middle managers, they needed to assign and
manage budget and resource priorities, make staffing decisions, lead high level stakeholder
engagement, and make decisions using data, as well as leading instruction. During 2019, I
provided subject area training using a combination of internal and third party trainers. In addition,
I conducted one-on-one meetings and team meetings three times per month for me to provide
problem solving guidance and for the group to engage in planning and learning together.
Sometimes, the new Area Superintendents made some blunders, but we turned them into
opportunities for them to take responsibility and grow. The end result was that by the time they
had to face a real test-- the pandemic crisis-- they succeeded in leading their teams through it,
making smart independent decisions, and responding with care and compassion.
4. Describe how you addressed equity issues you identified through both achievement and
social emotional data. Include information about the continuing impact of the approaches
and strategies you implemented.
My top three educational goals are equity, engagement, and excellence. They start with equity
because I believe the purpose of public education is to ensure that students to gain the courage to
dream and the skills and knowledge to make their dreams come true. Social and emotional
learning provides the foundation for the courage to dream. I still hear from students that this or that
adult told them that they were setting their sights too high, that someone like them should not
expect to achieve greatness. Our schools must create a culture of caring that embodies Hā:
BREATH in every way for each and every student because before they can achieve, they need to
believe they can. Moreover, every adult must be committed, trained, and supported in developing
Page 2 of 3
Exhibit 5
in keiki the skills and knowledge they will need to achieve their dreams. If we encourage children
to dream of becoming an astronaut, entrepreneur, scientist, policy maker, nurse, or computer
programmer, for example, then we cannot tell them they don’t need Algebra or strong critical
thinking skills. When we embrace the values of Aloha (compassion), Kuleana (responsibility),
Kokua (assisting others), and Laulima (collaboration), that means that as responsible adults we
must ensure that we provide students with the care and support they need to gain these skills.
Moreover, some students need more help, support, and resources than others. That’s okay. Equity
means not shying away from giving more to students with greater needs and teaching everyone to
have a sense of Mahalo (gratitude) in our communities of caring.
5. Like most educational systems, Hawai‘i faces the challenges of learning loss and ensuring
the success of diverse learners. Progress and trends on adopted target metrics—including
student achievement and absenteeism, especially with English learners, special education
and disadvantaged students—show no improvement and regression in some geographical
areas. Discuss how you would use a comprehensive systems management approach to
organize the Department of Education and schools to provide the support and resources
needed by classroom teachers, students, and families to foster greater achievement. How
would you gauge success?
Right now, the biggest challenge our schools face is chronic absenteeism. The answer is Nā
Hopena A‘o. and continuing implementation of Hā: BREATH, the comprehensive systems
management approach that integrates culturally consistent values, goals, and ways of being into
the educational system. Using this uniquely Hawaian framework to guide the school cultures we
create, professional development, review of policies and practices, the solutions we implement,
and the data we use to hold ourselves accountable we will recover with strength and Aloha. Our
staff, students, and families have experienced traumatic life events. Regaining our equilibrium and
moving forward will require reuniting around Hā: BREATH. The data we use to hold ourselves
accountable needs to include not just disaggregated outcomes (attendance, grades, test scores,
employee turnover, and surveys), but also measures of activities actually getting done that include
outreach to families, community engagement, academic intervention, and so forth. As a
community, we need to engage deeply around identifying what works in each cultural context and
do more of it. We need to stop doing what doesn’t work and focus on the practices that bring
students to school to engage in authentic learning. The combination of Belonging, Responsibility,
Excellence, Total Well-Being, and Hawai‘i will not merely return us to Ka malie o loko (the calm
inside) but allow us to pursue true maikaʻi loa (awesomeness).
Page 3 of 3
Exhibit 5
Exhibit D
Interview Questions
11
Exhibit 5
Interview Questions
1. We have had the opportunity to review the application materials you submitted and
look forward to reading your responses to the written activity, but would like to take
this opportunity to get to know you on a personal and professional level. Please
briefly introduce yourself to the committee as we have introduced ourselves and
share anything you would like for us to know about you as we begin.
2. When you became aware of this opportunity, what convinced you to seek it out and
to think it was the right job for you and that you are right person for Hawaii’s
education system.
3. Describe how you approach your entry into an established organization where
changes and improvements are expected and needed.
4. What is the Superintendent’s role in producing successful change management
education reform in Hawaii’s unique system? Describe what success would look
like for you.
5. Discuss how you provide leadership and guidance to ensure a large-scale positive
impact for all students. How do you measure success in meeting the desired
outcomes?
6. Hawaii’s educational system is unique in that it is a single statewide system with no
districts or local boards of education, but it has a tri-level system consisting of
School, Complex Area, and State levels. How will you determine the effectiveness
of the State and Complex Area levels in providing oversight and support to
schools, what actions would you take to improve their effectiveness?
7. Describe your understanding of how Hawaiian values (Na Hopena Aʻo) are
integrated into our public education system. How will you embody Hawaiian values
and the Hawaiian culture in your communication throughout the Department of
Education and to the community?
8. The position of Superintendent is demanding and multi-faceted. What strengths do
you bring to the position? What has challenged you; and what lessons have you
learned from these challenges?
9. Discuss your expertise, experience and management style when hiring key
positions in finance and budget, facilities, human resources, and information
technology as members of your leadership team.
10. How do you establish a culture of success and collaboration in the Department of
Education?
11. Discuss the extent to which you delegate operational and administrative
responsibilities over which you would be accountable.
12
Exhibit 5
12. The Board of Education’s primary responsibilities are policy setting, including a
strategic plan, approval of assessments, hiring and evaluating the Superintendent,
and approving budgets and monitoring impact. As Superintendent, how do you
envision working with the Board of Education to fulfill responsibilities to effectively
meet mandates and responsibilities?
13. Historical roots and family and community connections are an integral part of
Hawaii. Fostering relationships and communicating with diverse communities and
constituencies have been an ongoing challenge. Building on experience, what
would be your philosophy and plan to improve and strengthen community and
constituency relationships and communication?
PROBES to use if not included in original answer:
a. As you consider all the stakeholders in a statewide public education system,
whose voices are most critical for the leader to hear?
b. Discuss any challenges you faced in building positive relationships with key
stakeholders within and external to your organization. How have you resolved
them?
c. How would you incorporate teacher leaders in decision-making?
d. What is the role of student voice in decision-making?
e. How would you foster positive parent relations, so they feel respected and
heard regarding education of their children?
f. Identify specific community/advocacy organizations you would engage in your
leadership management system.
14. What data and information do you feel is needed and critical to effectively advocate
for Hawaii’s most challenged students including English Language Learners,
special education, and disadvantaged students? How would you incorporate and
use the data and information to tell the story and gain understanding and support?
a. What challenges with respect to diversity, equity and inclusion have you faced
as an organizational leader? How did you address these challenges and how
might your experience apply to issues facing Hawaii’s public schools?
15. If you could fast-forward five years from now, what do you hope will be the legacy
of your superintendency? What evidence will you use to determine whether you
are successful? What milestones will you set for yourself and the system? How will
you monitor your success, and adjust along the way?
a. Probe if needed: What do you think will be your biggest challenge if you are
the successful candidate? Why?
13
Exhibit 5
Exhibit E
Advisory Group Feedback on Interviews
14
Exhibit 5
Advisory Group Feedback on Interviews
Darrel Galera: Mr. Galera has a broad and deep range of experience at all levels of
Hawaii’s educational system, including serving on the Board of Education. His training
and expertise as a mentor and leadership coach could be important skills in building a
leadership team and a culture of excellence across the system. Mr. Galera spoke often
of the need for effective systemic communication processes at all levels and engaging
all stakeholders in decision-making. Mr. Galera’s engagement efforts focused on
building relationships and deep connections by caring for the social emotional needs,
health, and well-being of students. A firm focus on and deep understanding of Na
Hopena Aʻo was evident. Mr. Galera has experience outside the conventional
educational system that could inform and support the work of superintendent, including
leading initiatives for Governor David Ige. The candidate stated that things have been
Oahu-centric and that there is an untapped resource of talent from other islands.
While Mr. Galera spoke of the need for transformation, innovation, and a culture of
excellence, and provided the concept of redesigning the high school diploma to focus
on demonstration of student success, he could have provided more details on the
implementation of these concepts. He focused on redesigning the Department of
Education without providing specifics.
Keith Hayashi: Mr. Hayashi has a broad range of experience in Hawaii with 33 years
of service across multiple roles in the system resulting in an understanding of the tri-
level system as well as the importance of Na Hopena Aʻo. His tenure as interim
superintendent would provide an easy transition to the permanent superintendency. Mr.
Hayashi spoke of believing in building relationships and trust as a key factor to success
while remaining student-focused in decision-making. Mr. Hayashi spoke of being
focused on his belief in providing academic and behavioral supports for student career
readiness.
While he spoke of the use of data and multiple measures, Mr. Hayashi did not provide
specific details of what those measures would be or how they would be incorporated
into planning or decision-making. There was very minimal mention of innovation or
urgency for change and growth. Communication with stakeholders was mentioned
several times with little detail on a process to accomplish it. Overall, there was a lack of
specific details and concisely articulated plans.
Caprice Young: Dr. Young has diverse background and experience as a

superintendent of groups of schools on the continent as well as serving as chair of a
large urban board of education. She has a strong background in public finance,
technology, curriculum, and community organizing which would serve her well in this
position. Strengths include clearly articulated goals and metrics for success based on
15
Exhibit 5
the vision of the Board’s strategic plan. Dr. Young clearly articulated how she would
build a team representing a “diagonal slice” of stakeholders with strong accountability
measures and critical status checks. She referenced the use of a stakeholder map to
guide communication and engagement and a clearly defined educational philosophy.
Dr. Young stated she was aware of Hawaii’s focus on data and would use it to merge
heart and mind, inform practice, and make sure students did not fall through the cracks.
She was able to articulate policy from an intellectual and emotional perspective focusing
on implementation for lasting change and impact. Dr. Young responded quickly to
questions with thorough and thoughtful answers and specific, on-topic examples.
When Dr. Young stated she would bring a network of resources and mentors to support
goals and strategies, there was some concern expressed about focusing on bringing
assistance from outside the system as first option.
Not being from Hawaii, even though her parents and family have worked and lived here,
Dr. Young may have a learning curve on understanding the systemic challenges of the
system. She expressed a working understanding of Hawaiian values such as kōkua,
kuleana, and ʻohana. She has limited teaching experience.
16
Exhibit 6
Darrel Galera’s presentation slide deck and/or handouts

(to be included on the morning of May 19, 2022, if applicable)
Exhibit 7
Keith Hayashi’s presentation slide deck and/or handouts

Exhibit 8
Caprice Young’s presentation slide deck and/or handouts


Hawaii Board of Education Report On Superintendent Search

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Hawaii Board of Education Report On Superintendent Search

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DAVID Y.

IGE CATHERINE PAYNE

May 19, 2022

TO: Board of Education

FROM: Catherine Payne

AGENDA ITEM: Board Action on findings and recommendations of Investigative

• At its May 5, 2022 meeting, the Board of Education (“Board”) received a

• Should the Board select a finalist to hire as the next superintendent, I

On June 3, 2021, the Board formed an investigative committee (a permitted

8:45 a.m. • Meeting called to order

9:00 a.m.–10:30 a.m. Darrel Galera

10:30 a.m.–10:45 a.m. Transition break (recess)

10:45 a.m.–12:15 p.m. Keith Hayashi

12:15 p.m.–12:45 p.m. Lunch break (recess)

12:45 p.m.–2:15 p.m. Caprice Young

2:15 p.m.–2:30 p.m. Transition break (recess)

2:30 p.m.– TBD Public testimony (time limit to be determined based on

Time TBD (30 minutes) Mandatory recess (interview process step 5)

Time TBD Board deliberates (interview process steps 6–9)

Time TBD Late public testimony

The Board-adopted interview process authorizes me, as Board Chairperson, to

• Exhibit 6: Darrel Galera’s presentation slide deck and/or handouts

Proposed motion: “Move to (1) hire ______ as superintendent of the

Board of Education Interview Process of Superintendent Finalists

Board of Education Interview Process of Superintendent Finalists

1. On the day of the interviews, each finalist will participate in a performance

Board Member Main Question Sign-up Sheet

Board Member Main Question Sign-up Sheet

Interview Note Organizer

Hawaii State Board of Education Superintendent Interview Note Organizer

Exhibits an understanding of complex

Has a demonstrated ability to make

Has a record of excellent decision

Has credibility and builds positive

Has a demonstrated ability to fully

Superintendent of Education Position Description

State of Hawaii Department of Education

Communication and Community Relations. The Superintendent establishes effective communication

Other Duties and Responsibilities

Search Committee’s May 5, 2022 report of findings and recommendations on

DAVID Y. IGE CATHERINE PAYNE

TO: Board of Education

FROM: Catherine Payne

AGENDA ITEM: Investigative committee (a permitted interaction group pursuant to

• The Board of Education (“Board”) established a committee to, among other

On June 3, 2021, the Board formed an investigative committee (a permitted

Director of Manpower and

(Note that I, in my capacity as Board Chairperson, rescheduled the May 19 General

applicants, to seven interviewees, to four top candidates, and finally, to three

• Darrel Galera’s cover letter, resume, and written responses (Exhibit A)

Proposed motion: “Move to recommend that the Board consider three

This report completes the work of the Search Committee.

E XPERIENCES I N E XECUTIVE L EADERSHIP

Member of the Hawaii State Board of Education (2016-2017)

Deputy District Superintendent, Leeward Oahu District (1999 to 2000)

CEO / Principal, Moanalua High School (2000 to 2013)

Professional School Administrator Certified, State of Hawaii DOE, 1991

M.Ed. Educational Administration, University of Hawaii at Manoa, 1990

B.Ed Secondary Social Studies, University of Hawaii at Manoa, 1981