Impact Aid and the Establishment of United States Department of Defense Schools in HawaiiFindings of a study that examined the feasibility of transferring certain public schools in Hawaii to the U.S. Department of Defense (DOD) are presented in this document. A state legislative resolution to transfer was adopted in response to two concerns--the dissatisfaction of some military families with the quality of public schools on Oahu, and the federal funding (impact aid) that is received by the State Department of Education (SDE) to finance the education of military family members.
Conclusions are that: (1) the ED should work closely with state congressional representatives to ensure the reauthorization of the program in a manner that will be most beneficial to Hawaii; (2) the state legislature should not take any direct action at this time to try to force the transfer of any of Hawaii's public schools from the administrative and managerial control of the SDE to the U.S. Department of Education; (3) a possible action would be to modify the boundaries of the Honolulu departmental school district; and (4) parental dissatisfaction with educational quality is an insufficient reason to transfer control of some of the schools from the SDE to the DOD. The SDE and military authorities must cooperate to increase parental involvement in the public school system. Thirteen tables are included. Appendices contain relevant state legislation and testimony and information on impact aid. (LMI)
Oh, Say, Can You See? The Semiotics of the Military in Hawaiʻi by