Executive Summary
Introduction
On September 1, 2005, the Hawaii State Department of Education (DOE), in partnership with stakeholders, updated and renewed its State Improvement Plan with the initiation of funding for the Hawaii State Improvement Grant (SIG) II, focused upon improving systems providing early intervention, educational, and transitional services to children with disabilities. SIG II was developed to accomplish this through an innovative personnel development approach aligned closely with school-wide improvement strategies leading to evidence of gains as measured by in-school and post-school outcomes for children with disabilities. The State Improvement Plan guiding SIG II activities is integral to the overall DOE system improvement effort and the vision of the State Board of Education for meeting the needs of all children so that they attain high academic performance standards. SIG II is administered through the Hawaii State Department of Education, in partnership with the University of Hawaii, the Part C Program and the Parent Training & Information Program funded within the State of Hawaii.
The State is in the process of completing (no-cost extension) a highly successful five years as a first round SIG state focused upon building a Comprehensive Student Support System (CSSS) for all children to attain high academic performance standards. The past five years of SIG activity have impacted the state’s educational improvement, including: (1) the commitment of the current state superintendent of education to the attainment of high academic standards by all students, (2) the conjoining efforts of several support systems within the schools focused upon improving academic and behavioral outcomes for children with special needs, and (3) for the past several years, the involvement of the DOE in numerous reform initiatives resulting in the movement of resources and supports to school complexes (high school and its feeder schools) and individual schools.
As the State moved into the first year of SIG II activity, it reviewed and revised the State Improvement Plan to ensure alignment with the SIG II five system improvement goals. The expectation is that attainment of the SIG II goals will lead to an improved and responsive educational system, supported by highly qualified personnel, resulting in improved student outcomes. The five goals guiding the work of SIG II are projected to generate measurable personnel and program improvement outcomes which will support changes at policy (state), procedure (district or complex), and practice (school) levels of the system, as follows: (1) to increase the quality of system capacity to improve learning and performance of children with disabilities consistent with the state standards, (2) to improve the quality of systems capacity ensuring the provision of an array of quality school-wide services and supports to children with disabilities; (3) to improve quality of systems capacity to ensure smooth transitions or pathways leading to the vision of the public school graduate; (4) to improve the quality of systems capacity to foster partnering family members and others interested in improving early intervention, educational, and transitional services for children with disabilities; and (5) to improve the capacity of all partnering persons to obtain new standards of content knowledge and an array of supportive options within the context of an improved educational system.
Using an innovative and targeted approach, SIG II is focused upon integrating personnel development and system improvement outcomes to improve the quality of systems supporting the needs of students with disabilities to attain the state learning standards. SIG II is being implemented through a multilevel approach with the development and conduct of team activities at the State, district/complex, and school level. A State level Project Steering Committee has been formed and meets to provide guidance and cross agency, cross system level input to the project, as well as provide feedback on activities and evaluation input to quarterly reporting documents. Professional Development and Improvement Teams formed at the district/complex level are pivotal, in that they provide training, coaching and mentoring supports to school-based learning communities as they design, test and implement selected school-wide improvements linked to successful student outcomes. Teachers, related service providers, and community members/parents at the schools level have been formed and are supported as team based learning communities, working on solutions to school and child-based issues. Solutions developed and tested at the school level are slated to guide the development of improved procedures and more responsive supports at district and complex levels, which will guide potential policy improvements at the State level. This multilevel approach, which is linked with the provision of continuous feedback to project staff, ensures coordinated and sustained system improvements for children with disabilities and their family members.