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A hui hou, Hamamoto!

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  • A hui hou, Hamamoto!

    Pat Hamamoto resigned this afternoon, effective immediately. Actually, she chose to retire and took the easy way out.

    http://www.honoluluadvertiser.com/ar...ffective+today
    Twitter: LookMaICanWrite


    flickr

  • #2
    Re: A hui hou, Hamamoto!

    Well I could not think of what would be happening in the last few hours of 2009 to perk up my spirits, but wow this news has brought a broad smile to my face!! The DOE is a broken ship that needs a new pilot. At least we will get the new pilot. Fixing the broken ship is another matter.
    Now run along and play, but don’t get into trouble.

    Comment


    • #3
      Re: A hui hou, Hamamoto!

      I'll miss her. She was a good leader, and her likely replacement has no classroom cred.
      But I'm disturbed! I'm depressed! I'm inadequate! I GOT IT ALL! (George Costanza)
      GrouchyTeacher.com

      Comment


      • #4
        Re: A hui hou, Hamamoto!

        Well we each are able to form our own opinions. But I do not agree that she was such a good leader. Our public school system is not in the mess it is in from "good leadership". And I'm NOT just talking about the current fiasco of a three and a half-day school week. I'm including the overall low national ranking of our students, and the lack of resources that the teachers and staff often must deal with, and & and & and. I'm glad there is now a chance that we will see someone else come in that can make positive changes. Hope is alive.
        Now run along and play, but don’t get into trouble.

        Comment


        • #5
          Re: A hui hou, Hamamoto!

          Originally posted by scrivener View Post
          I'll miss her. She was a good leader, and her likely replacement has no classroom cred.
          She certainly seemed to spend more time getting along with the teachers than on tussling in the political arena or grabbing for power. Kinda hard to do your job when your chief labor negotiator is the governor and your publicist is every newspaper in the state. Superintendents don't seem to be set up for success in that job, and she lasted a lot longer than most.

          Looking at the trenches places she's been, I can't think of another candidate who's had her training & experience. Interesting that she chose to retire at the beginning of a three-day weekend at the end of the year. It's so low-key as to be almost news-worthy, and I hope that there's no controversy or family/personal issues around it.

          Or maybe she's just another one who's resigned to run for governor...
          Youth may be wasted on the young, but retirement is wasted on the old.
          Live like you're dying, invest like you're immortal.
          We grow old if we stop playing, but it's never too late to have a happy childhood.
          Forget about who you were-- discover who you are.

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          • #6
            Re: A hui hou, Hamamoto!

            Originally posted by Nords View Post
            Interesting that she chose to retire at the beginning of a three-day weekend at the end of the year. It's so low-key as to be almost news-worthy
            The part that surprises me is that she turned in her resignation to DOE on Monday and was able to keep it secret all week, with (apparently) no leaks to the media.
            .
            .

            That's my story, and I'm sticking to it.

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            • #7
              Re: A hui hou, Hamamoto!

              I thought they said on the news that she turned in her resignation letter yesterday, effective immediately?
              "Democracy is the only system that persists in asking the powers that be whether they are the powers that ought to be."
              – Sydney J. Harris

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              • #8
                Re: A hui hou, Hamamoto!

                Originally posted by anapuni808 View Post
                I thought they said on the news that she turned in her resignation letter yesterday, effective immediately?
                Ah, now the link on Advertiser says she submitted it Monday, effective yesterday.
                Twitter: LookMaICanWrite


                flickr

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                • #9
                  Re: A hui hou, Hamamoto!

                  Either way it was sudden and it makes one wonder why.
                  Life is what you make of it...so please read the instructions carefully.

                  Comment


                  • #10
                    Re: A hui hou, Hamamoto!

                    Originally posted by craigwatanabe View Post
                    Either way it was sudden and it makes one wonder why.
                    Out of fairness to Pat, it should be said that she's far from the only DOE employee to retire/resign at the end of the calendar year, rather than at the end of the school year. Lots of teachers and administrators do so for tax planning reasons.

                    But as to why she kept mum about it until the day she actually tendered her resignation to the BOE,.... everyone can draw their own conclusions.
                    This post may contain an opinion that may conflict with your opinion. Do not take it personal. Polite discussion of difference of opinion is welcome.

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                    • #11
                      Re: A hui hou, Hamamoto!

                      Originally posted by Frankie's Market View Post
                      Out of fairness to Pat, it should be said that she's far from the only DOE employee to retire/resign at the end of the calendar year, rather than at the end of the school year. Lots of teachers and administrators do so for tax planning reasons.

                      But as to why she kept mum about it until the day she actually tendered her resignation to the BOE,.... everyone can draw their own conclusions.
                      I'll draw a question mark.
                      Life is what you make of it...so please read the instructions carefully.

                      Comment


                      • #12
                        Re: A hui hou, Hamamoto!

                        if we want our schools to get better we have to make some changes, no one seems willing to make changes. i mean we have about the worst school system in the country, i dont know why we keep doing the same thing and expect different results. I'd say change from the top is a good thing. But i would worry about who they find to replace her.
                        they need to find a reformer and a leader with a track record of being a fixer and they probably wont find one in hawaii.
                        the bigger the government the smaller the citizen.

                        Comment


                        • #13
                          Re: A hui hou, Hamamoto!

                          Originally posted by escondido100 View Post
                          i mean we have about the worst school system in the country.
                          I'm curious about what you mean by this.
                          But I'm disturbed! I'm depressed! I'm inadequate! I GOT IT ALL! (George Costanza)
                          GrouchyTeacher.com

                          Comment


                          • #14
                            Re: A hui hou, Hamamoto!

                            our public schools consistently rate as the most expensive per pupil with some of the lowest test scores and graduation rates in the country.if i remember correctly we are always 47,48 0r 49 out the 50 states.
                            thatisnt good. couple that with one of the shortest school years in the country and you get mediocre at best. this isnt the students or the teachers it is the administrators and our legislators that should shoulder the responsibility of where we are and model ourselves after successful programs elsewhere and not try to reinvent the wheel. everyone always act like this is new to them and are mystified as to how to be a 1st rate system...i know lets have a study!
                            how about trying what works!
                            the bigger the government the smaller the citizen.

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                            • #15
                              Re: A hui hou, Hamamoto!

                              The DOE Superintendent is possibly the toughest job there is in Hawaii. And given the constraints of that job, I think Pat Hamamoto did an excellent job.

                              Hawaii's DOE has one of the largest immigrant percentages, which lowers our overall test scores and graduation rates.

                              On top of that, we have the highest percentage in private schools. The top 25% of Hawaii students are not counted in DOE numbers because they are in private schools.

                              If these two factors were accounted for, I'd bet our schools would compare favorably to those on the mainland.

                              I also think our teachers are probably our hardest-working state employees, as a group. But having a statewide system is unworkable. We have the only statewide DOE, and it's the third-largest in the country. That means bureaucracy and red tape that ties everyone's hands and slows innovation to a crawl.

                              The unions are a major source of the problem in my opinion. They put the teachers first, and the students last. They refuse changes that could help students, such as local control, or decentralization, because that would not be good for teachers.

                              Private schools do not do well just because they have the better students. Without red tape or unions, they maintain high standards and demand greatness from themselves.

                              Small systems create a culture of studying, working hard, and investing in your future. Students are immersed in that culture and most join it.

                              In our DOE, the students create a culture that values having fun, doing as little as possible, and focusing on the present, rather than their futures. Teachers have little impact on the culture students create.

                              We've doubled spending on our DOE under Lingle, from around $1B a year to more than $2.2B. The number of students are down slightly, yet there is no discernible impact of that increased spending.

                              The unions constantly want more money, but, as the past has shown, spending more on a broken system is the same as flushing it down the toilet.

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