SCR 230: Requesting the Department of Education to end the practice of mandating THAT certain students attend a school outside their service area.

SENATE CONCURRENT

RESOLUTION

Requesting the Department of Education to end the practice of mandating THAT certain students attend a school outside their service area.

     WHEREAS, overcrowding in schools negatively affects student achievement levels, stress levels, attendance, and concentration; and

     WHEREAS, school overcrowding also has a detrimental effect on teacher morale, and limits the time available for teachers to plan and deliver lessons adequately; and

     WHEREAS, one approach used to address school overcrowding is multi-tracking, which divides students and faculty into multiple groups who attend school year-round on alternating schedules; and

     WHEREAS, multi-tracked schools have achieved average test scores that are two percent lower than students in traditional schools for national reading, math, and language assessments; and

     WHEREAS, studies have shown that multi-tracking is more expensive over the long-term and can harm community and family cohesion, leading to increased stress and burnout for students, teachers, and families; and

     WHEREAS, the Kapolei complex has experienced school overcrowding and implemented multi-tracking to address it; and

     WHEREAS, the overcrowding in the Kapolei complex is partially caused by the mandatory reassignment of students who would otherwise attend a school in the Nanakuli complex; and

     WHEREAS, assigning students to schools in their home complex, Nanakuli, would help balance the distribution of students among the complex areas within the Leeward District and ease overcrowding in the Kapolei complex without the need to multi-track; now, therefore,

     BE IT RESOLVED by the Senate of the Thirty-third Legislature of the State of Hawaii, Regular Session of 2025, the House of Representatives concurring, that the Department of Education is requested to end the practice of mandating that certain students attend a school outside their service area; and

     BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that certified copies of this Concurrent Resolution be transmitted to the Chairperson of the Board of Education and Superintendent of Education.

Report Title: 

DOE; Out-of-Service-Area Attendance; District Exemption; Geographic Exception; School Overcrowding; Multi-Tracking