Report Title:

Education; Department of Education; Employment; Retired Teachers

Description:

Allows the DOE to employ retired administrators and teachers full time to teach in areas with teacher shortage and to serve as mentors for new classroom teachers. (SD1)

HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

H.B. NO.

1862

TWENTY-THIRD LEGISLATURE, 2006

H.D. 2

STATE OF HAWAII

S.D. 1


 

A BILL FOR AN ACT

 

relating to education.

 

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF HAWAII:

SECTION 1. Research indicates that teacher quality is one of the most influential factors in student achievement. Standards-based reform has a greater chance of success when teacher quality is addressed. In an effort to provide quality education for its students, the department of education continues to recruit highly qualified teachers from within the State of Hawaii and the continental United States. As more "baby-boom" teachers in Hawaii and across the nation retire, the task of recruiting highly qualified teachers is becoming more challenging each year. Consequently, finding sufficient numbers of highly qualified teachers for shortage areas is becoming more difficult, and teacher shortages are expected to grow as more "baby-boom" teachers retire through the remainder of the decade.

SECTION 2. Beginning July 1, 2006, and for as long as the department has declared shortage areas, the department of education may employ teachers and administrators retired from the Hawaii department of education for positions up to one hundred per cent full-time equivalency to teach in teacher shortage areas identified by the department of education and to serve as mentors for new classroom teachers, with the prior approval of the superintendent of education and pursuant to collective bargaining agreements; provided that the department of education shall contribute thirteen and three-quarters per cent of the re-hired employee's compensation to the pension accumulation fund. The provisions of sections 88-21, 88-42.5, 88-43, 88-45, and 88-46, Hawaii Revised Statutes, and any other statute to the contrary notwithstanding, a teacher or administrator retired from the Hawaii department of education who is re-hired under this section shall not earn retirement service credit, contribute to the retirement system, or gain additional retirement system benefits as a result of their employment; provided that the retired teacher or administrator shall continue to be entitled to the teacher or administrator's regular retirement benefits without penalty. To qualify for full-time re-hiring under this section, the person shall have been retired for at least one calendar year prior to reemployment. A person may qualify to be a new teacher mentor immediately upon retirement.

SECTION 3. This Act shall take effect on July 1, 2006.