HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES             H.R. NO.141           
TWENTIETH LEGISLATURE, 1999                                
STATE OF HAWAII                                            
                                                             
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                     HOUSE  RESOLUTION

REQUESTING THE DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION TO REQUIRE PRIVATE
   PROVIDERS TO OPERATE AFTER-SCHOOL PLUS PROGRAMS. 


 1       WHEREAS, since the Spring of 1990, the Department of
 2   Education's (DOE) After-School Plus (A+) Program has increased
 3   the availability of quality after-school care for latchkey
 4   children; and
 5   
 6       WHEREAS, during the 1997-1998 School Year (SY), the A+
 7   Program served about 22,500 students at 177 public school sites
 8   at an approximate cost of $11,000,000; and
 9   
10       WHEREAS, during SY 1997-1998, parents paid the State about
11   $5,000,000 in fees for the A+ Program; and
12   
13       WHEREAS, the Legislative Auditor has repeatedly found that
14   DOE continues to experience operational problems including
15   difficulties with:
16   
17       (1)  Limiting the program to eligible students;
18   
19       (2)  Efficiently staffing the A+ program; and
20   
21       (3)  Enforcing fiscal controls;
22   
23   and
24   
25       WHEREAS, the Legislative Auditor, the DOE's own internal
26   audit, and an independent accounting firm have all found
27   consistent instances of noncompliance with established A+
28   Program policies; and
29   
30       WHEREAS, each individual school principal has been given
31   the discretion by the Superintendent of Education to either
32   operate the A+ Program directly or to contract responsibility
33   to a private provider; and
34   
35       WHEREAS, approximately 70 percent of participating school
36   principals have chosen to operate the A+ Program directly; and
37   
38       WHEREAS, the Legislative Auditor found a correlation
39   between adequate program planning and an individual site's
40   ability to provide all the required A+ Program components; and

 
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 1       WHEREAS, the Legislative Auditor further found that the
 2   contracted private providers met the policy requirements more
 3   consistently than schools running A+ Programs; and
 4   
 5       WHEREAS, the Legislative Auditor additionally found that
 6   DOE's failure to establish clear lines of authority in the A+
 7   Program and the lack of formal disciplinary procedures have
 8   contributed to DOE's inability to hold staff accountable; now,
 9   therefore,
10   
11       BE IT RESOLVED by the House of Representatives of the
12   Twentieth Legislature of the State of Hawaii, Regular Session
13   of 1999, that the DOE is requested:
14   
15       (1)  Require private providers to operate A+ Programs; and
16   
17       (2)  Redouble its efforts to maintain effective oversight
18            of the A+ Program;
19   
20   and
21   
22       BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that certified copies of this
23   Resolution be transmitted to the Chairperson of the Board of
24   Education, the Superintendent of Education, and the principals
25   of each participating school.
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29                         OFFERED BY:  ____________________________