elementary school teacher

senior educator

special education teacher

signaller

office assistant

Hawaii State Department of Education

While working at Honoka'a High/Inter. & Hilo Inter. I would give my time with students, teachers, staff & parents/guardians to be good to excellent. At both locations I was supervised by experienced competent Clinical Psychologists (one male & one female) who had best interest of my workplace to include helping my students succeed 100% of the time. I enjoyed working with ADHD/ADD students who were identified through either their IDEA or 504 as having opposition-defiant problems that interfered with their succeeding in the classroom. At the first school the administrator is now a Complex Area Superintendent in West Hawaii & he was the best! At the second school I thoroughly enjoyed my time with students-teachers-staff-parents/guardians with one exception. The Principal of the school was precocious, mean spirited & unfair to many of the students-staff-teachers; & I was fortunate to have never had a personal run in with her. She "PRIDED" herself with the TITLE="The Dragon Lady" & when she died recently it was in the obits in our local paper. As her mood went so went much of the school making my job, at times, more difficult. Finally, my last school was Pahoa High/Inter. Here I loved the students-parents/guardians & most of the staff (some were problematic including the Special Education Coordinator who made FALSE UNPROVED CLAIMS against me). The Principal was capable if not challenged at times but I had a MAJOR issue with one of the VPs, who misconstrued facts against me believing two teachers about issues they knew nothing about. PLUS unlike my two competent Clinical Psychologists at the first two schools, the clinical supervisor (male) was a seasoned & highly competent clinician/behavioral therapist who was a NIGHTMARE as a MANAGER/CLINICAL COORDINATOR. HE blatantly violated three (3) different social work ethics & he had poor boundaries with students physically which the administrator of the East Hawaii District REFUSED to address. One example is he talked with his business partner  about students without a release of information. Another issue was he tried to tell me I did not work for the VP of the school & she eventually straightened him out. The Students at all three (3) locations were a JOY to work with; unfortunately, the Clinical Supervisor & East Hawaii Supervisors were complete incompetent politicians who let some people violate ethical issues while brutally holding others to unfair standards.

From the District/State office perspective.  
Nothing about the upper echelon of leadership in this organization suggests that logic nor intelligence is utilized on a daily basis.  The higher up the chain you go the more idiotic each link appears.  Decisions being made feel as if the benefit is not for the schools, students, parents nor the workers but to personal and political agenda.  The bureaucracy destroys collaboration and cohesiveness.  Communication between the workers and upper management levels are non-existent.
One particular department that is incredibly horrendous is the human resources department.  One of the worst human resources groups that I have experienced in my adult life and professional career.  There are people hired into high level positions that they are not qualified to perform and have no experience in.  There are decisions and directives regarding the pandemic situation that are being made which put people at unnecessary risk on a daily basis.  
Every bit of the stereo type about a "State" worker being lazy or going through the motions to collect a pay check exists in this organization at all levels.  Granted, there are many who give it their best, however they are overshadowed or overworked picking up the slack for the stereotypical worker.  Maximum effort in many cases are wholeheartedly discouraged.  Suggestions and ideas for improvements to the work flow and process are discouraged and frowned upon. 

I worked in public schools in Hawaii for Hawaii DOE for more than 20 years. I did not realize how much they provided for us- security, benefits, tenure, retirement and access to a very proactive union- HSTA until I moved to another state.
My pay was much lower in the other state even if cost of living was much lower and it was more easy on the budget but there was no tenure, and my pension upon retirement would be lower. There is no real job security here and one could be fired at any year. In Hawaii, I felt confident and protected. They work really hard to care for teachers. The only reason I left Hawaii was due to the high cost of living. Hawaii DOE is going to raise salaries to meet the demands and also increase hard to fill bonuses.
They truly embrace all cultures, value teachers with experience. They have very sweet respectful students, staff, admin. I miss it like crazy. 
My plan is to save up $$$ where I am now and return for the last 10 years and retire there when pay is better. I never felt so much belonging as I ever did there in spite of the bureacracy that one expect in a very large employer for the entire state. 
The trainings I received made me grow as a person. I also loved working each day. The hardest part of the job was the pay which did not meet my needs. 
Thanks so much Hawaii DOE- I will always carry with me the aloha in my heart.

I have worked for the DOE for over 10 years  I say this will tremendous sadness  Parents should find alternative schooling for their children from K1 to K12 ( if possible)  Very poor pool of teachers ( some very poor speech) and curriculum. Most projects and work for High School students is just busy work with no connection to real life. Therefore, only 1 in 10 students attend college. They are being set up to work at a low wage business like Walmart. This continues due extensive nepotism and unqualified employees especially through the District Office of the DOE This office runs the Special education programs for Autism and incidences of student abuse have been reported at Konawaena H.S.  Administration turns a blind eye as they will not jeopardize funding and trade Autistic Student abuse and well being for their state monies.  School aptitude scores are also inflated as teachers allow students to copy from each other in the labs.  in 2018  Child disappeared after reporting to Kealakehe Elementary. He was found later DEAD off campus   There was a cover up and most people are unaware of this horrible incident  Low morale and respect are prevalent throughout this school system Incompetence abounds due to the nepotism.  Hawaii should be ashamed of their school system.

What is the best part of working at the company?
My Lead Teacher was a very patient and loving person, who had a style of teaching unique into herself. She knew what worked, tweaked it for different students, and was able to reach even the most difficult child. You could really see that she loved teaching and her students, present and former, too. 

What is the most stressful part about working at the company?
Being tossed into the mix for the last half of the school year. I had to learn my duties so quickly it was stressful at times. 

What is the work environment and culture like at the company?
Overall the teachers and staff got along great. I didn't feel much separation except between age groups. Many of them had been at that school for decades, including my Lead Teacher. 

What is a typical day like for you at the company?
Come in, set up the classroom, get materials ready for the day, greet the students, and the day begins. We rotated activities on different days and the children were well prepared because the Lead had created an effective routine they could follow. Recess, more learning, lunch, afternoon activities, then time to go home.

What is the best part of working at the company?
Working for the DOE was an Awesome experience. The consistency of work is what I loved. Fast paced, Monday-Friday, Learning new things and working with such a great crew. 

What is the most stressful part about working at the company?
The most stressful part working for the DOE is it's fast paced and high volume of accuracy.  Production is what I like and it can only happen with fast paced working and high volume of accuracy, so it may be stressful, but doable.

What is the work environment and culture like at the company?
Work environment it varies, it's Hot and fast paced, the culture of the company is a Family (Hawaiian) surrounding. Everybody helps everybody to make the work day go by smoothly, safely and accurately. 

What is a typical day like for you at the company?
Typical day for me working for the DOE starts with safety, cleanliness, and prepping for the day.  There's a flow of work that's controlled with Time management. Everything needs to be done at a time limit, needs to be clean and safe at all times

The school I work at had a good environment, and job security. My Curriculum Coordinator was always accommodating. I was moved around to different classes and grade levels but it helped me to be more adaptable. The longer I was there the more I witnessed the politics of the school however it was always amongst the teachers, not directed towards the tutors. A lot of teachers can be snobby/look down upon the PPE tutors however I was able to create strong bonds with many teachers and made sure to be flexible. 
The WORST part is that you don't receive your first check, each year, for six weeks after the start date so if you have your first day August 3 you wont get paid until (at the EARLIEST) September 15 regardless of how long you have worked there. The upside to that is you receive your last pay check for the school year well into June. 
The BEST part of the job is seeing the kids' growth with your daily tutoring like witnessing a student go from the lowest fluency reading level F to a level I. I love working here.

The most enjoyable and most challenging part of this career is working with students. You have a variety of objectives you need to accomplish within a timely manner while dealing with a variety of personalities and learning styles while maintaining a safe and positive learning environment. There are many objectives mandated to teachers by the state as well as tasks needed to be accomplished by school leaders, that it is very important to create positive working relationships with your department team members, grade level team members, and team members throughout the school in various grade levels and departments.What I learned most by choosing this career choice is that you have to be quick thinking, dedicated, and extremely flexible. Teaching is about working for the greater good.

Mililani 'Ike Elementary School allows every employee to excel and grow from the moment you walk into the door.  Its not just a place to work, but a place where each employee has a valuable contribution to ensure the success of the school.  The Principal trusts his employees to do their job, and the pride emulated from your peers in the workplace shows how much each person cares.  We were not just co-workers, but a family who worked together for a common purpose.  The most difficult part of the job was knowing I had to walk away due to the relocation of my family.  However, I was very fortunate to have the experience in working in a great school, amongst many educated professionals, and look forward to sharing what I have learned in my next career path.

Some schools have absolutely no support for teachers. Kids can be absolutely wild and the office will not help at all. I've worked as a sub for about three years and have found two classes that I loved to return to. The rest I dreaded ever returning to and there were some I went to once and never went back. Same with certain schools. Obviously kids go nuts with a sub but it makes all the difference when the office and other teachers have your back, some schools do not care at all about you and will leave you to fend for yourself among kids who throw things, leave during class, run around in circles, yell, shout, scream. It can be mayhem. Some teachers leave you the flimsiest lesson plans, and you won't know what you've got until you get to the class on the day.  If you need flexibility I recommend it but otherwise there isn't really a pro to working here.

Top Job Titles	Average Salary
Elementary school teacher 849 salaries reported	$64,040 per year
Senior educator 472 salaries reported	$3,285 per month
Special education teacher 190 salaries reported	$63,999 per year
Signaller 125 salaries reported	$64,134 per year
Office assistant 181 salaries reported	$3,203 per month

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