Hawaii Regulations

(Last Updated August 3, 2017)

Private Schools

Accreditation, Registration, Licensing, and Approval

  • Accreditation: is optional
    • The accreditation standard for approval can be met through accreditation with the Hawaii Association of Independent Schools (HAIS) and/or other accrediting associations that meet the requirements established by the Hawaii Council of Private Schools for accrediting schools offering preschool through grade 12. Hawaii Council of Private Schools, Standards and Procedures for the Approval of Hawaii Private Schools, 1996.
  • Registration: mandatory
    • A private school must obtain a charter and an excise tax from the state of Hawaii Department of Commerce and Consumer Affairs. Hawaii Council of Private Schools, Standards and Procedures for the Approval of Hawaii Private Schools, 1996.
  • Licensing: optional
    • The state strongly recommends licensing, although it is not mandatory. The Hawaii Council of Private Schools performs the functions and assumes the responsibilities of the Hawaii Department of Education (HIDOE) for the licensing of all private schools in Hawaii. Memorandum of Understanding: The Hawaii Council of Private Schools, HIDOE, Hawaii Association of Independent Schools (HAIS), pursuant to Hawaii Sessions Law, Act 188.
  • Approval: no requirements

Teacher Certification

  • Approved accrediting organizations set teacher certification requirements for private schools accredited in this manner. Hawaii Council of Private Schools, Standards and Procedures for the Approval of Hawaii Private Schools, 1996.
  • Schools licensed by the Hawaii Council of Private Schools must meet the following requirements: (1) the staff, including teachers and administrators, must be qualified for their positions and responsibilities by education and/or experience; and (2) regular teachers are expected to have a baccalaureate degree, or a professional certificate from a national or state teacher certification agency, or some other means of indicating the qualifications for their position. Hawaii Council of Private Schools, Standards and Procedures for the Approval of Hawaii Private Schools, 1996.

Length of School Year and Days

  • Approved accrediting organizations set the length of the school year and the number of days required for private schools accredited in this manner. Hawaii Council of Private Schools, Standards and Procedures for the Approval of Hawaii Private Schools, 1996.
  • The private school can determine the length of the school day and the length of the school year in accord with its stated mission, provided that the amount of instruction offered is at least 880 hours in a given school year. Hawaii Council of Private Schools, Standards and Procedures for the Approval of Hawaii Private Schools, 1996.

Curriculum

  • Approved accrediting organizations set the education program requirements for private schools accredited in this manner. Hawaii Council of Private Schools, Standards and Procedures for the Approval of Hawaii Private Schools, 1996.
  • Schools licensed by the Hawaii Council of Private Schools must have a curriculum that is a cumulative and sequential educational program. The curriculum must prepare the students with knowledge and skills necessary for success at the next appropriate level of education or work. It must also take into consideration the unique interests, needs, and abilities of each student. For schools, excluding those that exclusively serve students with special needs or disabilities, the curriculum must include reading, writing, speech, mathematics, social studies, science, art, music, and health and physical education. Hawaii Council of Private Schools, Standards and Procedures for the Approval of Hawaii Private Schools, 1996.

Record Keeping and Reports

  • The Hawaii Council of Private Schools is responsible for publishing an annual directory of licensed private schools and an annual enrollment report, keeping permanent records for all schools, and handling complaints. Memorandum of Understanding: The Hawaii Council of Private Schools, HIDOE, Hawaii Association of Independent Schools (HAIS), pursuant to Hawaii Sessions Law, Act 188.
  • Schools licensed by the Hawaii Council of Private Schools must keep and maintain student records in a manner that keeps parents and guardians informed of student progress and achievement. If a student transfers or applies for admission to a new school, the private school must make student records available on the request of the parent or guardian. Hawaii Council of Private Schools, Standards and Procedures for the Approval of Hawaii Private Schools, 1996.
  • The Hawaii Council of Private Schools requires the submission of an annual report from private schools it has licensed, or ones that have been approved after being accredited by an approved accrediting association. The report must include information on enrollment and other data required to maintain a database for the private school community. The Hawaii Council of Private Schools will work to avoid having schools duplicate information they already were required to report to other organizations. Hawaii Council of Private Schools, Standards and Procedures for the Approval of Hawaii Private Schools, 1996.

Health and Safety Requirements

  • Each student must present a physical examination report before first attending school. A student who has not completed the physical exam may attend school on a provisional basis only with written documentation showing that appointments have been made to complete the missing requirements, and the examination must be completed within three months of initial school attendance. Hawaii Revised Statutes (HRS) §302A-1159.
  • Each student must send a record of immunizations as required by the department of health and a tuberculosis examination certificate before first attending school. A student who has not completed all required immunizations may attend school on a provisional basis only with written documentation showing the immunizations are in process, and the immunizations must be completed within three months of initial school attendance. A student is exempt if a physician, physician assistant, or advance practice registered nurse certifies that immunizations are an endangerment to the student’s health, or the parent, custodian, or guardian provides in writing objections to immunization based on bona fide religious beliefs. If the department of health decides there is danger of an epidemic, no immunization exemptions are recognized. HRS §§302A-1154–1157.
  • Private school employees and officers have a duty to report suspected child abuse or neglect that is based upon a reasonable belief. Individuals should immediately make their reports orally to the department of human services (social services division) or to the police department. HRS §350-1.1.
  • Private schools are required to conduct criminal history record checks on all new employees hired after July 1, 2000 for positions that place the employee in close proximity to children. This includes non-teaching staff who work in close proximity to children. HRS §302C-1.

Transportation

  • “The department of transportation shall grant exemptions for the use of vehicles other than school vehicles when the department finds that compliance with this section is: 1) Impractical due to the unavailability of school vehicles; or 2) Impractical due to economic factors.” Exemptions are granted to “1) a board of independent schools, which is registered with the department of commerce and consumer affairs (Hawaii Association of Independent Schools), to administer to private schools utilizing criteria developed by the departments of Transportation and Education at the end of each school year on the extent to which these exemptions were utilized; 2) only for the transport of pupils to and from school functions or school-related activities but not for transportation to and from a school; 3) only when each pupil being transported has obtained a written statement from the pupil’s parent or legal guardian waiving the State’s liability; and 4) in accordance with the procedures and criteria established by rules of the Department of Transportation.” HRS §286-181.
  • “The department of transportation may grant exemptions for the use of vehicles other than school vehicles for the transportation of students requiring special education and services when the department finds that compliance with this section is impossible or impractical.” HRS §286-181.

Textbooks

  • No state policy currently exists.

Testing

  • No state policy currently exists.

Special Education

  • The development of the Private School Participation Project is mandated by the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) and Chapter 60 of the Hawaii Administrative Rules. Hawaii Department of Education: Authority for Special Education.
  • Students whom the Hawaii Department of Education (HIDOE) has determined to be disabled based on an evaluation will be offered a free appropriate public education (FAPE). A student’s parents, however, may still opt to place their child in a private school. When parents make a voluntary decision to do so, however, their child no longer has the individual right to receive some or all of the special education and related services that the student would receive if enrolled in a public school. Hawaii Department of Education: Authority for Special Education.
  • When parents enroll a child with disabilities in a private school when FAPE is not at issue, the HIDOE is obligated to expend a proportionate share of federal funds to meet the needs of the group of parentally placed private school students with disabilities. However, the services can differ in amount from what would be provided to a student with the same disabilities who attends a public school. The Private School Participation Project was developed in part to safeguard the education needs of parentally placed private school students with disabilities. Hawaii Department of Education: Authority for Special Education.
  • On an annual basis the HIDOE surveys representatives of parentally place private school students (schools and parents) and reviews statewide evaluation data. Based on the information received, the HIDOE determines which students have the greatest special education needs. Taking into consideration the needs of these students, the project is developed to address the following: which students receive services, the types of services to be provided, and where services are to be provided. Hawaii Department of Education: Authority for Special Education.
  • Federal and state laws require that the HIDOE annually update the Private School Participation Project to meet the current needs of students whose parents have voluntarily placed them in private schools. Therefore, it must not be assumed that a student who received services during one school year can automatically receive services the following year. Hawaii Department of Education: Authority for Special Education.

Nursing and Health

  • No state policy currently exists.

Technology

  • No state policy currently exists.

Professional Development

  • No state policy currently exists.

Reimbursement for Performing State and Local Functions

  • No state policy currently exists.

Tax Exemption

  • The state of Hawaii honors the federal tax-exempt status of schools, but does not have a state policy.

Public Aid for Private Education

  • Constitutional Provisions: The Hawaii Constitution prohibits the appropriation of public funds for the support or benefit of any sectarian or private educational institution. Hawaii Constitution, Article X, Section 1. Exception: Proceeds of special purpose revenue bonds authorized or issued under Section 12 of Article VII may be appropriated to finance or assist not-for-profit corporations that provide early childhood education and care facilities serving the general public; and not-for-profit private nonsectarian and sectarian elementary schools, secondary schools, colleges and universities. Ren and am Const Con 1978 and election Nov 7, 1978; Ren and am L 1994, c 280, §4 (HB 2692-94) and election Nov 8, 1994; Ren and am HB 2848 (2002) and election Nov 5, 2002. Hawaii Constitution, Article X, Section 1.
  • Programs for Financial Assistance for Attendance at Private Schools: No such programs currently exist.

Home Schools

Initial and Renewal Applications

  • The parent must provide the local public school principal with a notice of intent to home educate the child before initiating homeschooling. The notice of intent may be submitted on a HIDOE-developed form (Form OIS-4140) or in a letter containing the following items: name, address, and telephone number of the child; birthdate and grade level of the child; and signature of the parent. Hawaii Administrative Code (HAC) §8-12-13.
  • The notice of intent must be acknowledged by the principal and the district superintendent. The notice of intent is used for record-keeping purposes and to protect families from unfounded accusations of educational neglect or truancy. HAC §8-12-13(b).
  • If the student’s annual progress reports are submitted, the notification of intent to homeschool does not need to be resubmitted annually unless the local school that the student would attend if not homeschooled is changing. HAC §8-12-13(c).
  • The parent must notify the principal if homeschooling is terminated. A child must be reenrolled in the local public school or licensed private school unless a new alternative educational program is presented within five school days after the termination of home schooling. HAC §8-12-16.

Curriculum and Instruction

  • The parent(s) submitting a notice to homeschool a child must be responsible for the child’s total educational program including athletics and other cocurricular activities. HAC §8-12-13(d).
  • All educational and related services statutorily mandated must be made available at the home public school site to homeschooled children who have been evaluated and certified as needing educational and related services and who request the services. HAC §8-12-14.
  • The parent submitting a notice of intent to homeschool must keep a record of the planned curriculum for the child. The record of the planned curriculum must include the following: the commencement date and ending date of the program, a record of the number of hours per week the child spends in instruction, and the subject areas to be covered in the planned curriculum. An elementary school curriculum may include the areas of language arts, mathematics, social studies, science, art, music, health, and physical education to be offered at the appropriate development stage of the child; a secondary school curriculum may include the subject areas of social studies, English, mathematics, science, health, physical education and guidance. At both the elementary and secondary levels, the curriculum must include the method used to determine mastery of materials and subjects in the curriculum and a list of textbooks or other instructional materials that will be used. The list must be in standard bibliographical format. For books, the author, title, publisher, and date of publication must be indicated. For magazines, the author, article title, magazine, date, volume number, and pages must be indicated. HAC §8-12-15.
  • A parent teaching the parent’s child at home must be deemed a qualified instructor. HAC §8-12-19.
  • No course credits (Carnegie units) are granted for time spent being homeschooled. HAC §8-12-20.

Assessment and Diplomas

  • Test scores are required for grades identified in the Statewide Testing Program, grades three, five, eight, and 10. The child may participate in the testing program through the local public school or through private testing at the parent’s expense. Other means of evaluation may be approved if requested by the parent. HAC §8-12-18.
  • The parent of a homeschooled student must submit an annual report of the student’s progress to the local school principal. Satisfactory progress may be determined by (1) a grade-level achievement on a nationally-normed standardized achievement test; (2) progress on a nationally normed standardized achievement test that indicates progress up a grade level; (3) a written evaluation by a Hawaii certified teacher that grade level progress was made; or (4) a written parental evaluation that includes a description of the student’s progress in each subject, representative samples of the student’s work, and representative tests and graded assignments when grades were given. The principal must review the adequacy of the student’s progress and, if it is not adequate, meet with the parent to discuss problems and make a plan for improvement. HAC §8-12-18.
  • A homeschooled child must attend high school for a minimum of three full years to meet the credit requirements for graduation, as well as perform satisfactorily on the Hawaii State Test of Essential Competencies, in order to earn a diploma from the local high school. A homeschooled child who wants to earn a high school diploma from the community school for adults must meet the following requirements: be at least 16 years of age, have been homeschooled for at least one semester under Hawaii’s homeschool procedures, and take and achieve a satisfactory score on the Graduate Educational Development test (GED). HAC §8-12-21.
  • A child who is being homeschooled may participate in any college entrance examination made available to all other students through a request to the local public high school principal. HAC §8-12-22.

Special Education

  • No state policy currently exists.

Public School Access

  • No state policy currently exists.

 

Source: U.S. Department of Education, State Regulation of Private and Home Schools, Hawaii