LIHUE — A new, redesigned version of the Hawaii State Department of Education website was released Monday as a part of a $1.7 million effort to increase transparency and communication with community members. The website overhaul, which required nearly a
LIHUE — A new, redesigned version of the Hawaii State Department of Education website was released Monday as a part of a $1.7 million effort to increase transparency and communication with community members.
The website overhaul, which required nearly a year of research and public and staff input, was one of the specific targets outlined in the Board of Education’s 2011-2018 Strategic Plan.
“We made a dedicated effort to ensure parents and students could easily access information and increase transparency of our reporting systems,” Superintendent Kathryn Matayoshi said in a news release. “In today’s technological world, we strive to better communicate the excellence and transformation occurring in our public school system. Our new website also allows for a stronger connection with our communities.”
In all, the DOE invested $1.7 million in federal Race to the Top funds to build its new website.
These funds will also used to build an employee intranet that aims “to boost operational efficiency, information sharing and collaboration among the various DOE offices,” according to the news release.
A redesigned Employment section for interested DOE applicants, a new Success Stories section showcasing district wide achievements, and new multimedia elements, such as video and photo galleries, are several of the changes that have been incorporated into the new website.
The website, according to the news release, “covers everything from educational initiatives and reform to school-level data and college- and career-readiness efforts, as well as programs supporting student life and health opportunities for the community to contribute to public education.”
“We now have the ability to do much more in today’s Web world,” Department of Education spokeswoman Donalyn Dela Cruz said in an e-mail. “Our new site is a custom CMS (content management system) to house and surface a vast archive of reports and paged information. This website sets a higher standard for the department for the benefit of parents, students, and the public.”
For more information, visit www.hawaiipublicschools.org or email the DOE office at doe_info@hawaiidoe.org.
