HONOLULU (AP) — The state Department of Education placed 43 employees on leave as it investigates alleged misconduct. ADVERTISING HONOLULU (AP) — The state Department of Education placed 43 employees on leave as it investigates alleged misconduct. The department updated
HONOLULU (AP) — The state Department of Education placed 43 employees on leave as it investigates alleged misconduct.
The department updated Board of Education members Tuesday about its probe into employee misconduct.
Officials say 43 of the departments 22,000 workers are on department-directed leave or leave pending investigation. Of those, 28 are teachers. Twelve of the cases started more than a year ago.
Some board members were critical that the department’s investigations were taking so long.
“There should be a guideline. There should be a policy. There can always be exemptions requested from a policy or from guidelines,” said Darrel Galera, executive director of the Education Institute of Hawaii. “There is usually some kind of timeline that serves as a guideline.”
However, Barbara Krieg, assistant superintendent for the Office of Human Resources, said each investigation is unique, with no set amount of time working in all cases.
“We’re always looking at how we can improve the process to minimize the amount of time that any employee is out on leave, to make sure that investigations are being done as quickly as possible, but also as thoroughly and appropriately as possible,” she said.
DOE officials say they closed 15 cases since late June. Half of the current investigations involve allegations of inappropriate conduct toward students.
