Hawaii charter schools get new leader

The state Public Charter School Commission, which oversees Hawaii’s 37 public charter schools, finally has a permanent executive director after having been without one since 2020.

Ed Noh, whose more than three decades of experience in education includes leadership of public and public charter schools in Hawaii and Washington state, will take the executive director position on an undetermined date in mid-­February, a commission spokesperson said.

Noh’s appointment comes just as the state’s public charter schools are at a pivotal point, especially since the latest test-score data suggests that Hawaii charter school students as a group are lagging markedly behind regular public school students statewide in core subjects, and some state lawmakers are demanding stronger accountability and standards. About 12,100 students were enrolled in Hawaii public charter schools in the 2022-23 school year.

Noh, 53, has been a state Department of Education superintendent for the Castle­-Kahuku complex area in Windward Oahu since January 2023.

Prior roles include interim complex-area superintendent, complex academic officer at the Windward Oahu district, principal of Kaneohe Elementary School, director of Ka’ohao Public Charter school and executive director of the DOE’s Leadership Institute, according to the DOE website.

Noh also has more than a decade of classroom teaching experience and served as a principal for six years with Seattle public schools, the DOE website said. He earned his master’s degree in educational leadership and policy studies from the University of Washington and his doctorate in professional educational practice from the University of Hawaii at Manoa.

“As a practitioner, parent, and administrative leader, his passion for education and proven leadership skills make him the ideal candidate to lead the commission forward,” commission Chair Cathy Ikeda said in a news release. “This role is the culmination of his career, and we look forward to working collaboratively with Ed to advocate for high quality education in Hawaii’s public charter schools.”

His salary was not immediately confirmed by the spokesperson, but the job opening had been advertised at higher or lower than $175,000, commensurate with experience. The search was managed by KEES, a nonprofit executive search firm based in

Naperville, Ill. The executive director “is hired by the commission and goes through an annual review by the commission,” the spokesperson said.

Noh said Tuesday by email that he would be available for an interview after he is in his new post full time.

Noh has two adult sons who graduated from the public Moanalua High School; his youngest attended Ka’ohao Public Charter School when Noh was school director, he said. The sons attended the public University of California, Irvine, and University of Hawaii.

Asked about his classroom teaching experience, Noh wrote that he began with teaching kindergarten and spent most of his teaching years in the upper elementary levels, grades 3-5, in the Bellevue School District and Seattle public schools in Washington state. “I also taught middle school math in my 10 years of teaching before moving into administration,” he said.

Hawaii’s 37 public charter schools are publicly funded, free for students to attend, and operated and managed by independent governing boards. Each charter school operates under a performance contract with the state Public Charter School Commission.