About HEM
If you’re a parent of a child in public school in Hawaii, then we have a lot in common. HEM was started by a group of parents in response to the 2009 school furloughs, when our government decided that budget cuts in education would be relieved by closing schools. Most parents in Hawaii didn’t agree, and all over the state, parents began staging demonstrations at their schools, protesting cuts to an already compromised education system. We rallied against them too – one day in October 2009 at the Capitol, where we began to gain attention for our ability to organize, mobilize parents and find decision makers. But after the rally, and during our meetings with legislators, the Governor, teachers, principals, Board of Education, union leaders and parents, we realized that there was a strong need for a ‘parent group’ to stay around. When we met with the Hawaii State Teachers Association, they commented on the lack of parental involvement with teachers and when we spoke to principals and teachers, they asked ‘where are the parents?’
So we formed HEM, our non profit, non partisan parent group, and now we need parents like you to join us in our efforts to improve our public schools.
It’s not something we can do alone, so part of HEM’s mission is to partner with the many strong groups already working for change. By bringing community groups, parents, teachers and principals together, we form a strong foundation from which to grow.
We believe we all have to change the way we think about education. That it’s no longer a job for teachers alone, but rather the responsibility of all of us who care about the future of Hawaii’s children. There are great things happening in some of our public schools. Hawaii’s success with the nationally based initiative Race to the Top has shed light on some of the positive changes taking place in classrooms. But change is not easy, so we need every parent to make even the smallest commitment.
We hope you can join us on our journey.
Who we are
Board of Directors
The Hawaii Education Matters Board of Directors is comprised of founding members and advanced professionals devoted to achieving excellence in public education.
Ann Davis – Board President and Co-founder
Ann’s unique blend of qualifications rests in both her Master’s Degree in Public Health (Columbia, 2001) and her (14+ years) professional experiences in community organizing and administering social service and community health programs. As a public school graduate, Ann has both a personal and professional passion for and commitment to school wellness and academic achievement. She has extensive experience in grassroots community organizing, working with all aspects of the community to improve life skills and community service opportunities to build bridges among students, school staff, families, and local businesses and organizations. She believes shrinking the gap and facilitating collaboration among all stakeholders is necessary for children to succeed in and contribute to society as adults. Ann is a mother of two (a 7 year old second grader and a 5 year old preschooler), the PTA President at her son’s public elementary school, and is dedicated to ensuring that all children receive equal opportunities and excellence in public education.
Ann has managed both federal and foundation funded healthy living programs, ranging from teen substance abuse awareness to childhood obesity prevention. In 2003 she collaborated with the Hawaii Public Health Association to join forces with diverse elected officials from the Hawaiian and Pacific Islands to achieve a common goal – a well-received and ongoing venue for Pacific Island health professionals, academics, and policy makers to network. More recently she worked as a consultant to coordinate partnership development and strategic planning for a community-wide healthy living initiative that involved city and county government, school board, health care, private sector, and faith communities. The completed strategic plan focused on implementing environmental and policy changes (e.g. farmer’s markets, community/school gardens, safe routes to schools, etc.) that would support healthy lifestyles.
Kathy Bryant – Secretary
Kathy received her bachelor’s degree in International Economics from Claremont McKenna College. She also attended the University of Hawaii pursuing a masters degree in urban and regional planning. Ms. Bryant has worked as a land use and urban planner. She has also worked as an environmental planner coordinating and drafting environmental documents for private, state, and federal projects. Currently, she is active as an independent consultant in public policy issues analysis, facilitation services, and dispute prevention and resolution services. She has been an active community leader and volunteer serving as Chair of the Kailua Neighborhood Board, President of the Aikahi Elementary PTSA, Coordinator for the Friends of Aikahi Playground project, Advisory Board member Boys and Girls Club Windward Clubhouse, and a youth soccer coach.
Kathy served as the facilitator for the Department of Education Act 51 Education Reform Interagency Task Force. She was an active parent volunteer at Aikahi Elementary for 11 years. She served as PTSA President for 4 years, as Fundraising Committee Chair for 9 years, organizing several fundraisers and events annually, and served as a founding member of the SCC. She significantly expanded parent and community participation in the school, tripled the annual fundraising income, and helped create an after school program. She worked with school faculty to write grants and find alternate funding sources for the school. She also donated facilitation services to conduct strategic planning sessions for the school.
Kathy, along with another concerned parent, lobbied the 2010 legislature on behalf of HB2486 which sets a minimum number of instructional hours for students in Hawaii. Over time, the bill mandates that instructional hours will increase to exceed the national average. The effort was in response to school furloughs, which were possible because Hawaii was the only state that did not codify a minimum number of student days or instructional hours. Their extensive research, commitment, and persistence at the legislature, were cited by the legislators as primary reasons for the bill’s passage. Kathy, along with Melanie Bailey, were recognized by the Honolulu Star-Advertiser as one of the “10 Who Made a Difference in 2010” for their efforts in passing this bill.
Matt Lorin – Treasurer
Matt is currently a team member of The Learning Coalition (TLC) where he focuses on community and family engagement in public education. From 2007-2011, he was Education Program Officer for the Harold K. L. Castle Foundation. Prior to joining the Foundation, he was a member of the Senior Management Team at the Office of Hawaiian Affairs (OHA) where he was Director for Planning, Research, Evaluation and Grants. From 1997 to 2000, he served as a senior advisor to corporations, non-governmental organizations, governments and multi-lateral institutions. His clients included the United Nations, U.S. Department of State, Office of His Holiness the Dalai Lama, and National Coalition Government Union of Burma. Prior to opening his consulting concern, he served as Global Head of Strategic Communications for Caspian Securities, an emerging markets investment bank where he was responsible for all communications for Caspian’s 300+ employees in 13 offices in 10 emerging markets.
From 1995 to 1997, Matt was a Director on President Clinton’s National Security Council Staff in the Office of Multi-lateral and Humanitarian Affairs. Before accepting his appointment in the White House, Matt was Founder and Executive Director of SHARE, the Student Human Rights Exchange — a pioneering non-profit organization that put information and communication technologies to work to promote civil society in countries undergoing political transition.
Matt serves on the Board of Education for Public Inquiry and International Citizenship at Tufts University. He is a Leadership Fellow at the Institute for Global Leadership and participates in working groups on civil-military affairs and the delivery of humanitarian assistance in complex emergencies. He is a member of the National Policy Roundtable, and serves as Amnesty International’s Government Affairs Director for Hawaii. Matt is a graduate of Tufts University and the Kennedy School of Government.
Jo McGarry Curran – Board Member and Co-founder
A Hawaii resident for 19 years, Jo McGarry Curran is the most read food writer in Hawaii. Her articles on eating, drinking and living in Hawaii appear weekly in MidWeek and her long running radio talk show, Table Talk, airs weekly on Saturday mornings on KHVH 830 AM; she is also a free lance writer and acts as a consultant to the food and beverage industry in Hawaii. After gaining her nursing degree in Edinburgh, Scotland, she traveled extensively, writing and working as a sales executive in Bahrain, Kuwait, Dubai, Oman and throughout Europe. In 1992 she left Scotland and came to Hawaii, working as an RN and pain management specialist at St Francis Hospice. Today, she is mother to two boys, aged 5 and 7 and has become an advocate for public school children in Hawaii.
As a writer and broadcaster with a background in nursing and social services, she is remarkably well equipped for the task of raising public awareness of the education crisis in Hawaii. Her initial PR efforts for HEM resulted in print articles in newspapers across the nation – and in London and Tokyo. National Public Radio, Fox News and CBS all covered the HEM rally in 2010. “Becoming aware of the state of our public schools, and knowing how important these early years of education are to our children,” says Curran, “has made me determined to make a difference not just in my children’s education, but in the education of children throughout Hawaii.”
Debbie Schatz – Board Member and Co-founder
Debbie Schatz has been a Kailua resident since 1979. She has worked as a realtor since 2001, and is currently with Coldwell Banker Pacific Paroperties. She graduated from Kailua Intermediate School, Kalaheo High School, and UH with a liberal studies degree in International Business Telecommunications. Currently, she is a volunteer for the following community organizations: Kalaheo Hillside Neighborhood Security Watch Coordinator, Member of School Community Council (SCC) at Kailua Intermediate, and a nutrition docent at ‘Aikahi Elementary School for Kokua Foundations Aina Is program.
James Koshiba – Board Member
James is co-founder of Kanu Hawaii. He has worked with government agencies, nonprofit organizations, and for-profit companies in the Northeast United States and in Hawai‘i on a variety of social issues ranging from poverty and economic development to education and affordable housing. He has served as manager of Business Development and New Product Specialist with the Hawai‘i Community Loan Fund—a nonprofit, community development financial institution providing technical assistance and access to capital for low-income entrepreneurs and communities. He has also served as Special Projects Manager for Boston Community Capital, where he helped expand access to venture capital for inner-city small business. He worked with the Coalition of Essential School and the Annenberg Institute for School Reform in Providence, Rhode Island to promote school-driven models of educational improvement. He has also contributed to several reports and studies, including reports for the Hawai‘i State Auditor that examined charter schools, services for special needs students and School/Community-Based Management.
Christina Simmons – Board Member
Christina is the Family Centers and Hawaii Parent Information Resource Center (www.hawaiipirc.org) Director for Parents And Children Together, a large social services agency. Christina has a 23 year history of running health, education and child abuse prevention programs. With a background in nutrition and public health she created such innovative programming as the Breastpumps in the Schools program, and locally designed and sewn nursing drapes for the Hawaii WIC breastfeeding program that continue to this day. She is now using her creativity to provide family engagement and technology activities to increase academic achievement in Hawaii, specializing in services to new immigrants.
