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Editor’s Note: This is the first of an occasional series on bullying in Hawaii schools.

State lawmakers gave the Board of Education a direct order last year: Monitor the Hawaii Department of Education for compliance with rules governing bullying and establish reporting requirements.

The was a substantially watered-down version of the , but it still took a step toward addressing a serious problem plaguing Hawaii schools.

More than a year after the law took effect, lawmakers are struggling to find out how well the board has complied and what the department has done. Representatives plan to continue pushing for answers until the next legislative session starts in January, but are already making plans to toughen up the law.

Legislators aren’t the only ones who can’t get answers. Civil Beat has asked Board Chair Don Horner for weeks to explain what the board has done to monitor the DOE for compliance with bullying policies, what those results have shown, and whether things are getting any better.

Here’s his only response:

Our strategic plan places a high priority on school safety as well as individual character development. Bullying is an issue of the heart and should be addressed early, professionally and consistently. Our responsibility is to ensure our schools are safe learning environments for student well-being and to reach our student achievement objectives.

Horner said he asked a staff member to provide additional background information two weeks ago, but even after Civil Beat followed up, no information has been produced. It’s unclear exactly what that information is supposed to be.

On the DOE side, Civil Beat has asked department officials questions about the law since June. Despite repeated attempts and assurances that answers were forthcoming, none have been provided.

What we do know is the district has faith in its existing policies to beat back bullying and has tried to increase awareness of the issue through public campaigns.

In October 2011, the district launched a $1 million “peaceful schools” campaign that included six public service announcements featuring students, athletes and schools officials speaking out against bullying.

The program was also expected to involve annual training, routine monitoring of student behavior data, and the development of a confidential reporting system. But it’s unclear what aspects have been implemented or how effective they have been. The board’s to the governor this year doesn’t mention bullying once.

The department primarily addresses bullying in an administrative rule known as . It defines bullying, cyberbullying and harassment, listing them as punishable offenses. A found that Hawaii received the highest rating of expansiveness among states with model policies, despite the absence of any state bullying legislation at the time.

Education Superintendent Kathryn Matayoshi has said the district adequately addresses the problem through the , the department’s administrative rule and additional framework guiding schools.

“The key to reducing incidents of bullying, cyberbullying and harassment is for schools to exemplify teaching and learning environments characterized by physical and psychological safety, adult and student respect for each other, and a responsive system that addresses students’ social, emotional and academic needs,” she wrote in her opposing the more comprehensive version of House Bill 688, which became the Safe Schools Act after a thorough gutting in the Finance Committee.

But as Civil Beat reported in November 2010, the policy lacks enforcement and leaves prevention up to each school.

Lawmakers Want To Be More Proactive

The district’s apparent shortcoming has spurred lawmakers to introduce bills year after year, but the vast majority fail to gain any traction.

More recently, the representatives who sponsored say more needs to be done to address the issue on all sides. They remain frustrated that the 2011 law was not as strong as intended and that the state lacks a united front to effectively combat bullying.

Rep. John Mizuno has fought for strong anti-bullying legislation for the past six years. He considered the bill’s passage a win, but believes the state can do a lot more.

“Some schools may do a great job, but others down the road may not know how to handle it,” he said. “We need to work on a uniform system, but the DOE just hasn’t done a good job at it.”

Mizuno said he would be happy to let the DOE improve its current policy and “call off the dogs” on the legislative front. But he has not seen that happen, so he expects to revisit bullying again next session.

“There can be no gray area,” he said. “It’s black and white. You either have something down solid, or you don’t. I support teachers and I support public schools but that was the frustration I ran into in years past when they kept putting (Chapter 19) in my face.”

Rep. Karen Awana said she plans to use the down time between legislative sessions to talk to teachers, students and administrators to determine whether the law is working or if “more teeth” are needed.

“Although the DOE says they already have measures in place to address the bullying, until we can curb what’s actually happening at the campuses I continue to have concerns,” she said.

Awana referred to Brandon Elizares, an openly gay teen who after being bullied. Part of a military family, the Hawaii native was attending school in El Paso, Texas. There was a march in Hawaii for him after his death.

“We don’t want to wait till the deaths start coming,” she said. “We want to be proactive.”

Statistics Underscore Severity

The numbers are beyond startling. Report after report shows how serious a concern bullying remains in Hawaii.

A recent University of Hawaii study, for instance, found that victims of cyberbullying here were 2.5 times more likely to binge drink and 3.2 times more likely to attempt suicide.

A Hawaii Health Data Warehouse study, , found that 40 percent of middle school students are bullied on campus.

A 2009 DOE survey found that 51 percent of students felt bullied and 63 percent agree it’s a problem.

, a Honolulu nonprofit at the head of an effort to reverse these troubling trends, shared more grim news in its last annual report. Hawaii had the highest rate in the nation of high school girls reporting that they missed school because they were afraid to go. And boys’ absenteeism for the same reason was higher than the average rate.

Antonia Alvarez, the group’s director of , said bullying and cyberbullying have been identified as issues, but coping skills are not given to those who need them.

“They’re worrying about it, but they’re not doing anything about it,” she said.

Reps Want More Accountability

Renewed efforts to pass a significantly more comprehensive bill to address bullying stalled in committee last legislative session.

Other bills have died due to concerns over provisions that could put bullies behind bars. Experts say making bullying a felony offense fails to address the problem at its root.

So the state is left with its three-paragraph Safe Schools Act and a policy that lawmakers consider inadequate.

Rep. Angus McKelvey called HB688 a “good first step.” He said he would see if a reporting requirement should be added to the law next year, which could force the DOE to tell the Legislature what progress has been made.

“We need to make sure that everything we do and implement is done in pursuit of a globalized effort,” said McKelvey, who is particularly concerned about how technology is being used in bullying. “This is a good vehicle, a good way to start and continue the discussion in how we implement a policy dealing with bullying.”

Rep. George Fontaine, a retired police captain, said he was disappointed with how HB688 ended up.

“It didn’t provide any kind of accountability or requirement for the department to report back to the Legislature,” he said. “There’s no onus on anyone.”

Like other lawmakers, he hopes to get some answers from the board after the November election. From there, Fontaine said he will sit down with Awana, HB688’s lead author, to decide on a course of action.

“The discussion needs to include everyone,” he said, adding that parents need to be involved too. “We need to do whatever it takes to protect our children.”