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Education regarding your proposals. It’s not our kuleana to determine your program, but I am just <br />curious. Did you seek support or a letter of support from the Department regarding this? <br />HIRAKAMI: Well, we have a Board -. <br />NOMURA: Microphone, please. <br />DARROW: Use the microphone, please. <br />HIRAKAMI: We have a letter submitted by the new Board of Education Member from Hawaii Island, <br />Brian De Lima. And I work closely with the Department of Education, with Cathy Matayoshi, and <br />various people in the Department. But it never occurred to me to get their support because actually the <br />monies are separated from the Department. We have our own EDN number so they’re kind of <br />separated out. When we first started we had to depend on the Department of Education to provide us <br />funds the first two years; and that was a real contentious relationship because it was robbing Peter to <br />pay Paul kind of things that I heard a million times and then believed in. But in 2004 the law changed <br />to where there was established a charter school administrative office, which is kind of like the DOE. <br />And they received directly, monies directly from the Legislature and deposited into an account and <br />distributed directly to charter schools. So we don’t have that fiscal relationship with the Department, <br />except for Federal and special education services. <br />ONO: No, please don’t misunderstand me. My concern is the students, their higher education, after <br />they leave you is my concern. So I was just wondering in terms of where do the graduates go or have <br />they succeeded in college? <br />CLARKE: Thank you for your question, Steven. Two things: One, as we speak Pāhoa High School <br />music ensemble students are performing on the HAAS campus for our students. We have a very close <br />partnership with Pāhoa. We are both solutions in our community. And not all charters are working as <br />closely with the DOE schools that they are in the community with. But out in Puna it is essential; and <br />we work very close with them. We did create a video last year with the County supported funding for <br />nonprofit called Class of 2010. I don’t know if any of you have seen it or heard of it. But Cathy <br />Matayoshi as superintendent of the DOE made very strong statements about the value and role of <br />charters in our community; and I’d be happy to share that dvd out if you guys have time to watch it. <br />Our legal team didn’t advise putting it in the application. <br />And then secondly I think it’s the third or four letter that is listed on the packet that you got this <br />morning, we have a student Anna Kupcha a graduate of HAAS, she’s 18 years old and she is about to <br />complete her first year of medical school in Texas. And she wrote a letter that almost had me in tears <br />the other night because of the support she got from an out-of-the-box school that allowed her to <br />actually be co-enrolled at the university while she was still enrolled in high school. The larger high <br />schools, Hilo and Waiakea, have stronger schedules and requirements and the kids pretty much are in a <br />track and that’s how they get through the system. Charters allow a lot of flexibility; and we have <br />students that are enrolled, co-enrolled at Running Start, early enrollment at the UH, and doing amazing <br />things. <br />Diane Gentry also wrote you a letter. Her daughter is excelling in the World Of Fine Arts in New <br />York City at this time. She was in our first graduating class. <br />KERN: Commissioner Domingo. <br />DOMINGO: Thank you, Mr. Chairman. Steve, I need to congratulate you and the staff and, in fact, <br />the whole community for your dedication and, especially, your ability run a school as this -- It shows <br />7 <br /> EXHIBIT A <br /> <br /> <br />