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ho‘ona‘auao
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education
na t i v e ha w a i i an » ne w s | f ea t u r e s | e v en t s
Q&A: Myron Thompson, Myron B. Thompson Academy board co-chair
Interviewed by Lisa Asato
KWO: Your charter school, an e-school, is marking 10 years under the name Myron B. Thompson Academy. What are some highlights of the past decade that maybe many people aren’t aware of? MT: First of them is the Thompson Extension Academy. That’s where we reach out to any charter or public school student in the state and offer them the ability to come online at no cost to get credits or education based on whatever they need. If they want to fill in some credits for graduation, we can provide that. If they want to grab a course they can’t normally get at their school, they can do that. Around 500 or 600 students participate a year, and it’s free. KWO: The U.S. News & World Report in May ranked your school among Hawai‘i’s best public high schools. What does that say to you? MT: We’ve always known that our academic achievements have been high. … We have all the information when we get judged by NCLB (No Child Left Behind) and other standards. We always rank way high; it’s just something we already knew, but it’s nice to be acknowledged on a national level. It’s a strong testament to (principal) Diana (Oshiro) and her staff. … KWO: At the same time, your school has gotten some negative attention for nepotism and fiscal
mismanagement, including issues being forwarded to the Attorney General’s office and Ethics Commission for investigation. As the school’s board co-chair, what do you say to that? MT: It’s pretty simple actually. The first set of allegations came out in the newspaper. It was unsubstantiated. … The source of the information, some, was coming from former disgruntled employees. … We continue to hold a position that we have nothing to hide. We’ve been very cooperative with the AG’s office, Ethics Commission regarding anything they needed. So far nothing has come out as far as illegality…. We continue to work with the Ethics Commission, continue to work with the AG’s office. … If there were minor improprieties, we’ve since changed policies. Whatever the charter school review panel wanted us to do, we did. … There was a recommendation to amend our hiring policy, which we did. KWO: So everything the school can do has been done and will be done? MT: It’s an ongoing process. Do we consider we’re perfect? Absolutely not. Do we consider we’re honest and trying to do the best we can? Absolutely. … At this point in time we feel solid. KWO: What is the charter school movement in Hawai‘i doing right? MT: The word semiautonomous is the key word. It allows schools to bring in their own curriculum and
they are outside the set pattern of the DOE (Department of Education). So what I think it’s done right is, for example, the (Hawaiian-language) immersion schools. They’re teaching their kids in Hawaiian, a full-on education. This would never have been done in the DOE because it’s not capable of doing that. It allows kids to grow up with cultural education available nowhere else in the world. That’s just one example. In our case we’re an online school, we have the flexibility to create an online curriculum (based on practices) from all over the world. … We found which were the best in the country and globally as well, and over time we’ve developed our curriculum based on that. We’ve had that flexibility. Things like the Thompson Extension Academy, that’s another example of something that can be done in a charter network. Creativity allows for the development of new best practices that also the DOE can use in the future.
Richards Street. Why move? MT: We have to move because of redevelopment plans for the Kaka‘ako area. We’re entering a four-year lease now at our new location. … The educational possibilities really fit us perfectly. It’s almost identical in size to our former space and about the size we need.
KWO: Your father’s name and you have been associated with the school since 2002. Why did you feel it was a good fit? MT: Diana (Oshiro) came to us 10 years ago and asked if they could use my father’s name for the name of the school. Back then the charter school movement was brand new. Nobody really knew what to expect, but the appealing part of it was my father was always very innovative and was not affected by the status quo. He was always looking at ways of improving. The charter schools and Diana in particular … really aligned nicely with my dad and my family’s value system. We thought it would be perfect. It’s a school that’s online. Technology was exciting at the time, still is.
KWO: Anything you would like to add? MT: The crux of our relationship between the school and my father’s name and why it continues to be a good mix comes down to the value system, Hawaiian values. Hawaiian values are really universal values. It comes down to caring for the students, being KWO: One of respectful of the kids and your newest prothe family, working real grams is called Myron Thompson stands in the second-floor breezeway of the YWCA on Rich- hard to make sure they “pono sustain- ards Street, site of the academy’s new home. - Photo: Lisa Asato succeed in life. That was ability.” Can you … how my dad viewed elaborate? life. He really worked MT: The curriculum itself is It also affords us things we didn’t hard to provide the resources neccalled pono sustainability. It’s basi- have before, such as direct access essary (to see children succeed). He cally taking the idea of teaching to ‘Iolani Palace, and the cultural particularly wanted to see kids of Hawaiian values from an individual aspect of the YWCA itself is an Hawaiian ancestry be successful in sustainability point of view and also interesting thing for us as well. life. … As a school we work really teaching environmental sustainhard at that. Because we’re online ability as well. How do you protect KWO: Your graduation rate is we have the opportunity to utilize the ‘äina and teach a value system around 90 percent. How many technology in a big way. … We’ll that’s been working for thousands of of your students go on to higher continue down that path. … Our years? That curriculum is going to be education? school should always be judged launched in the fall. MT: About 75 to 80 percent will by our results and as long as we’re pursue higher education. Others opt providing high level of education KWO: Also in the fall, your to go into the workforce or military. and our kids are succeeding, at the school will move to a new locaend of the day, that’s all that mattion – the YWCA building on ters.