The Audit's The Thing

Katherine Poythress/Civil Beat

The new chairman of the Hawaii State Board of Education has promised audits of the board and Department of Education at nearly every public appearance since he was appointed in March.

But what Don Horner has not mentioned is that the department has undergone at least 32 audits in the past 10 years — or what they've revealed. He has, however, alluded to undertaking everything from simple policy audits of the board to full-fledged management and financial audits of the entire school system.

At the board's inaugural meeting Tuesday, he began making good on those promises by establishing an audit committee with himself at the helm and Maui's Wesley Lo as vice chair. The committee will look first at board policies, then at the department from virtually every angle — programs, offices and schools.

"Historically, audits have been viewed as us going out and finding all the problems," Horner said. "In this case, we will not be identifying simply problems, but solutions. We will be looking for opportunities to help us be more productive and effective."

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