Updated: July 29, 2022
From school years 2013–14 through 2020–21, the Hawaii State Teachers Association contract included an appendix to the contract entitled: Additional Professional Development Hours. This provision came to be known as 21 hours. Due to budget restrictions, the 21 hours did not occur in SY 2021-22, but are restored in SY 2022-23.
This provision added 21 hours of additional paid work time to a teacher’s schedule throughout the year. Upon completion of the school year and the hours, each teacher was also awarded three (3) professional development credits (PD).
Credits earned from 21 hours during any of that time are valid and can be used toward reclassification on the salary schedule. Should you have any questions, please contact your UniServ Director.
Periodically questions come into the HSTA offices about earning 21 hours of job-embedded professional development credits and the reclassification process, which qualifies educators for higher pay.
Awarding three professional development (PD) credits (from 21 hours) earned during the school year
How do the 3 PD credits work?
At the end of each school year, PD verification forms are pre-populated with teachers’ names and sent to the schools. The principal has to verify which teachers completed the PD hours and should be awarded the three PD credits. Generally those forms are returned within a couple of weeks and teachers should find their credits posted on their accounts when they return to school for the next school year. All credits for each school year will be dated with an effective completion date of June 30.
What about charter school teachers? Does the HIDOE do anything for their credits?
The HIDOE can award PD credits to charter school teachers for the 21 hours. However, because the HIDOE does not have full access to charter school teacher rosters, it is not able to pre-populate spreadsheets for them. The HIDOE asks charter school directors to send a list of their teachers and manually load credits for them. However, because many charters do not follow the HIDOE reclassification process, they do not submit anything, so this would generally only apply to those charters that use the HIDOE services/reclassification system.
How do I apply my credits toward reclassification?
If you are employed by a charter school, check with your school administrator for the system used. Charter schools may or may not use the HIDOE system for reclassification.
How do I apply my credits earned from the 21 hours for reclassification?
Once teachers have their credits posted in PDE3, the credits can be submitted to the Teacher Reclassification Unit and applied toward the next change in classification. Please refer to the HIDOE’s latest guidelines for reclassification of teachers for more information.
Shouldn’t my credits just automatically be processed for reclassification?
Unfortunately, the PDE3 system and the Teacher Reclassification system don’t automatically sync. Teachers have to download credits and submit them to the reclassification office. If you are employed by a charter school, check with your school administrator for the system used; charter schools may or may not use the HIDOE system for reclassification.
How does reclassification work?
Click here to view our Know Your Rights: Reclassification post.
Have more questions? Please contact your UniServ Director or submit an inquiry via this online form.