BY ALEX DA SILVA — The Hawaii State Board of Education has selected Lee Goeke as an educational consultant to assist the Board in its search for a superintendent.
Mr. Goeke, principal/owner of Human Resources Solutions for Public Education in Vancouver, Wash., will work with the Board to solicit statewide community input, consult with educators and key stakeholders, develop a superintendent profile, and perform other duties related to the search.
“We are excited to have Lee help guide the Board in selecting the best superintendent for Hawaii,” said Board member Carol Mon Lee, who chairs the Ad Hoc Committee on the Superintendent Search Process. “His extensive background and knowledge in educational recruitment and management, as well as his understanding of Hawaii’s public education system, will be invaluable assets as we move closer to seeking superintendent candidates.”
Mr. Goeke has extensive experience providing strategic human resource solutions for public schools both in Hawaii and on the mainland. He has worked with the Hawaii State Department of Education in redesigning human resource management processes, Waianae High School in teaching recruiting and retention, Maui district in strategic planning, and has assisted Hawaii public charter schools in staff and organizational development and collective bargaining.
Mr. Goeke previously served as associate superintendent for human resources and management for the Vancouver Public School System, and as European Director of human resources for the Department of the Army, where his responsibilities included human resource management support to over 12,000 teachers in the dependent schools system.
“I’m excited to have the opportunity to collaborate with the Board in this newest chapter for public education in Hawaii,” Mr. Goeke said. “I look forward to working with the community to identify a superintendent with the characteristics essential to moving public education forward in Hawaii.”
Mr. Goeke received a Bachelor of Science in Business and Management from the University of Maryland, and earned a Master’s degree in Business Administration from the University of Utah. He also attended the John F. Kennedy School of Government Program for Senior Executives at Harvard University, the Business Policy Operations, Total Quality Management program at the Brookings Institute, and studied Leadership and Management at the Federal Executive Institute.
The selection of Mr. Goeke follows an April 16, 2010, Board workshop by Mr. Donald McAdams, founder and president of the Center for Reform of School Systems in Houston, Texas, that was jointly sponsored by the Harold K.L.Castle Foundation and The Learning Coalition.
The Board will begin working with Mr. Goeke on developing procedures to gather public input, and expects to start advertising for the superintendent’s position in the coming weeks.
Alex Da Silva is with the BOE.