H.C.R. 32 Summary

• Urges the Department of Education to develop and implement an affirmative action program to recruit and employ qualified blind professionals as orientation and mobility instructors and teachers of visually impaired students.

• Requests that the DOE Superintendent submit a report to the legislature at least thirty days prior to the 2022 Regular Session detailing recruitment and employment progress of blind people in instructional positions.

• Establishes that the National Orientation and Mobility Certification (NOMC) credential, which emphasizes employing blind instructors using Structured Discovery Cane Travel methods, should be prioritized alongside vision-centered approaches.

• Notes that the Hawaii Teacher Standards Board now accepts NOMC credentials for teaching visually impaired students, but this change has not yet increased employment of blind instructors.

• Directs certified copies of the resolution be transmitted to the Governor, Board of Education, Teacher Standards Board, and relevant blind advocacy organizations including the National Federation of the Blind of Hawaii and Hawaii Association of the Blind.