The Governor is calling for an overhaul of public education as a result of this crisis.
Opponents of her plan to put the Superintendent into the Governor's cabinet for direct oversight say the governor played a role in bringing about furlough fridays.
Criticism of the public school situation is coming from all angles, from kids and parents and even the U.S. Secretary of Education in a stinging rebuke of Hawaii's school-day closures.
"I would be in agreement with anyone who said that, I think cutting instructional time is not the direction anyone who cares about education would want to be going in," says Governor Linda Lingle.
The Governor blames the Board of Education structure for furloughed instructional days becoming part of the final teacher contract.
"I can tell you had it been one of my directors under my oversight, they would not have made this selection," says Governor Lingle.
So she's calling for the superintendent of schools to be put directly under her supervision in a cabinet position, which would require a constitutional amendment she'll ask the legislature to put on the next ballot.
The Board of Education is firing back. the board president said.
"She agreed to the contract, we couldn't have moved ahead without it. For her to talk stink about the contract now is not professional."
Congressman Abercrombie took the Governor to task over defending furlough fridays against yesterdays restraining order attempt in federal court.
"How can that possibly be a premise for any governor for any leadership in any state not to have children being taught? To actually send the attorney general into court and say I am here to make sure the schools stay closed," says Representative Neil Abercrombie, (D) Hawaii.
The Governor says she wishes the furlough days had never been agreed to in the first place.
"I think it was in the best interest of getting the contract resolved and we were all focused on that, myself included, but looking back I think it would have been better to say we just can't settle it this way," says Governor Lingle.
In addition to the constitional amendment to do away with the centralized Board of Education, the Governor also says she'll call for equal funding for charter schools. Without out it, she says we risk losing federal funds.
