Civil Beat Staff

Suevon Lee

Suevon Lee joined Honolulu Civil Beat as a reporter in June 2017.

She was previously based in Los Angeles, where she wrote for legal news wire Law360. She also served as editor-in-chief of former print culture magazine, KoreAm Journal.

She has also worked in New York, where she was a reporting intern for ProPublica and editor/reporter for an affiliate publication of the New York Law Journal. She has also spent time in Florida, covering courts for the Ocala Star-Banner.

Originally from the D.C. suburbs, Suevon graduated from the University of Maryland with a degree in English. She holds a masters from Northwestern University’s Medill School of Journalism and a master of studies in law from Yale Law School.

You can reach Suevon via email at slee@civilbeat.org or follow her on Twitter at @suevlee.

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Hawaii School Superintendent’s Contract Extended For One Year Cory Lum/Civil Beat

Hawaii School Superintendent’s Contract Extended For One Year

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Some education advocates are concerned that the evaluation of Christina Kishimoto wasn’t tied more closely to data about school performance.

Education Officials Are Keeping Teacher Misconduct A Secret Civil Beat

Education Officials Are Keeping Teacher Misconduct A Secret

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Information on bad teachers, including details of misconduct and current status, is hard to get in Hawaii, despite a state law requiring its release.

School Board To Revote On Superintendent’s Contract — This Time Publicly Cory Lum/Civil Beat

School Board To Revote On Superintendent’s Contract — This Time Publicly

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Concerns were raised after the board voted in executive session to reward the state superintendent with an additional contract year.

Hawaii’s Schools Chief Could Get One-Year Contract Extension Cory Lum/Civil Beat

Hawaii’s Schools Chief Could Get One-Year Contract Extension

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The Board of Education wants to send a clear message it is pleased with Christina Kishimoto’s performance since taking over the DOE in 2017.

State Education Board Plans To Lobby Legislature Directly Cory Lum/Civil Beat

State Education Board Plans To Lobby Legislature Directly

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The BOE wants to help field questions about the byzantine inner workings of the budget for public schools.

The Fight Against Flight At Hawaii’s Public Middle Schools Cory Lum/Civil Beat

The Fight Against Flight At Hawaii’s Public Middle Schools

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Educators know they have to persuade parents that this isn’t the time to send their kids to private school — or a different public school.

Hawaii Public Schools Sued Over Unequal Treatment Of Female Athletes Cory Lum/Civil Beat

Hawaii Public Schools Sued Over Unequal Treatment Of Female Athletes

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UPDATED: The ACLU lawsuit comes 10 months after the group sent a demand letter to the state Department of Education over the lack of a girls locker room at Campbell High.

Want To Teach In Hawaii? The Job Often Comes With A Big Pay Cut Cory Lum/Civil Beat

Want To Teach In Hawaii? The Job Often Comes With A Big Pay Cut

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Teachers from the mainland only get credit for a few years of seniority, creating another challenge in efforts to address Hawaii’s teacher shortage.

Lawsuit Claims State Denies Critical Therapy For Kids With Autism Cory Lum/Civil Beat

Lawsuit Claims State Denies Critical Therapy For Kids With Autism

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The suit alleges the departments of Education and Human Services aren’t coordinating to provide legally required services at schools.

Hawaii Aims To Quicken The Pace Of School Repairs Suevon Lee/Civil Beat

Hawaii Aims To Quicken The Pace Of School Repairs

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The Department of Education wants to demystify how it is handling a hefty repair and maintenance backlog.

Hawaii’s Teacher Shortage Is Getting Worse Cory Lum/Civil Beat

Hawaii’s Teacher Shortage Is Getting Worse

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The latest employment data from the Hawaii DOE shows a year-over-year struggle to hold on to teachers as the number of positions continues to grow.

Protections For Transgender Kids Still Spotty Inside Schools Cory Lum/Civil Beat

Protections For Transgender Kids Still Spotty Inside Schools

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It’s been three years since the Hawaii Department of Education issued guidance around transgender student protections. But how widely have those policies been implemented in the schools?