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Aug. 13, 2025
Editor's note: Images from our eblast program are not displaying properly. While we work on addressing this, please click on the "Always display images from hawaiipublicschools@eblasts.k12.hi.us" option. Mahalo!
Editorial Mission: As the Department's primary publication, we aim to live up to the meaning of ha‘aheo – to cherish with pride – by bolstering and sustaining pride in public education and touting the successes happening across our system.
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Aloha, HIDOE Community –
Welcome to this week’s edition of the Ho‘oha‘aheo Newsletter.
2026 Complex Area Teachers of the Year
I’m excited to announce the 2026 Complex Area Teachers of the Year! They all exemplify the profound impact our dedicated educators have in preparing our students to become globally competitive and locally committed. Their commitment to fostering not just academic excellence, but also creativity, resilience, curiosity and critical thinking, is truly inspiring. We are honored to celebrate these individuals who are actively building a foundation for success for our students, our schools, and our state.
One teacher will be announced as the 2026 Hawaiʻi State Teacher of the Year on Sept. 19 and will go on to represent Hawaiʻi in the National Teacher of the Year program. Please join me in congratulating the following educators:
- David Adler of Nānākuli Elementary (Nānākuli-Waiʻanae complex area)
- Josette (Kaleo) Akim Hanohano of Kahuku High & Intermediate (Castle-Kahuku complex area)
- Jessica Canyon of Fern Elementary (Farrington-Kaiser-Kalani complex area)
- Susan Chew of Lānaʻi High and Elementary (Hāna-Lahainaluna-Lānaʻi-Molokaʻi complex area)
- Claire Ann (Kalaunuola) Domingo of Ke Kula oʻ Samuel M. Kamakau Laboratory Public Charter School (Public Charter Schools)
- Steve Hanks of Honoka‘a High & Intermediate (Honoka‘a-Kealakehe-Kohala-Konawaena complex area)
- Judith Elise Hannigan of Keaʻau High (Ka‘ū-Keaʻau-Pāhoa complex area)
- Christopher Justo of Mililani Middle (Leilehua-Mililani-Waialua complex area)
- Jodi Kadoyama of Mānana Elementary (Pearl City-Waipahu complex area)
- Emily Mendoza of ‘Aiea High (‘Aiea-Moanalua-Radford complex area)
- Kristel Pigao of Waiheʻe Elementary (Baldwin-Kekaulike-Kūlanihākoʻi-Maui complex area)
- Dawn Spurrell-Robinson of Hilo-Waiākea Complex Area
- Courtney Suma of Kapolei High (Campbell-Kapolei complex area)
- Kris Tajima of Kauluwela Elementary (Kaimukī-McKinley-Roosevelt complex area)
- Kathleen Trifonovitch of Maunawili Elementary (Kailua-Kalāheo complex area)
- Natsumi Yamasato of Wilcox Elementary (Kapaʻa-Kauaʻi-Waimea complex area)
New HIDOE School Food Services Administrator
Anneliese Tanner will be joining our team as our new School Food Services Administrator next month. Her leadership experience spans large-scale operations, scratch cooking, local food sourcing, and innovative nutrition programs. Tanner is a seasoned leader in K-12 food systems, most recently serving as executive director of Food & Nutrition Services for Boston Public Schools, and previously leading school food operations for the Chef Ann Foundation and the Austin Independent School District.
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Dole Middle School held a blessing ceremony on Aug. 8 to unveil its new Covered Learning Center, a multi-purpose covered space students can use for learning, fitness, school and community events and more. Principal Mavis Tasaka had the vision for the facility about 10 years ago as a covered play area to meet the social, academic and athletic needs of the student body.
“We couldn't fit everyone in the cafeteria when we had assemblies,” Tasaka said. “So this will give students a lot of opportunities to do sports, after school activities, STEM projects and things like that. Our kids are really looking forward to using it on a daily basis.”
Credit: Eliot Honda / HIDOE Communications Branch
Send us your public school-related image from this school year for a chance to be featured as next week’s Ho‘oha‘aheo Photo of the Week!
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This Friday, Statehood Day commemorates Hawaiʻi's admission into the United States. How many of our public schools are named for former governors of the State of Hawaiʻi?
a. One
b. Two
c. Three
d. None of the above
Find the answer at the end of this newsletter.
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Kamali‘i Elementary School: Kamali’i students and staff wore pink and red for the 2nd anniversary of the Maui fires. We focused on community and what we can do to support our community. #KamaliiSchool
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ʻAiea Intermediate School: What an amazing first week of school! We ended it with a spirit assembly where our whole student body came out and had a blast! Big mahalo to Mrs. LoPresti and student government for making this assembly a success! Great way to start of the school year! #LetsRollKamalii
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Kalāheo High School: Kalāheo NJROTC welcomed very special guests from the Blue Angels. They were shown a presentation, learned about what it is to be part of a team, asked questions, took photos, and got autographs. Some of the cadets will be attending the air show aboard Marine Corps Base Hawai’i.
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Use the #HIPublicSchoolsProud hashtag for a chance to be featured!
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Washington Middle School students started the new school year off with a newly-renovated bandroom thanks to alum and ukulele virtuoso Jake Shimabukuro and the Good Tidings Foundation. “Music is a place that builds community, brings people together, and that’s what we want for the school. That’s what we want for this community,” he said.
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By integrating more locally grown produce, HIDOE is starting to actively embrace the significance of its role in growing Hawai‘i’s food economy, writes Jesse Cooke, vice president of investments and analytics at Ulupono Initiative in a Community Voices column for Civil Beat.
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The first in Mural Moʻolelo, a monthly series featuring the meaningful artwork found on public school walls, gyms and buildings spotlights the state’s first stained glass mural located at Kīpapa Elementary. The artwork depicts two young hula dancers who are real-life siblings and attended the school.
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By Chiara Doyle, Kalani High School
Kalani High School middle attacker Chiara Doyle kicks the ball in a soccer match against Kailua High School last season. Photo credit: Mitchell Otani / Kalani High School
In Hawai‘i, tens of thousands of high school students dedicate themselves to year-round sports, embracing academic and athletic excellence.
A student-athlete can be defined as someone who is enrolled in an education institution while also participating in an organized, competitive sport sponsored by that institution. While this is true, here is my take on what a student-athlete really is… someone who is dedicated, hardworking, and committed to all responsibilities given by school first, then sports. A student-athlete is someone who understands the importance of an education while also being able to maintain the balance of some competitive physical activity.
For me as a soccer player, I have soccer practice three times a week out at the Waipio Soccer Complex. The almost hour drive from Kalani High School to Waipio can be harsh at times. From the time that school is over to the time I get home at night after practice, just about five whole hours have passed me by. I get home at 7 p.m., try to be in bed by 10 p.m. and wake up the next day at 6:30 a.m. and repeat my day again.
Sometimes school work can be a bit of a struggle for me, but it is all about priorities.
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Chiara Doyle is a junior at Kalani High School and plays soccer for the Falcons. She hopes to play at the collegiate level and study sports medicine and kinesiology. In her free time, she loves spending time with friends and family, going to the beach, working out and binge-watching TV shows. She wrote this piece while working as a summer intern on HIDOE's Communications Branch team.
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Su Shin
Occupation: Hawaiian Telcom President
What school you grad? McKinley High School ‘89
College: University of La Verne
Location: Honolulu, HI
After her father’s unexpected death when Su Shin was 5 years old, her mother emigrated her and her older brother from Korea to Hawai‘i for a chance at a better life. She grew up in public housing in Kalihi and attended Kaʻiulani Elementary School, Kawānanakoa Middle School and McKinley High School. With dreams of becoming the next Connie Chung, Shin studied journalism at the University of La Verne. She began her career as a journalist at KHNL-TV (now Hawaiʻi News Now) and later transitioned to strategic communications as chief communications officer for the Honolulu Board of Water Supply and later served as senior vice president at Bennet Group, a public relations agency in Honolulu. Shin joined Hawaiian Telcom in 2013 as executive director of Corporate Communications and eventually was promoted into several key leadership positions, including stewardship of the Marketing and Communications teams and serving as chief of staff. In 2020, Shin made history as Hawaiian Telcom’s first female president in the company’s 142-year history.
She has been recognized by the Public Schools of Hawai‘i Foundation, Pacific Business News as a Power Leader, awarded the Girl Scouts Women of Distinction and honored at the YWCA’s Leader Luncheon.
Q: What are you up to these days?
A: I am the president of Hawaiian Telcom, leading a world-class team committed to our vision of connecting and empowering Hawaiʻi. We're investing $1.7 billion to make Hawaiʻi the first fully fiber-enabled state in the United States by the end of 2026. This future-proof fiber optic network enables Hawaiʻi's fastest internet speeds, symmetrical upload and download speeds, ultra-low latency, and reliability to meet our community's needs now and in the future. Beyond fast speeds, this investment is about bridging the digital divide and ensuring digital equity across our island state. Whether you're in Hāʻena on Kauaʻi or Hawaiʻi Kai on Oʻahu, you will have access to Hawaiʻi's only 100% fiber network. This critical broadband infrastructure will enable distance learning, remote work, and telehealth opportunities for some of Hawaiʻi's most remote and underserved populations. Additionally, this vital investment will transform the broadband landscape in Hawaiʻi, serving as foundational infrastructure to fuel economic resiliency and growth.
Q: Why did you choose this career path and what do you enjoy most about it?
A: I didn't choose this career path or strive for this role, but I love my job and my work ʻohana at Hawaiian Telcom. I'm incredibly fortunate to work alongside such dedicated and hard-working employees who feel a deep sense of kuleana for the vital role we play in our community, keeping our customers connected to what matters most to them. The investments and impact we are making across the state are historic, and I'm so proud of the legacy we are building together. I love that we are honoring our long and rich history in the islands while forging a brighter future for the community we serve.
Q: What makes you #PublicSchoolProud?
A: I'm so proud to be a product of Hawaiʻi's public school system because, without the incredibly dedicated and caring teachers, administrators, and staff I had the good fortune of encountering, I would not be where I am today. But more than just where I am, I would not be who I am. Aside from my mom, who deserves a medal for all she did and sacrificed to raise me and my brother as a single mom, it is the public school community that helped to raise me. This is where I learned to value community, compassion, and grit. My core values were shaped in these formative years, and I owe a debt of gratitude to the many who not only showed me kindness but a real sense of belonging and care.
Q: Favorite subject in school?
A: English. I loved the power of language and storytelling.
Q: Favorite school lunch or breakfast?
A: The baked spaghetti and shortbread cookies!
Q: What type of extracurricular activities were you involved in?
A: Speech, choir, drama, swimming. These activities helped me develop confidence and communication skills.
Q: Name of a teacher or mentor you’d like to thank?
A: Mrs. Fely Serra was an English teacher and my speech coach. She taught me not only to love the written and spoken word but to appreciate their power. She is the reason I pursued a career in journalism.
Q: What advice do you have for students?
A: Work hard and don't be afraid to take chances. Honor and embrace your personal history; be authentic and kind. And most importantly, don't forget where you came from—pay it forward.
Q: Anything else you’d like to add or share?
A: I believe that I have a responsibility to give back to this community that helped me and my family when we needed it most. My experiences in Hawaiʻi's public schools taught me the value of community support and the impact that dedicated individuals can have on students' lives. This has inspired me to serve as a board member for several organizations, including the Aloha United Way, the Blood Bank of Hawaiʻi, the McKinley High School Foundation, the Hawaiʻi Business Roundtable, and the Bell Charitable Foundation. I'm committed to ensuring that future generations have the same opportunities and support that I received. But the most important job I have and the one I'm most proud of is being a mom to my two amazing daughters, Maya and Kayla. I strive to instill in them the same values of community service and gratitude that I learned in our public schools.
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Palisades Elementary School Principal Gavin Tsue, left, and Hawaiian Telcom President Su Shin, right, were classmates at McKinley High School in the Class of 1989. Shin spoke about “The Impact of Public Education” at the Pearl City-Waipahu Complex Area Summit for school administrators on July 9 at Pearl at Kalauao. Photo credit: Kimberly Yuen / HIDOE Communications Branch
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Public School Pop Quiz! Answer: d. None of the above. There have been nine governors since statehood in 1959 (Govs. William Francis Quinn, John Anthony Burns, George Ryoichi Ariyoshi, John D. Waiheʻe III, Benjamin J. Cayetano, Linda Lingle, Neil Abercrombie, David Y. Ige, Josh Green, M.D.), but no schools are named for them. Former governors Sanford Dole (Middle), Wallace Rider Farrington (High) and Samuel Wilder King (Intermediate) were governors of the Territory of Hawaiʻi. Waiheʻe Elementary on Maui is named for the area north of Kahului, not for former Gov. John D. Waiheʻe III.
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This newsletter was produced by the Hawai'i State Department of Education Communications Branch.
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Nanea Ching
Executive Editor
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Kimberly Yuen
Managing Editor
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Share your story ideas, events, questions and feedback to newsletter@k12.hi.us
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