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Former Makaha It's a tale of two schools -- and one principal.
principal is missed
at Aiea school
Clarence Delude was a 'savior'
at Aiea Intermediate, but not
on the Leeward sideBy Crystal Kua
Star-BulletinOne school paints embattled principal Clarence Delude as a heavy-handed administrator who has caused division and strife.
The other describes him as a caring, well-liked and respected leader who always put students' interests ahead of others.
"He was sort of like our savior, but I guess out there he's the devil," said Stephanie Hauki, who was acting vice principal under Delude at Aiea Intermediate last year.
Delude was replaced yesterday as principal of Makaha Elementary School after parents, teachers and other community members complained about his management style.
But some at Aiea Intermediate, where Delude was acting principal for months prior to going to Makaha, said they were surprised to hear of the complaints at Makaha.
"I've seen the opposite," said Levi Lake, the school/community-based management council chairman while Delude ran Aiea Intermediate. "I think Mr. Delude was very caring regarding the students and the staff. His concern and hard work for the school did make a difference there (at Aiea)."
Some at Aiea said that if Makaha doesn't want him, they will gladly take Delude back.
"We didn't want him to go. We kind of miss him. We want him back," parent Jessica Mabida-Bridges said. "He did good. I don't want him to get shafted."
Principals may succeed at one school but not at another, and that is no indication of the person's ability, said state schools Superintendent Paul LeMahieu.
"He's proven he can be a successful principal," LeMahieu said. "He's been a successful principal on a interim basis elsewhere."
As a result, LeMahieu said, Delude doesn't deserve to be fired, and he didn't think actions by Delude -- his emphasis on improving the students' reading and basic skills and his decision to eliminate a popular farm program -- were the reasons for the tense situation.
Long-standing differences and other factors have contributed to community members demanding Delude's removal, and the community itself must resolve the matter, LeMahieu said.
Hauki said she believes Delude was successful in Aiea because there wasn't the history that he had with Makaha, where he's from.
"There were problems already in the (Makaha) community. He didn't have that in Aiea," Hauki said. "He worked really hard, tried to work with the (Aiea) community. He didn't have all the other baggage."
Hauki said Delude took over at Aiea Intermediate when that school was going through problems with a former administrator. "He was trying to bring people together," Hauki said. "The community liked him."
Kids always came first with Delude, said Lake. "Any programs, any issues that came up at the time, kids were included, and they got their opinions in on certain things, too, and that impressed me, too," he said. "One thing I can say about Mr. Delude, everyone respected him."
Mabida-Bridges said Delude put his job on the line to help her son, who had a run-in with a former teacher.
"He could have lost his job, but he knew what was right," she said. "He's the kind of person you really want on your side. He is willing to listen."
Star-Bulletin reporter Suzanne Tswei
also contributed to this report.