The Board of Education will honor seven teachers tomorrow at its 2002 District Teachers of the Year luncheon at the Hale Koa Hotel Waikiki Ballroom, 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. BOE honors 7
teachers as tops in
their districtsStar-Bulletin staff
Each district teacher selected will receive a $500 cash award from the Polynesian Cultural Center, the state program's corporate sponsor for the 16th consecutive year.
They will also receive a free one-year lease of a new car on Oct. 18 from the Hawaii Automobile Association.
One of the teachers will be named State Teacher of the Year at the Board of Education meeting Oct. 18 at Kalani High School and will receive an additional $1,000 cash award from the Polynesian Cultural Center.
SMARTer Kids foundation will award high-tech classroom equipment to the State Teacher of the Year from SMART Technologies, NEC Technologies and AlphaSmart Inc.
The honorees are:
>> Leah Aiwohi, sixth-grade computer/technology teacher, Kauai District, Chiefess Kamakahelei Middle School, teaching for 11 years.
>> Lani Chang, sixth-grade teacher, Windward District, Waiahole Elementary School, teaching for 10 years.
>> Aileen Dang, eighth-grade ceramics/drawing and painting teacher, Honolulu District, Kalakaua Middle School, teaching for 27 years.
>> Jill Hirota, second-grade teacher, Central District, Waialua Elementary School, teaching for 12 years.
>> Helen Kobayashi, grades 9-12 social studies/anthropology teacher, Hawaii District, Waiakea High School, teaching for 30 years.
>> Janet Sato, grades 9-12 visual arts teacher, Maui District, Baldwin High School, teaching for 22 years.
>> Linda Uehara, sixth-grade language arts teacher, Leeward District, Kapolei Middle School, teaching for 33 years.
Kobayashi said she has come to realize how important her role as a teacher in the classroom is.
"I realize that I teach, explain, model, provide opportunities for practice, give feedback, and when I think the students get it, I withdraw my 'scaffold,'" she said
"Bit by bit, my students become prepared for a productive independent life, and they leave my class better than when they entered."