Vote will chart school's future

LAUPAHOEHOE, Hawaii » Parents and employees at a Big Island school are voting on whether to seek charter school status in an effort to stave off closure.

Proponents say the best way to keep the state from closing Laupahoehoe High and Elementary School is to apply to convert to a public charter school.

They need a simple majority to allow the Laupahoehoe Alumni & Community Association to apply to the state for the conversion. The ballots are scheduled to be counted Wednesday.

Waning enrollment in recent years has led the Department of Education to place the school on its closure and consolidation list.

It also failed to maintain adequate yearly progress under the federal No Child Left Behind law two years in a row.

Department officials said a closure study could begin this spring.

Hawaii gives Obama high approval

Hawaii has warm feelings for native son Barack Obama, with residents giving the president his highest approval ratings of the 50 states, according to Gallup polling data released Friday.

Hawaii residents gave its native son an average 71 percent approval rating of his overall job performance from January through December 2009.

Only the District of Columbia, where Obama has a 90.2 percent approval rating, was higher.

Obama was also popular in Maryland (68.5 percent), Vermont (67.7 percent), New York (67.2 percent) and Massachusetts (66.8 percent).

The president's lowest approval ratings last year were in Wyoming (41.6 percent), Idaho (43.3 percent), West Virginia (45.9 percent) and Alaska (46 percent).

His overall approval rating last year was 57.6 percent.

Hanohano manages Aiona campaign

Former U.S. Marshal Mark Hanohano has been named campaign manager for Lt. Gov. James “;Duke”; Aiona's gubernatorial campaign.

The announcement was made by the campaign last week.

Hanohano will manage the day-to-day operations of the campaign and work with the Republican lieutenant governor's senior leadership team.

He served 18 years as a deputy state sheriff and was appointed in 2003 by President George W. Bush to serve as U.S. marshal for Hawaii.

Other top Aiona advisers include John Posting, a longtime Republican political consultant based in California, and Miriam Hellreich, who has raised large sums of campaign dollars for GOP Gov. Linda Lingle's campaigns and is a member of the Republican National Committee.

Catch a Mike Sakamoto scholarship

Students interested in marine sciences and fishing are encouraged to apply for the Mike Sakamoto Memorial Scholarship, a newly established award honoring the late fishing icon.

Four scholarships worth $2,500 each are available to graduating high school seniors and graduating college seniors who intend to pursue further education.

The scholarship, created by the Pacific Islands Fisheries Group, honors Sakamoto, an advocate for responsible fishing who was best known as host of the popular television show, “;Fishing Tales with Mike Sakamoto.”;

Applicants must be Hawaii residents and U.S. citizens who will be going to school full time. More information and an application form are available at www.fishtoday.org. The deadline is Feb. 28.

7 families use homebuyers fund on Maui

WAIHEE, Maui » Seven families have bought homes with money from the Maui County's first-time homebuyers fund, the county announced.

The fund was created in 2005 but administrative problems delayed awards. In the four years since it was established, the fund grew to $1.6 million, though $200,000 was cut last year by the Maui City Council to cover a budget shortfall.

The county began taking applications in November, and the grants were awarded in December.

The program provides grants of up to $15,000 to assist with down-payment or closing costs.

The money does not have to be repaid unless they refinance for cash, stop using their home as their primary residence or sell within 15 years.

Recipients also need to be county residents and can earn no more than 140 percent of the median income.