Attorney Randall M.L. Yee ousted longtime member Keith Sakata from the state Board of Education, while newcomers Laura Thielen, Shirley Robinson and Mary Cochran won the three open seats in yesterday's election. [ BOARD OF EDUCATION ]
Yee and 3 newcomers win
seats on Education BoardBy Susan Essoyan
sessoyan@starbulletin.comFour incumbents hung onto their posts. Board members Karen Knudsen and Shannon Ajifu took the top two spots in the Oahu at-large district race, followed by Yee. Garrett Toguchi and Breene Harimoto, both appointed earlier this year to fill vacancies on the board, also retained their seats.
Yee, who lost a previous bid for the board, said he is looking forward to helping children who get lost in the shuffle, and developing magnet schools that will build pride among public school students.
"It's unfair to expect the school system to make up for all of our social ills, but hopefully we can do more to identify these students and keep them on the right path," he said.
Robinson, a former Aiea Neighborhood Board member, bested Grace Dixon for the Central Oahu slot. Cochran narrowly defeated Kelly King on Maui. Harimoto beat Karen James in Leeward Oahu, and Toguchi defeated Shannon Wood for a two-year Oahu at-large seat.
Thielen said she ran for the Windward seat because "if we don't fix the public school system, it's going to push Hawaii into a horrible income and education gap." Thielen, daughter of state Rep. Cynthia Thielen, out-polled former state Rep. Terrance Tom.
Although voters consistently rank education as a top issue, few pay much attention to the 14-member board, which sets policy for the state's public schools. Many people just left that part of their ballot blank.
"For Board of Education, I had no idea," Akiva Clark said after casting his ballot late yesterday. "I decided not to vote on it." His wife, a 27-year-old public school teacher, sheepishly admitted that she had done the same thing.
