High school sports
Kailua clears Johnson
of allegations, but
he resigns anywayThe football coach steps down
to pursue a college degree
Kailua High School football coach Darren Johnson told the Star-Bulletin late last night that he was cleared by athletic director Mel Imai and principal Francine Honda of all allegations of misconduct against him.
Johnson, however, is resigning from his post as football coach to pursue a college degree. He will remain employed at the school as an educational assistant for special-needs students.
Honda and Imai investigated the alleged misconduct since written complaints were brought to Imai from several of Johnson's assistants on April 14.
Honda confirmed that Johnson has been cleared of wrongdoing.
"It was a difficult time and a difficult decision," Johnson said. "The whole situation made me realize that now is the time to take care of goals that I put on hold.
"Throughout the whole time, I tried to stay positive and I tried to keep students and the athletes on campus positive despite everything that was going on."
Johnson led the Surfriders to five Oahu Interscholastic Association championship games and to one OIA co-championship. During his reign as coach, he also led them to two OIA Red East Division titles and one OIA White conference championship as well as four state-tournament appearances since 1999.
He planned to address his players at 6:30 this morning when they gather to lift and run.
"I've had awesome family support and I've had awesome support from my friends," he said. "It was overwhelming support and that was what made my decision difficult."
The 1983 Kahuku graduate said he'll miss coaching in high school, and said he's been offered coaching jobs from the Pop Warner to college levels.
"The kids who played for me will always be in my heart," he said. "They worked so hard."
Johnson added that Imai asked him to reconsider his decision to resign several times during the week.
"That's one of the reasons this process took so long," Johnson said. "They finally let me resign."
He's not bitter against the coaches who approached Imai with the accusations. He also didn't want to name those who pointed the finger against him.
"Whatever happened ... happened," he said. "All I can do is look at it in a positive light and move on. I enjoyed the ride at Kailua and I don't regret anything," he said. "I had good assistant coaches -- all of the assistants -- and they all worked hard and were instrumental in my success and the team's success."
Johnson said he's been wanting to go back to college for a long time to finish his undergraduate degree.
"I'm tired of being poor," he said.
Honda said Kailua is losing a good coach.
"It's very disheartening," she said. "It's not just his coaching football, but he was also there to help the kids keep on track academically. He was also there to support them when they needed someone to talk to."