Teachers motivate, mentor and inspire their students. They empowered them with the knowledge, skills and character to achieve their highest aspirations.
In celebration of National Teacher Appreciation Week, some Kamehameha Schools staffers graciously agreed to share sentiments about their most influential KS kumu. This story is dedicated all teachers who have made lasting impressions on so many lives. Mahalo nui loa for all that you do!
In honor of Jay Kauka
KS Kapālama HS Social Studies Kumu
“On the first day of eleventh grade, my social studies kumu Jay Kauka said, ‘This is the hardest class you’ll take at Kamehameha. Go to your counselor and transfer out!’ But being a tenacious teenager, I stayed.
“Interspersed among AP psychology lectures, he told us about watching his house burn down as a child and later becoming an orphan. He made us stand to answer questions and didn’t turn away when I cried from frustration. It is then that I realized that being vulnerable in front of a room of people and seeing the vulnerability in each of those people is the only thing that is real.
“The power of education is that it can embolden and liberate students. But the heart of true freedom is choice. Jay – and all the great teachers, mentors, and friends we get in life – help us become ourselves. And my true self turned out to be a social studies teacher with a classroom in Kaʻahumanu basement, three doors down from Jay.”
– Kuʻuleimomi Cummings, KS Kapālama HS Social Studies Kumu
In honor of Hailama Farden
KS Kapālama HS Unit 9 and 10 Vice Principal
“By the time I had Hailama Farden as a kumu in 1992, I had one year of Hawaiian language under my belt but was still ambivalent about what being Hawaiian meant to me. My attitude changed when kumu Hailama gave us an assignment to talk to our kūpuna and tape record the conversation.
“I arrived at my Grandma Dot’s hale in Āliamanu and asked for permission to record her. She was a little leery at first, but eventually gave her consent. I started with a simple question: ‘Can you share with me something about your childhood?’ That single question opened a floodgate of memories and long forgotten emotions which she continued to share over the next few hours. She laughed and cried as she captivated me with our family’s moʻolelo, and painted a picture of what it was like being a hapa Hawaiian in Hawai’i.
“That day I went from a little boy in the eyes of my grandmother to a man upholding our family’s moʻolelo. What began as just another homework assignment turned out to be the best weekend of my childhood. Grandma Dot and I formed a bond that day that I will always treasure. I discovered through the project the importance of preserving our family’s knowledge, and who I am as a Hawaiian.”
– Brandon Wong, KS Collaborations Analyst
In honor of Calvin Fukuhara
KS Kapālama HS Math Kumu
“Mr. Calvin Fukuhara, or ‘Mr. Fuks’ as we always call him, was not only my Honors Algebra 2 teacher and math team coach, he was also a mentor and our biggest supporter.
“In the classroom, Mr. Fuks’ lesson plans and attention to detail are unmatched by any teacher I have ever had – including my professors at Stanford University – and I credit my perfect SAT math scores to his expert tutelage. Outside of the classroom, Mr. Fuks was our chaperone, our coach at math team competitions around the island and on the mainland. When we did well, he was happy for us, and we tried our best to do well to make him proud – a positive self-reinforcing cycle.
“I can wholeheartedly say that I would not be where I am today if not for Mr. Fuks, and I want to thank him for all the countless hours he has spent both in and out of the classroom for his students.
– Daniel Truong, Investment Analyst
In honor of Dr. Holoua Stender
KS Hawaiʻi Poʻo Kula (Head of School)
“One of the kumu who positively impacted my life as a student at KS Kapālama was my ninth grade Hawaiian culture teacher, Dr. Holoua Stender. At that time, kumu Stender exercised much patience and aloha for a teenage boy who was often off-task and kolohe.
“I can recall how his passion for ʻike Hawaiʻi (Hawaiian knowledge) came through in everything he did. I was fortunate enough to be selected to dance for him during the hōʻike portion of song contest during both my sophomore and senior years. He share with me his love of hula, which I continued to practice throughout college as a member of Hula Halau Kawailiʻulā, even participating in the 1993 Merrie Monarch Festival.
“As fate would have it, my first position at Kamehameha Schools Hawaiʻi after teaching social studies for five years at Hilo High School was teaching Hawaiian Culture. Talk about coming full-circle! Mahalo e Dr. Stender for being a positive role model in my life.”
– Phil Aganus, KS Hawaiʻi HS Vice Principal
In honor of Don Harvey
KS Kapālama HS Visual Arts Department Head
“Most of my teachers at KS are long gone but one that is still there is Mr. Don Harvey. He taught visual arts at KS Kapālama and I had him for art history. He was the person who taught me about the kind of teacher that I aspired to be.
“Once he took us on an excursion to the Honolulu Art Museum and as we went wandering around, I was in awe to see that he had a pottery piece at the museum. He never said anything about his own work, but here he was, a legitimate, recognized artist.
“I knew that when I was a teacher, I would also need to be a practitioner and teach through that lens, so I wrote and published poetry, not to actually share them with my students, but to help them develop their own voice as writers through my own experiences.”
– Cathy Ikeda, KS Hawaiʻi Instructional Specialist
In honor of Kevin O’Brien
KS Maui HS World History Kumu
“Top-notch – an informal adjective, meaning ‘excellent,’ was high praise when it came from Mr. Kevin O’Brien, Kamehameha Schools Maui’s High School world history teacher. You were a lucky student if you heard it as assignments were handed back, because it meant your efforts were outstanding.
“Mr. O’Brien is known to KS Maui students past and present as being an enthusiastic educator. He is living proof of the saying ‘Choose a job you love, and you will never have to work a day in your life.’
“His passion for teaching can be seen in the way he engages students with lectures that are captivating, personal history projects that made ancient subject matter relatable, and his ever-popular Inquisition Tournament – a competition pitting all world history periods against each other with a single winner each semester.
“Passion cannot be taught, it must be discovered. Thank you for being an inspiration and showing us that as long as we are passionate, we can be successful in whatever we choose to do in life. Top-notch work, Mr. O’Brien! Top notch!”
– Rachel Patrick, KS Maui Health Services Assistant
KS Collaborations Analyst Brandon Wong (R) says an assignment from his former Hawaiian language kumu Hailama Farden helped him connect with his kupuna (grandparent).
KS Investment Analyst Daniel Truong (L) credits his former math teacher Calvin Fukuhara with his perfect SAT math scores.
KSH HS Vice Principal Phil Aganus (R) says his former Hawaiian culture kumu Dr. Holoua Stender passed on his passion for ʻike Hawaiʻi (Hawaiian knowledge).
KS Hawai'i Instructional Specialist Cathy Ikeda (L) says her former visual arts kumu Don Harvey's humility was inspiring.
KS Maui Health Services Assistant Rachel Patrick (R) says that her former world history kumu Kevin O'Brien's teaching methods are "Top notch!"
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