Awards given for Hawai'i History Day projects

Advertiser Staff

More than 230 students statewide recently participated in the eighth annual Hawai'i History Day competition. Forty-seven students qualified for the national competition in Washington, D.C., later this month.

A program of the Hawai'i Council for the Humanities, the theme this year was "Rights and Responsibilities in History." Students explored key moments and figures in civil rights, Hawai'i labor struggles, legal and constitutional history, and major changes in ways of thinking about science and the environment, according to a press release.

A number of special awards were presented:

• The Hawai'i Council for the Humanities gave Outstanding Teacher Awards to Lorey Ishihara of Kahuku High School and Kevin Chaitin of Moanalua High School for their longtime support of Hawai'i History Day and their inspiring role in getting students to "do history" and learn "history's habits of the mind." Each teacher received an engraved koa plaque. A special plaque was also awarded to Annette M. Lew for her service as a founder and state coordinator of Hawai'i History Day from its inception in 1991 through her retirement in 2003.

• Hawai'i Pacific University presented scholarships of $2,500 each to Rebecca Wunder, Wendee Murayama and Caine Jette of Maui High School for their documentary "Fighting for the Right to be Called Americans: The Story of the Nisei Soldiers."

• Brigham Young University-Hawai'i presented a full-tuition, one-semester scholarship to Cecily Kaya from Moanalua High School for her display "The 100th Infantry Battalion: Rights Denied; Responsibility Fulfilled."

• Chaminade University presented a scholarship of $5,600 to Jokke Kokkonen from Kahuku High School for his essay "There Is No Danger."

• The Alexander and Baldwin Foundation gave two cash awards for outstanding projects in plantation, agricultural or maritime history. The junior division award went to Nicholas Pascual from Lahaina Intermediate School for his essay "The Impact of the 1946 Great Hawai'i Sugar Strike." The senior division award went to Brienne Oshiro, Jessica Oxiles and Kelsie Pascual from Waipahu High School for their performance entitled "No More Pau Hana for Wahine: Struggles of the Women on the Hawai'i Sugar Plantations."

• The Hawai'i Labor Heritage Council gave cash awards for outstanding projects on the history of labor to the following students: Kimberly Fletcher, Waipahu Intermediate School, for her display "The Hawai'i Longshoremen Strike of 1949: A Successful Step in Labor History"; Nicholas Pascual, Lahaina Intermediate, for the essay "The Impact of the 1946 Great Hawai'i Sugar Strike"; Joann Rabanal, Jamie Pascual and Jake Raquel, Waipahu High School, for their display "ILWU: Patches of Segregation in a Field of Dreams"; and to Thomas Takemoto-Chock, Cory Kawabata and Nicholas Lum, Waiakea High, for their documentary "Teachers on Strike: Exercise of Collective Bargaining Rights." A grant prize was awarded to Brienne Oshiro, Jessica Oxiles and Kelsie Pascual from Waipahu High School for their performance entitled "No More Pau Hana for Wahine: Struggles of the Women on the Hawai'i Sugar Plantations."

• The Association Chinese University Women Inc. gave three cash awards for outstanding Chinese or Chinese American history to Terrence Kawano, 'Aiea High School, for his essay "China's One Child Policy," Frances Won, Moanalua High School, for an essay on "The Land of One Billion" and to Jovelyn Bolilla and Maria Sur, Maui High School, for their display "Chinese Making History: One Track at a Time."

• The Hawai'i Association of School Librarians gave two cash awards for outstanding research using primary documents. The junior division award went to Rayfe Gaspar-Asaoka, Mililani Middle School, for a display entitled "Executive Order 9066 — Rights Lost! Responsibility Fulfilled?" The senior division award went to Carly Munekiyo, Baldwin High School, for her essay "Founding The Liberator: Rights vs. Responsibility in Journalism."

• The Center for Oral History, University of Hawai'i, gave two cash awards for outstanding research using oral histories. The junior division award went to Kiana Nip, Lahaina Intermediate School, for a display entitled "Kaho'olawe: Responsibility for the 'Aina." The senior division award went to Robert Omura, Maui High School, for a documentary entitled "Hiroshima: Vision from the Past, Voices for the Future."

• The Pacific and Asian Affairs Council gave two cash awards for outstanding projects that promote international understanding and awareness to Dominique Dacanay and Rowena Reyes, Waipahu Intermediate School, for their display on "The Berlin Wall: Prisoners in Their Own Country" and to Adam Turin, Kahuku High School, for a performance entitled "The Irish Holocaust: Rights Removed, Responsibilities Denied, A Nation Starved."

• The Center for Korean Studies gave two cash awards for outstanding Korean or Korean American history to Leanne Ta, McKinley High School, for her display "Fifty Years of Injustice: The Comfort Women" and to Shayna Doi, Maui High School, for a performance entitled "Time to Speak: The Story of the Comfort Women of World War II."

• The Foundation for Hawai'i Women's History gave two cash awards for outstanding projects on women's history. The junior division award went to Tami Park from Waiakea Intermediate School for her essay entitled "Lessons from the Japanese Americans of World War II." The senior division award went to Kalyn Matsuda from Kahuku High School for a display entitled "The Equal Rights Amendment: The Struggle of Rights and Responsibilities."

• The Center for Biographical Research at the University of Hawai'i gave cash awards for outstanding history projects using biographical sources. The junior division award went to Trinh Nguyen from 'Aiea Intermediate School for the essay "Susan B. Anthony." The senior division award went to Brittany Bartron from Kahuku High School for a display entitled "Nunahi-Duna-Dlo-Hilu-I: The Trail Where We Cried."

• Bishop Museum presented the Mary Kawena Pukui Award, which recognizes outstanding projects related to the history of Hawai'i and the Pacific. The junior division awards went to Mai Oseto and Kala Tye from Waialua Intermediate School for the display "The Lepers of Hawai'i" and to Arbie Campuspos from Waipahu Intermediate School for the documentary "U.S. Nuclear Testing in the Marshall Islands." The senior division awards went to Kolea Zimmerman from Waiakea High School for the essay "Ownership With or Without Stewardship: What is Right for Kaho'olawe?" and to Andrew Abordonado from Roosevelt High School for the documentary "A Stolen Kingdom: Examination of Native Hawaiian Sovereign Rights and Responsibilities."

• Native Books Inc. gave awards for outstanding projects in Hawaiian or Pacific Island history. The junior division awards went to Kathryn Moniz and Alorah Kwock from King Intermediate School for their documentary "Bikini, Its People and the Bomb" and to Kimberley Fletcher from Waipahu Intermediate School for the display "The Hawai'i Longshoremen Strike of 1949: A Successful Step in Labor History." Senior division awards went to Honey Aubrey Millon, Mary Ann Baxa and Sheavon Quiogue from Waipahu High School for their performance entitled "Kapu — Until Disowned; It Will Be Followed." Students each received books on Hawaiian heritage from Native Books Inc.

• The Arab World and Islamic Resources organization gave two awards for outstanding research in Arab or Islamic history to Natalie Austin and Kendall Cross from Sacred Hearts School on Maui for their display "Life Behind the Veil" and to Brycen Hiraoka, Marisa Uyehara and Keaupuniokalani Kanahele-Kaliko from Waimea High School on Kaua'i for their display "America's Scapegoat."

• The Sons and Daughters of the 100th Infantry Battalion gave awards for excellence in World War II history to the following projects: Rayfe Gaspar-Asaoka from Mililani Middle School for the display "Executive Order 9066"; Tami Park from Waiakea Intermediate School for the essay "Lessons from the Japanese Americans of WW II"; Brandon Liwanag-Luat, Sarah Fong and Jennifer Morika from King Intermediate School for their documentary "From Prejudice to Hawai'i's Politics: Hawai'i's Democratic Revolution of 1954"; Cecily Kaya from Moanalua High School for the display "The 100th Infantry Battalion: Rights Denied, Responsibility Fulfilled"; Whitney Nekoba from Waiakea High School for her display entitled "My Country 'Tis of Thee: The Issei Perspective"; Robyn Arrington from Waimea High School for the essay "The Internment of Japanese Americans During WW II"; Mari Takemoto-Chock and Lauren Alicuben from Waiakea High School for their documentary "The Rights and Responsibilities of Nisei During WW II: The Forgotten Battalion"; and to Rebecca Wunder, Wendee Murayama and Caine Jette from Maui High School for their documentary "Fighting for the Right to Be Called Americans: The Story of the Nisei Soldiers."

• The Barbara Bennett Peterson Award in History was presented to the outstanding junior and senior division essays: "The Bombing of Hiroshima: Did the U.S. Have the Right to Use the Atomic Bomb and Did They Use it Responsibly" by Kelsey Anderson from Kailua Intermediate School and "There Is No Danger" by Jokke Kokkonen from Kahuku High School. Each student received a koa bowl.

• The Siemens Corp. recognized a project that best demonstrates how technology or innovation has influenced U.S. history. The award, a cell phone, was given to Guy Higuchi, Waimea High School on Kaua'i, for the essay "The First Amendment and the Internet: Conflicting Policies."