State's teacher of the year upholds good citizenship
By Derrick DePledge
Advertiser Education Writer
Eugene Tanner • The Honolulu Advertiser
KAILUA — Robert Hu likes to tell his students that life comes with responsibility. Then he has them experience it for themselves.
Robert Hu of Mililani High School gets a congratulatory hug from Windward district finalist Donna Therrien.
In "The Ohana Project," Hu's students at Mililani High School are required to perform a selfless act, such as tutoring or volunteering, to give them the kind of perspective they can't always find in a classroom.
"I try to make them aware that they have to participate and be good citizens," said Hu, a social studies teacher who has devoted more than three decades of his life to public education.
Yesterday, the state Department of Education recognized Hu for his work, naming him Hawai'i's teacher of the year.
Hu, fighting back tears, said he was humbled and vowed to continue to try to make public education an equalizing force in society.
"I'll try to do what I can in my own little way to help out,'' Hu told well-wishers at a state Board of Education meeting at Kailua Intermediate School.
Hu, whose father was a Chinese immigrant and whose mother was born on a Kaua'i plantation, said that while growing up on O'ahu, he developed a sense of equality and recognized the importance of treating people with respect.
As a teacher — including service at Pearl City Highlands Elementary School and Nanakuli High and Intermediate School — he's worried when he sees those values slipping.
BRASK
GOTTLIEB
KANESHIRO
McMILLAN
Teachers are underpaid, Hu said, and schools don't have enough money to do the job that the public demands. "Forget the rhetoric," he said, "we want action."
Education, for him, is a special calling, but he is concerned that young people will not follow his path because of the high demands of a job that doesn't pay enough. "We have to make people want to go into teaching," Hu said.
Leighton Kawai, a vice principal at Mililani, said Hu deserves recognition for his commitment. "His personality. His dedication. The time he spends with students," Kawai said. "I'm glad to see it after all these years."
The award comes with a $1,000 check from the Polynesian Cultural Center. Hu also received $8,000 worth of instructional software and will be the state's nominee for national teacher of the year.
The Hawai‘i Volkswagen Dealers gave Hu the use of a new Volkswagen Jetta for a year. The six district finalists also get a free car for a year.
The finalists, who also are receiving $500 checks from the Polynesian Cultural Center, were praised as role models. "These teachers are among the finest in Hawai'i," said Herbert Watanabe, chairman of the state Board of Education.
The finalists, each named teacher of the year for their districts, are:
• Betty Brask of Kihei Elementary School on Maui, who teaches second grade.
• Dewey Gottlieb II of Pearl City High School, a math teacher who won the Milken Family Foundation's national teaching award and $25,000 earlier this week.
• Shari Kaneshiro of Hokulani Elementary School, a sixth-grade teacher.
• Pamela McMillan of Kaua'i High School, an 11th-grade English and language arts teacher.
• Merle Okabe of Kea'au High School on the Big Island, who teaches social studies.
• Donna Therrien of Lanikai Public Charter School, a fourth- and fifth-grade teacher.
The cars were donated by Hawai'i Volkswagen Dealers, Subaru of Hawai'i, Toyota Hawai'i, Nissan Hawai'i, Hawai'i Mitsubishi and Mazda of Hawai'i.
Reach Derrick DePledge at ddepledge@honoluluadvertiser.com or 525-8084.
