After holding the top post at Kalani High School for 18 years, Porras-Tang this week was relocated to a district-level staff position.

More than 100 students waived signs during recess and lunch and even stayed out of class, waiting outside the main office hoping Porras-Tang would come out and talk to them.

Loaded down with paper and flower leis, Porras-Tang offered students high-fives and hugs this morning.

Standing on the steps outside Kalani's cafeteria, Porras-Tang told the students, "We have the greatest student body. I have truly been blessed to work with you all. Everybody's so awesome. That's what makes our school so terrific."

The students cheered raucously when she said, "No matter what anyone says about Kalani High School, we're No. 1. Now get back to class and learn."

Porras-Tang has been at Kalani for 20 years — two as vice principal and the last 18 as principal.

"Ms. Porras-Tang is the personality of Kalani. She has made our school," said Claudeen Fears, a 17-year-old senior. "No one knows the school as well as she."

Today is Porras-Tang's last day at Kalani High after being notified earlier this week that she would be reassigned to work with the statewide Alternative Certification Program. The program is aimed at people with college degrees who want to get certified to teach for the state Department of Education.

Schools superintendent Pat Hamamoto said last night that she could not talk about Porras-Tang's reassignment because it was a personnel decision, but that it was "not made in a vacuum."

At last night's Board of Education meeting, almost a dozen Kalani High teachers, students and staff members asked the superintendent to reverse the decision to reassign Porras-Tang in the wake of opposition among some parents to the school's implementation of Small Learning Communities.

SLCs at Kalani are made up of teams of all freshmen and sophomore students who work with teachers to adjust to high school life following middle school.

This morning, Porras-Tang said she was not reassigned solely because of opposition to the Small Learning Communities.