A 22-kilowatt photovoltaic system has been installed at the Kualapu'u school on Moloka'i to help cut the facility's electricity bills.

ProVision Solar Inc., which designed and installed the system, said it should produce about 20 percent of the school's daily power needs and can be expanded to cover more than half of Kualapu'u's needs.

Marco Mangelsdorf, ProVision president, said a number of businesses on Moloka'i as well as numerous homeowners have installed photovoltaic systems to escape the island's high electricity costs. He said Kualapu'u's installation is the largest of any public school in Hawai'i.

TV MAY SWIM WITH HAWAI'I SHARKS

The newest television show being proposed for Hawai'i will slip into the ocean and swim with sharks.

Entertainment industry publication Variety reported that "Shark Boat" is in development and revolves around the travails of Hawaii Shark Encounters, a Hale'iwa-based company.

"Docu-series is set inside Hawaii Shark Encounters, run by world-class free diver Stefanie Brendl," Variety reported on its Web site late Thursday.

"Show will focus on the struggles that Brendl and her staff face as they attempt to stay in business following the death of her boyfriend and business partner."

Variety reported the series is being developed by A. Smith and Co., producer of the show "Hells Kitchen."

MASS LAYOFFS GROWING IN HAWAI'I

There were 10 mass layoffs in Hawai'i in June involving 992 workers, according to a U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics report.

That compared with six mass layoffs a year earlier involving 783 workers.

The Bureau of Labor Statistics underscores the statewide unemployment rate for the state in June, which at 7.4 percent was tied with May for the highest level in 31 years.

Not all of job cuts are reflected in the government's mass layoffs report, which examines the number of layoffs in which companies let go at least 50 workers.

UH CREDIT UNION CEO CHUN RETIRING

The University of Hawai'i Federal Credit Union said President and Chief Executive Officer Ariel Chun will retire at the end of the year.

Chun said she was stepping down because the credit union is in good shape and that it is time to spend more time with her family, including helping her parents. She also intends to continue her work with community service organizations.

The credit union, which is the seventh largest in the state with more than $390 million in assets, said it has formed a search committee to search for Chun's replacement.