RECOGNIZING EXCELLENCE IN EDUCATION AND INNOVATION: SENATORS PRESENT CERTIFICATE TO HIDOE STUDENTS AT THE 18TH ANNUAL MĀLAMA HĀLOA KALO FESTIVAL & SYMPOSIUM
- sturbeville1
- 5 hours ago
- 3 min read
HONOLULU- A Senate Certificate was presented to students from Kohala High School for defending their winning title in the third annual Kalo Challenge hosted by the Hawaiʻi State Department of Education’s (HIDOE) Alternative Learning Programs Branch. Presented during Bishop Museum's 18th Annual Mālama Hāloa Kalo Festival & Symposium, the award marks the students’ third year in a row earning top honors in the Kalo Challenge.
“Mahalo to the Bishop Museum for welcoming students participating in the Kalo Challenge to the Mālama Hāloa Kalo Festival & Symposium,” said Senator Donna Mercado Kim (District 14 – Kapālama, ‘Ālewa, Kalihi, Kalihi Valley, Ft. Shafter, Moanalua Gardens & Valley, Red Hill), Chair of the Senate Committee on Education. “Opportunities like this help students relate what they learn in the classroom to their community and identity.”
The certificate was presented by Senator Kim and Senator Donovan M. Dela Cruz (Senate District 17 – Portion of Mililani, Mililani Mauka, portion of Waipi‘o Acres, Launani Valley, Wahiawā, Whitmore Village), Chair of the Senate Committee on Ways and Means, to students from Kohala High School.
The Kalo Challenge is the finale of a yearlong project where at-promise students from across the state learn about planting and cultivating kalo (taro) and then turn their harvest into an innovative culinary dish. Inspired by the Lahaina wildfires, Kohala High’s Naʻau ʻŌiwi students created “emergency kalo rations,” which included freeze dried instant poi, kalo paʻa, kūlolo and laulau.
Kohala High Naʻau ʻŌiwi teacher Aoloa Patao emphasized the program’s impact on students in the Oceanic TV show Kalo Challenge, which aired in December 2025. “We use kalo as the centerpiece of our teaching, and it’s a great opportunity for them to find different ways to include kalo in their everyday lives,” Patao said. “I’m super proud of them.”
“The Kalo Challenge encourages students to think about value-added products and entrepreneurship while working with one of Hawai’i’s most important crops,” said Senator Donovan M. Dela Cruz. “This project-based learning helps inspire the next generation of agricultural leaders and entrepreneurs.”
The HIDOE Alternative Learning Programs, Services and Supports aims to provide at-promise students with innovative instructional strategies and learning environments to improve their academic competencies and enable them to meet HIDOE-adopted state standards and graduation requirements. ALPSS provides transitional support services as at-promise students move from school to alternative programs, re-enter school successfully, graduate from high school, and prepare for positive post-secondary outcomes.
“The Kalo Challenge highlights the incredible potential of our students when they are given meaningful, hands-on learning opportunities,” said Senate Vice President Michelle N. Kidani (District 18 – Mililani Town, Waipi‘o Gentry, Crestview, Waikele, portion of Waipahu, Village Park, Royal Kunia), Vice Chair of the Senate Committee on Education, “Programs like this help students discover their strengths while deepening their connection to the cultural traditions of our home.”
“I am incredibly proud of the students from Kohala High School for once again rising to the challenge and representing our community so well,” said Senator Herbert M. “Tim” Richards, III (Senate District 4 –North Hilo, Hāmākua, Kohala, Waimea, Waikoloa, North Kona). “Their creativity, teamwork, and commitment to learning about kalo and our cultural traditions show the strength and promise of the next generation on Hawaiʻi Island”
###