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Grand Champions

Thursday, December 6th, 2012

Grand Champions

The Molokai Middle School robotics team, the Molokai Golden Eyes, won the First Lego League state championship last Saturday at the Neil Blaisdell Center in Honolulu. Team members Noah Keanini, Erik Svetin, Caele Manley, Kaitlin DeRouin, Lily Jenkins, and Katy Domingo competed against 52 other teams from around the state, and became the first team not from Oahu to ever be named the grand champions. Coached by Kawika Gonzales and Jenn Whitted, the Molokai Golden Eyes will be representing Hawaii at the national competition held in the spring of next year. The team is pictured here with Sarah Tamayose, Hawaii First Lego League president, at right. …

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Remembering the Pearl Harbor Attack

Sunday, December 2nd, 2012

On Dec. 7, 1941, the Imperial Japanese Navy launched a surprise military attack on the U.S. naval base at Hawaii’s Pearl Harbor. Eight U.S. battleships were damaged, and four were sunk. One hundred eighty-eight U.S. aircraft were destroyed. Two thousand four hundred two Americans were killed and more than 1,000 were wounded. The attack shocked Americans, and prompted the U.S. entry into World War II, with a declaration of war on Japan announced the following day.

Around Hawaii, residents feared further Japanese attacks. On Molokai, the community experienced black-outs, drills and food rationing. In honor of Pearl Harbor Day this Friday, the Dispatch asked Molokai residents to share memories of reactions on the day of the attack and life in the months that followed.…

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Scoring Green Hair

Sunday, December 2nd, 2012

Scoring Green Hair

Molokai High School (MHS) Principal Stan Hao may have looked like his usual self when he showed up for school last Thursday morning, but by lunchtime, he was sporting a flashy new look –spiky, green hair. At the start of last school year, Hao promised MHS students that if they reached Adequate Yearly Progress (AYP) standards, he would dye his hair green for the day in front of the entire school. Though MHS did not technically meet AYP standards due to a shortfall in graduation rates, their double digit gains in both the math and reading portions of the Hawaii State Assessment (HSA) last year were noteworthy.…

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Middle School Most Improved in the State

Sunday, December 2nd, 2012

Middle School Most Improved in the State

With great achievement comes great reward, and Molokai Middle School (MMS) students have certainly earned both. They were recently recognized by the Department of Education (DOE) as the most improved school in the state. Not only did they make Adequate Yearly Progress (AYP) standards for the first time since they separated from the high school eight years ago, but they made significant, double-digit improvements in both reading and math.

“It is my privilege to come here because you are the best performing school in the entire state of Hawaii,” said the Board of Education Chairman Don Horner at an academic achievement celebration assembly held at the school last Thursday.…

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Molokai Dispatch Holiday Deadlines and Schedule

Friday, November 30th, 2012

Molokai Dispatch Holiday Deadlines and Schedule

Molokai Dispatch News Release

To all our valued advertisers and contributors: The Dispatch office will be closed for three weeks over the holidays, and while the paper will continue to be distributed every Wednesday, we have special deadlines during this time. The issues of Dec. 12, 19, 26 and Jan. 2 will be sent to press in advance. That means all new and updated ads, as well as any community contributed articles and letters our readers wish to submit, must be received no later than Thursday, Dec. 6 to be printed in these four papers. Anything received after that time will not be printed until Jan.…

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OHA Sponsors Scholarship Fairs

Friday, November 30th, 2012

OHA Sponsors Scholarship Fairs

OHA News Release

A series of scholarship fairs will be held around the state, sponsored in part by the Office of Hawaiian Affairs (OHA). Their intent is in part to provide Native Hawaiians with greater financial aid. The Molokai fair will be held on Dec. 13 at Kulana Oiwi from 5:30 to 8:30 p.m.

Known as the 2012-2013 Native Hawaiian Scholarship ‘Aha, these fairs are part of a partnership with the University of Hawaii, GEAR Up Hawaii, and the Native Hawaiian Education Association. Last year, OHA awarded $718,000 in scholarship money to an estimated 300 Native Hawaiian students, who received between $1,000 and $4,500 to assist with expenses for about 80 colleges, including Cornell University in New York and Stanford University in California.…

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Arts Center Pot and Plant Sale

Friday, November 30th, 2012

Arts Center Pot and Plant Sale

MAC News Release

The Molokai Arts Center (MAC) will be having an open house and Pot and Plant sale at the Arts Center located in Kualapu`u, behind Coffees of Hawaii, on Saturday, Dec. 8 from 7:30 a.m. to 2 p.m. After nearly one year in this location, the artists are all excited to share their space and talents with the island.

Everyone has been busy creating planters for the sale, which is a fundraiser for the center. There are pots of all sizes, some with plants, and some without. In addition, other items will be offered for sale including bird baths, ceramic plant tags, garden luminaries, bird houses and even gift memberships for that hard to buy for person on your Christmas list.…

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The Case of the Mysterious Poll

Friday, November 30th, 2012

I Aloha Molokai News Release

Can anyone solve this mystery?

Over the past month, Molokai residents have received anonymous calls, asking for personal information and personal opinions about Molokai Ranch, about wind turbines, and about possible “benefits.” The pollster is Ward Research of Honolulu. But if you ask “Who’s paying for it?” the callers say, “Sorry, we can’t tell you.”

Some have answered the survey, others have just hung up, but we all have to guess who’s behind it. Is it a local group? Is it Molokai Ranch? Is it a wind developer?
It’s clearly not government. Sen. English and Rep.…

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Kickin It With the NFL

Wednesday, November 28th, 2012

Kickin It With the NFL

Four Molokai youth whose football skills show exceptional promise are getting an exceptional opportunity. Alika Balbas, Cassidy Victorino, Erik Svetin and Chelsen “Ena” Victorino have all advanced in the National Football League (NFL)’s Punt, Pass and Kick (PPK) program and will be representing Hawaii on Dec. 2 in San Diego as part of the team competition level. They are four of 10 youth from the state who will get to show off their skills in the San Diego Chargers stadium before the game.

“I am proud to be representing Molokai and Hawaii at the NFL Punt, Pass and Kick competition,” said 13-year-old Erik.…

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Teachers Speak Out for a Fair Contract

Sunday, November 25th, 2012

Teachers Speak Out for a Fair Contract

Molokai teachers are joining public school educators around Hawaii to raise awareness for their efforts of negotiating a fair contract with the state. Since July 2011, teachers have been working under a contract imposed by Gov. Neil Abercrombie, which included wage cuts and higher healthcare premiums. The Hawaii State Teachers Association (HSTA) union has been unsuccessfully trying to negotiate a contract with the state for the past year and a half, and teachers are frustrated with the lack of movement on a new labor agreement.

“We are trying to go through the proper protocols but the governor would prefer to mandate rather than negotiate,” said Tania Manaba-Will, the Kaunakakai Elementary School HSTA representative.…

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