Haiku Elementary School kindergarten teacher Monica Nakahashi greets supporters during a rally in September 2020. Students, parents and co-workers protested after Nakahashi was placed on leave pending an investigation, which her family said occurred after Nakahashi filed a complaint about the administration. The family and the state Department of Education confirmed this week that Nakahashi had been cleared under the investigation. The Maui News / COLLEEN UECHI photo

A beloved longtime kindergarten teacher at Haiku Elementary School has been cleared under an internal investigation by the state Department of Education and is able to return to teaching, her family and the DOE confirmed this week.

In September 2020, Monica Nakahashi was put on department-directed leave and escorted off of the Haiku campus with no time to pack up her things, her family said at the time.

Principal Karen Walker had told parents in a letter that an active investigation was underway but that the school could not discuss the details because it was a “confidential personnel matter.”

The family said that the investigation occurred after Nakahashi filed a complaint about the administration.

The incident sparked an outpouring of support for Nakahashi, who has been a teacher for more than 40 years, as former students, parents and co-workers staged a rally outside the school shortly after her dismissal from campus.

“There are no words to describe the love that I felt from the community, family, friends and strangers,” Nakahashi said Monday. “It was just unbelievable.”

Nakahashi has been scheduled to return to Haiku Elementary in the coming school year, but “after over 40 years of teaching, I’m contemplating on retiring from the DOE,” she said.

In an email Tuesday morning, the DOE said the investigation was completed in December and that Nakahashi has been eligible to return to work since then. She remains on the Haiku Elementary teacher roster, according to the DOE.

The DOE said it could not provide any details about the personnel matter to preserve employee confidentiality.

Nakahashi said she found out about the results of the investigation in January, but the family decided to wait until recently to share the news with others.

A Facebook post Sunday by family members sharing the outcome had more than 500 reactions and dozens of comments of support.

When asked why the investigation, which was completed after 15 months, had taken so long, a DOE spokesperson referred to the department’s procedures and timelines for department-directed leave and leave pending investigation.

While the preliminary assessment process should be done in five work days, the investigation process can range from 45 work days for school-level investigations to 120 work days for centralized investigations (district level, Office of Human Resources or Civil Rights Compliance Office). There is also a post-investigation process which is given a timeline of 30 work days, according to a 2016 DOE letter to principals, vice principals, assistant superintendents and complex area superintendents.

But the letter said the timelines are subject to extension in appropriate circumstances and where necessary. These could involve things out of DOE’s control such as availability of witnesses, the respondent or the investigator, along with the need for more information.

Amid the difficult events, Nakahashi found a silver lining.

“It was the worst thing in the whole world being forced out of my classroom, but it turned into a blessing that I could spend more time with my grandchildren,” she said.

One of her daughters, Kim Naylor, said that the word “relief” comes to mind as she looks at the outcome.

“A weight is lifted off. What you have been hoping for has come to fruition. We definitely are relieved that that chapter can be closed,” Naylor said.

“Our family can begin to heal,” Naylor added.

Even though she has gone through a lot at the school, her heart is still there, said Nakahashi, who cannot go past the school without crying.

“That’s how much love I have for that school,” she said.

* Melissa Tanji can be reached at mtanji@mauinews.com.