The Maui News

Melanie Teraoka from Waihe’e Elementary School and David “Kawika” Gonzales Jr. from Kaunakakai Elementary are finalists for the 2024 Hawai’i State Teacher of the Year award.

Teraoka, a reading coach at Waihe’e Elementary, is teacher of the year for the Baldwin-Kekaulike-Kulanihako’i-Maui complex area.

Gonzales, a fifth-grade teacher at Kaunakakai Elementary, is the teacher of the year for the Hana-Lahainaluna-Lanai-Molokai complex area.

The two were among 15 complex area teachers of the year and one charter school teacher of the year, all of whom are finalists for the 2024 state award, which will be announced in October, the state Department of Education said on Wednesday.

The honor is presented annually to a teacher selected from more than 13,000 DOE educators.

“These outstanding educators have an unwavering dedication and passion for high-quality teaching and learning,” Superintendent Keith Hayashi said in a news release. “We are proud to recognize them as true embodiments of what it means to be an exceptional educator, and are grateful for the creative and innovative ways in which they engage their students, colleagues and communities on a daily basis.”

The winner will go on to represent the state in the National Teacher of the Year program.