SCHOOL LIFE
SCHOOL LIFE
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Business teacher and new staff
Business teacher and new staff
add to Konawaena family
add to Konawaena family
The student body welcomed new staff members into the 2024-2025 school year and the foundation that every youth needs, including business teacher Lisa Royer, who transitioned from substitute teacher to full-time faculty. The new start for students was a time to get familiar with their schedules and classmates, as well as teachers like Royer who are a crucial support system.
Royer moved to the Big Island from Pennsylvania, where she had a long career in teaching. Growing up, Royer’s mother was a teacher. Following in her mother’s footsteps felt right to her since education was already familiar in their home. “Growing up in a household full of educators gave me the inspiration to become a teacher, too,” Royer said.
"As I got older, I decided to do other things. I ended up teaching a little bit later in life because my daughter was going into daycare. I ended up teaching so that I could have similar hours with my daughter.”
Royer taught in the same district for 20 years, educating middle school as well as high school students. Along the way, she took on part-time jobs, including instruction at a community college and elementary schools.
Lisa Royer is now a full-time business teacher at Konawaena. THE WILDCAT
Throughout the years, her daughter has grown, and so have her reasons to continue teaching. “When I moved to the island a couple of years ago, my husband got a job, and I didn’t really need to work,” she said.
However, Royer decided to preoccupy herself with a career that she was familiar with. After being a substitute teacher at Konawaena High, Royer moved up to teaching business and financial literacy classes.
The student body’s diversity stands out to her at Konawaena and drives her to keep teaching, Royer said. “I wanted to have more of a relationship with certain kids so I could develop deeper relationships and get to know the kids I’m teaching,” she added.
Mrs. Royer, and her efforts to cultivate connections with the student body, adds up for Konawaena High School, her students said.
By Sean-Tobias Carroll
Staff Writer
As the Konawaena school year kicks off, many students will have the unique opportunity to engage with organizations such as the Pacific and Asian Affairs Council (PAAC), Distributive Education Clubs of America (DECA), and the Student Credit Union. All three offer valuable extracurricular experiences and opportunities, but their focuses are distinct.
PAAC is centered around global education, leadership, and cross-cultural collaboration. Through activities like inter-school summits and service projects, PAAC helps students gain a global perspective and prepares them to tackle issues such as sustainability and international relations.
Story continues on the School Clubs page...
Student Aidan Clark constructs a LEGO set. THE WILDCAT
By Sean Thornton
News Editor
With the help of the Aloha Meritorious Achievement Program (MAP), Konawaena has implemented a new Foundation Architectural Design class for the 2024-2025 school year where students are introduced to the subject by building LEGO sets.
The new Architectural Design class differs from traditional high school classes as students are given LEGOs, the world-famous plastic construction toys, to teach them creativity and problem-solving skills that are needed in the architecture field.
“We wanted to build a foundation under our students here that allowed them to be able to follow directions in a different way than what the norm is taught,” says Mr. Kalama Kamoku, the current teacher of the class, “and so Legos are able to do that for the students.”
Story continues on the Aloha MAP LEGO class page...
This photo shows the former main building of Konawaena High School by the Julian Yates Field. COURTESY PHOTO
By Leslie Machorro Ruiz
Staff Writer
By Wendy Sanchez-Gonzalez
Social Media/Marketing Editor
As the school year progresses at Konawaena High, students and staff are finding it increasingly challenging to keep up with the workload and new daily challenges—the rapid pace of the year, compounded by extracurricular activities and personal commitments, has left many struggling to manage their schoolwork.
Junior Shallaine Ramos shared her experience so far: "It's been good; I've done my work early or on time. It's just getting a little harder each week.”
When asked how fast she thinks the school year is passing by and its impact on her, Ramos said, “To be honest, it's going fast but at the same time it's going slow if you're counting the days or the hours. It's making me realize that I'm just getting older and older, and next thing I know, I'm gonna be an adult.” Story continues.....
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