February 15-20

Presenter: Ms. Stacie Tamaru is a 2011 McKinley graduate who earned a Bachelor's Degree in Travel Industry Management from UH Manoa. She currently holds the position as Housekeeping Manager at the Sheraton Waikiki Hotel. Due to the effects of the pandemic, her current position at the hotel has been on hold and she has been furloughed since May 2020. In order to keep herself busy, she started her own baking side business called Sugar Rush by Stucee. She is not a professionally-trained baker but has learned so much by continuously pursing her passion.

Presenter: Ms. April Jingco, a McKinley graduate, is a Filipina-American marketing and communications professional based in Seattle. She earned her BA in Strategic Communications at Seattle University in 2017, where she was a Sullivan Scholar. Currently, she works as the Marketing and Communications Lead for Northwest Folklife. She also does freelance social media strategy, photography, and music marketing. Outside of work, April is passionate about music and loves to attend concerts and collect vinyl. In 2017, April co-created her passion project, Plant Mamas, where she and her friend Robert upcycle hand-picked pots and planters and paired them with unique indoor plants to promote plant parenthood .

Presenter: Ms. Kelli Sunabe is a 2013 McKinley graduate. In high school she was a Center for Tomorrow's Leaders (CTL) Ambassador, student body corresponding secretary, Ignition mentor, and part of the Academy of Hospitality and Tourism. Interested in learning more about how the fashion labor industry worked, she studied fashion merchandising, international business, and human resource management at UH Mānoa. Fueled by her desire to foster cross-cultural understanding and community service, she joined the Peace Corps and volunteered in China as an English teacher at a vocational college. Eager to find areas of international cooperation and laborer empowerment, Kelli is currently pursuing graduate degrees in public administration and international relations at Syracuse University, is a Spring 2021 intern for Congressman Kaialiʻi Kahele, and will be a Summer 2021 Department of State intern at the U.S. Consulate in Wuhan, China. She also sits on the Advisory Board for CTL's Vanguard.

As a kid she would tag along with her Mom as they’d holoholo around town visiting thrift stores and garage sales. She enjoyed how fashion was a medium to express herself and found second hand pieces to do so while spending within a budget.

Presenter: Katie Chang is the Executive Director at the Center for Tomorrow's Leaders, an organization dedicated to developing young leaders for Hawaii. Prior to her CTL appointment, she was certified as a presenter of the Leadership Challenge, worked as an advisor in the US/UK Fulbright Commission in London, and interned at the Hawaii State Legislature and Governor's Office. Ms. Chang is a graduate of Pepperdine University. In her free time she is an avid reader, serves on her local neighborhood board, and is a member at New Hope Town church.

Presenter: Mr. Scott Takata is a teacher at McKinley High School. He earned his degrees in Music at the University of Hawaii at Manoa and has been involved in the Music Industry for over 40 years. As a performer and educator, he believes that music is more important than ever during the pandemic and would like to help students achieve their musical aspirations.

Presenter: Ms. Jodi Fong has taught at McKinley High School for 24 years. She started bullet journaling a few years ago to justify her pen and highlighter addiction. She currently does digital planning and applies bullet journaling techniques to her digital planner.

Supplies needed to actively participate: Composition tablet, journal book, or printer paper, colored pencils, highlighters, or pens.

You do not need to actively participate with the supplies in order to attend the session.

Presenter: Ms. Jennifer Nakamoto, a math teacher at McKinley High School, has taught for 21 years. She was inspired to start knitting so that she could make a gift for her principal when he retired. She learned to crochet leis to give out at graduation after she saw one of the Band mommies making them.

Presenter: Ms. Hailey Tanaka is a clerk in the Main Office at McKinley High School. She started this hobby by purchasing kits on Amazon. This new passion evolved into making personalized gifts for her friends. This has been a great way for her to spend her time during the pandemic.

Presenter: Ms. Jen May Pastores is a documentary photographer and writer rooted in Hawaiʻi. Her background in journalism and photography led her down a path of storytelling: as an artist, a mentor, a poet, and as a daughter collecting her family’s history. Her business, Jen May Photography, was established in 2006 in Los Angeles, California. Since then Jen May has photographed hundreds of weddings and portraits, and projects covering community work, cultural events, destination weddings, and intimate celebrations. Over the years, her work has been published and exhibited throughout the country and internationally, including a month-long residency in Cambodia. Her background in teaching photography includes working with youth of all ages, especially with high school students who are interested in visual storytelling. Locally, her work was exhibited at Aupuni Space, Single Double, Chinatown Artists Lofts, Bloomingdales Ala Moana, and Manifest to name a few.

Presenter: Mr. Albert Teruya of Teruya's Andagi will be leading this session. Teruya's Andagi is a locally owned and operated business first established by Mr. Teruya's mother, Mieko Teruya, in 1987. Growing up Mr. Teruya had the opportunity to learn about and work in the business. In 2016, he oversaw the transition from the old location in Shirokiya to the current location along Pensacola St. Since then, he has been the owner and operator of Teruya’s Andagi.

Presenter: Sgt. Ken Takemura is a recruiter with the Hawaii Army National Guard and a 2011 McKinley graduate. He joined the Hawaii Army National Guard in 2012 as a Field Artilleryman and started his recruiting career in 2018. During his free time he enjoys staying physical by rock climbing and body surfing. He also balances this out with DIY projects; his most recent one being how to make rugs.