Sharon Beck, principal of Ka‘u High &Pahala Elementary School on Hawaii island, was named winner of the 17th Masayuki Tokioka Excellence in School Leadership Award as Hawaii’s top public school principal for 2023.
The honor comes with a $10,000 personal cash award, plus $15,000 for a school project of the winner’s choice, from Island Insurance Foundation.
Beck, who has led the Kau school for 17 years, was recognized Thursday at the Public Schools of Hawai‘i Foundation Annual Dinner, attended by about 700 guests at the Sheraton Waikiki.
“Over her long tenure at a truly unique school, Principal Beck has shown the vision necessary to provide Ka‘u students with innovative and enriching programs, while leveraging community resources and experts,” Island Insurance Foundation Chairman Tyler Tokioka said in a news release. “Ka‘u High &Pahala Elementary are clearly much stronger educational institutions because of her leadership, and its students are the beneficiaries of her dedication.”
Ka‘u High &Pahala Elementary sits in the state Department of Education’s largest geographic district in the state. Schools in the area are small and rural; students often have long commutes and limited resources and opportunities; and more than 22% of Kau residents live below the poverty line, a foundation news release said.
Beck wrote in her award application, “Overall, my role as a leader is to build the structures for teachers, students and parents to provide students the best opportunities in spite of the rural/remote challenges of distance, poverty and lack of resources.”
Principals Leila Maeda- Kobayashi of Koloa Elementary School on Kauai and Wesley Shinkawa of Kapolei High on Oahu each received a $2,000 cash award as semifinalists.
The 15 nominees for this year’s Masayuki Tokioka Excellence in School Leadership Award, who lead public elementary and secondary schools across all four of Hawaii’s major counties, previously received a $1,000 cash award from the Island Insurance Foundation.
The other nominees were U‘ilani Kaitoku, Hau‘ula Elementary; Suzie Lee, Ma‘ili Elementary; Nathan Maeda, Maunawili Elementary; Amy Martinson, Highlands Intermediate; Komarey Moss, Red Hill Elementary; Jason Nakamoto, Leilehua High; Chad Okamoto, Pu‘u Kukui Elementary; Jacqueline Ornellas, Lincoln Elementary; Christopher Sanita, Hana High and Elementary; Lisa Souza, Waiakea Intermediate; Kori Takaki, Kahakai Elementary; and Jason Yoshimoto, Kamilo‘iki Elementary.
The award honors the late Masayuki Tokioka, founder of Island Insurance Company Ltd. and “a proud graduate of Hawaii public schools,” the news release said. It is presented annually by the foundation to a local public school principal who is visionary, community-minded and innovative, the release said.
