| PEOPLE
MAKING NEWS
April 1998 - J. Mark Kittrell is the new campus chaplain at Hanalani School. Carol
Okimoto was named HSTA Outstanding Teacher of the Year. Vickie Shiroma was one
of four Hawaii educators awarded the 1997 Presidential Award for Excellence. Alyson
Ama, Stacey Ng, & Kylene Nishida participated in the Hawaii State YMCA Youth
Legislature as Senate President, Senate Attorney, & Representative, respectively.
MTA
REVEALS 1998-99 BUDGET
April 1998 - In its monthly
newsletter to property owners, MTA revealed its 1998-99 budget. While employee related
costs such as medical, dental, & group life insurance show decreases from the previous
year’s budget, the $1.8 million budgeted for salaries & wages in 1998-99
is an increase of 4.5% over the previous year. The budget also proposes to spend
nearly $24,000 for training & conferences & $123,500 in legal fees, as compared to
nearly $28,000 & $145,000 respectively budgeted in the previous year. The MTA report
also contains an expenditure category, Employee Morale & Development - $12,670 was
budgeted in the previous year; only $3,775 is proposed for spending in 1998-99.
MTA expects to collect $3,789,267 in revenues in 1998-99, & spend
$3,359,479 - leaving an estimated balance of $429,788. Of this balance, it plans to spend
$221,725 for repairs, replacement, & capital improvements. The remaining balance of
$208,063 will be added to the overall balance of $3,455,506 remaining at the end of the
1997-98 year. This would leave an estimated overall fund balance at the end of
1998-99 of $3,663,569.
MTA reported that no increase in the quarterly ($63 paid by all
property owners) assessment is required, citing the Board’s diligence in seeking
other sources of revenue, keeping costs to a minimum, & developing a highly skilled
in-house maintenance crew.
The MTA newsletter stated that property owners who have questions may
call the MTA general manager (Calvin Maeda) at 623-7300 from 8am-4:30pm, Mondays thru
Fridays.
GRADUATING SENIORS NEED COMMUNITY'S
SUPPORT
April 1998 - Two fundraisers
are being planned to help defray costs for the June 7 graduation celebration - a portion
of the sales during Mililani McDonald’s Karaoke Night on April 17 & the
Sadie Hawkins Dance on May 23 at the high school.
Project Graduation is intended to provide a SAFE & FUN &
DRUG-ALCOHOL-FREE ENVIRONMENT where seniors can celebrate their graduation on the evening
of graduation day. The event is sponsored by SPADA, Mililani High School’s Students
& Parents Against Drugs & Alcohol.
Registration forms are available at the school. For more information,
call Joy Nakamoto at 623-8281 or Charlene Shinohara at 626-0082.
PUBLIC FORUM TO DISCUSS YR-ROUND
EDUCATION.
April 1998 -
Parents & the community are invited to a public forum on year-round education on
Thursday, April 9 at Wheeler Intermediate School cafeteria. School officials will
discuss schedules & other issues, & answer all your questions. The public
forum begins at 7pm.
GRADUATE SCHOLARSHIPS AVAILABLE
April 1998 - Rep. Marilyn Lee announced the availability of four
$2,250 U.S. Sprint graduate scholarships to be awarded in July. The National Conference of
State Legislators Women’s Network, which Rep. Lee is a member of, is coordinating the
scholarship award with Sprint. "Sprint is to be commended for its sponsorship &
taking action to enhance the effectiveness & quality of state government, & I
congratulate Sprint for its initiative," said Rep. Lee. Applicants must have a 3.5
gpa in undergraduate study & must be pursing an advanced degree in public policy,
political science, public administration, or related field. Deadline for requesting an
application is June 12. Deadline for submitting applications is June 23.
Call 1-800-796-3464 to request an application.
HEALTHY KIDS DAY & SPRING FEST THIS SATURDAY
April 1998 - The public is invited to a Heatlhy Kids Day Celebration
this Saturday April 4 from 7am to 12 pm at the Mililani YMCA. A 6.5-mile scholarship
walk-a-thon starts at 7am. The celebration will feature games & prizes, art display,
food, music, & obstacle course. Special guests include UH athletes. Call 625-1040 for
more info.
Spring Fest '98 is also being celebrated at the Town Center featuring:
KCCN, Hapa, Ben Vegas, Gordon Freitas, Mark Allen, Family of the Living God, Ikepono,
Opihi Pickers, Na Leo Kane, Tahitian dancers, taekwondo demo, food, Sam Choy's beef stew,
keiki id, & prizes. Call 623-6744 for more info.
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NEIGHBORHOOD BOARD NO.25 JOINS CYBERSPACE
April 1998 - If you ever wondered what goes on at a neighborhood board meeting, the
information is now readily available. Neighborhood Board No.25 (Mililani-Waipio-Melemanu),
chaired by Richard Poirier, has created a website of useful information.
"We wanted a site where agendas & minutes of meetings were available," said
Poirier. "We're elected by residents, & it's important for them to know what
we're doing."
Board member Eroll Hahn was instrumental in putting
the site together. "It was slow going but we finally completed it," said Hahn.
"Several volunteers helped with the programming, & Mililani Interactive
donated space on its server, so taxpayers aren't paying a penny," said Hahn.
Neighborhood boards are responsible for participating in the functions & processes of
government by taking actions that reflect the needs & desires of neighborhoods that
they represent. In addition to addressing land use matters, boards make recommendation
regarding public works projects & set priorities regarding growth of neighborhoods.
Neighborhood Board No. 25's website is accessible within the Community & Politics (City & County of
Honolulu) sections of Mililani Interactive, or at http://www.opihi.com/mililani/nb25.
COMPUTER BUSINESS OPERATED BY MILILANI STUDENTS
MILILANI HIGH SCHOOL - The word is getting out! A bunch of highly
motivated students at Mililani High School is using computers to provide valuable services
to small businesses, classmates, & even not-so-small businesses like Oceanic Cable.
The two-year old "company", dubbed MHSCNS, which stands for Mililani High School
Computer Net Services, enables students to sharpen their computer skills while introducing
them to the real world of business.
"Our first real job was helping Oceanic Cable introduce its Road
Runner Services," said company president Chris Jurado. "We must
have done ok because Oceanic allowed us to help setup a help-desk to service &
trouble-shoot problems that its customers encountered."
MHSCNS offers web page development services. "Our work is pretty
good," said company vice-president Ryan Matsumoto. "In addition
to web design, we can do customized business stationery, including business cards, &
photo finishing & logo design."
June Asato, a chemistry teacher, is advisor to the
group. "The students work real hard at this, & it helps them to transform their
ideas into business solutions," said Asato. "And a number of people &
businesses in the Mililani community have been very supportive."
MHSCNS is part of the School-to-Work program in the Mililani Complex
Schools, & is the laboratory for students enrolled in the Entrepreneurship & Small
Business Technology courses. Its website is at http://kalama.doe.hawaii.edu/~mhscns
JUNE 17 - STARTING DATE FOR MULTI-TRACK
April 1998 - The much debated multi-track schedule is set to begin
June 17. Six-graders will start at Wheeler Intermediate School, & a new track will
begin every 3 weeks thereafter. Each track will recess after 45 days. When the new
Mililani middle school opens in July, sixth-graders will move from Wheeler.
A group of parents continues to oppose multi-track, & has taken the
fight to the Legislature & the Board of Education.
A poll (unscientific) conducted by Mililani Interactive showed that out
of over 400 respondents, 65% favored multi-track & 35% opposed or required more
information to decide.
KIPAPA GULCH IMPROVEMENTS INCLUDED IN BUDGET & STUDENT-TEACHER RATIOS
MAINTAINED
April 1998 - At a recent meeting of the Neighborhood Board No. 25,
Rep. Marilyn Lee reported that an $825,000 appropriation is included in the House version
of the budget (HB 2500, HD1) to control erosion & install additional chain link
netting on the Mauka side of Kamehameha Hwy in Kipapa Gulch. "The roadway
improvements will provide additional safety for Mililani commuters," said Rep. Lee.
Lee also reported that the budget bill (House version) contains funding to satisfy the Felix-Waihee
Consent Decree, & maintains K-6 student-teacher ratios at current levels. Lee
also indicated that she welcomes input from Mililani residents regarding pending bills
designed to revitalize the economy.
MORE INFO ON MAUKA MCDONALD’S
April 1998 - The new Mauka McDonald’s will seat 80 people.
It’ll also have a 2-booth drive-thru, including a customer order-display
system so customers can see their orders on a large screen to improve accuracy
& speed of service. The building will have a green tile roof that compliments the
color scheme of nearby buildings. Construction is progressing on schedule.
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