ÂÜÀòÂÒÂ×

Ken Kuraya is being appointed to complete the three-year term of Catherine Payne’s at-large seat, which began on July 1, 2021 and ends on June 30, 2024. Payne declined to continue in the position following the current legislative session. Payne will serve until June 30, 2022 and Kuraya will start July 1, 2022.

Kuraya is an educator who served for 40 years in various roles within the Hawaiʻi State Department of Education (HIDOE) from the classroom to the administration. He has extensive experience in budgeting and expenditures, having planned and implemented processes and procedures to allocate and monitor over $1.8 billion to schools, complexes, districts and offices within the HIDOE. Kuraya earned a B.A. from Hawaiʻi Pacific University in Western History and Eastern Political Science and received a Secondary School Teacher Certificate and School Administrator Certification from the University of Hawaiʻi. Board Member Kuraya's term runs from July 1, 2022 to June 30, 2025.