Deputy superintendents appointed at HIDOE

Hawai‘i State Department of Education Superintendent Keith Hayashi has appointed two veteran leaders to help strengthen the Department’s capacity to deliver on its priorities and goals and mitigate the negative impacts of the pandemic on students and schools.

Tammi Oyadomari-Chun has been named deputy superintendent of strategy and Curt T. Otaguro has been named deputy superintendent of operations. Hayashi said the deputy superintendents will help the Department:

• Formulate a plan of action to address the needs of, and potentially redesign, our state offices and system to better support complex areas and schools collectively to create the conditions needed to facilitate student success,
• Identify strengths, areas of improvement, and gaps, which may result in considerations for reorganization,
• Modernize processes and systems to eliminate redundancy and replace what is outdated to increase efficiency and effectiveness, and
• Promote institutional advancement to garner support in building leadership as well as teaching and learning capacity, increasing student engagement, and providing students with work-based and problem-based learning opportunities.

Tammi Oyadomari-Chun

Oyadomari-Chun has been named deputy superintendent of strategy and will be responsible for leading, directing and supervising the strategic planning, transformation and modernization, and implementation of the strategic initiatives of the Department.

She rejoins the Department, having previously served as assistant superintendent of the Office of Strategy, Innovation and Performance from 2015 to 2017.

Oyadomari-Chun most recently was interim associate vice president for academic affairs for the University of Hawaiʻi community college system, where she helped secure and implement more than $25 million in grants and contracts for strategic initiatives.

Oyadomari-Chun’s past work also includes serving as vice president at the Hawaiʻi Community Foundation, policy analyst for former Gov. Neil Abercrombie, and executive director of Hawaiʻi P-20. She holds a doctorate in education with a concentration in educational administration from the University of Southern California, a master’s degree in public policy from Harvard University, and a bachelorʻs degree from Pomona College in government and public policy analysis.

“Dr. Oyadomari-Chun’s extensive experience in education research, data, policy, program design and implementation, and strategic planning and management will make her an invaluable member of our leadership team as we work toward transforming our public education system into one that is high-performing and ensures every student has access to the educational opportunities needed to thrive in education and in the workforce,” Superintendent Hayashi said.

Curt T. Otaguro

Otaguro has been named deputy superintendent of operations and will be responsible for assessing and enhancing the operations and administrative functions of the Department. 

Otaguro has served since 2019 as the state’s comptroller and director of the Department of Accounting and General Services, overseeing the state’s accounting system; repair and maintenance of state-managed buildings and grounds; enterprise technology services; and public works planning, design and construction for capital improvement projects.

His past work also includes more than three decades with First Hawaiian Bank, including as  executive vice president and senior vice president for digital banking and retail banking for Oʻahu. He holds a bachelor’s degree in management from the University of Redlands.

“Mr. Otaguro is well-versed in managing a wide range of work across multiple offices statewide. In addition to his work in the public sector, he has extensive experience in the private sector leading modernization efforts,” Superintendent Hayashi said. “Mr. Otaguro’s experiences in managing a major department of the state’s executive branch and leading the transformation and innovation work of a large institution will make him an invaluable member of our leadership team as we work toward modernizing our systems to be highly effective and efficient.”

The Board of Education voted on Thursday to approve the appointments and starting salaries at its General Business Meeting. The appointments take effect on or after Aug. 22, 2022.

The new deputies add to the Department’s existing deputy superintendent position overseeing academics, held by Heidi Armstrong.

Armstrong was named interim deputy superintendent on July 1 after serving as assistant deputy superintendent from April to June to ensure a smooth leadership transition for the Office of the Deputy Superintendent. She brings over 30 years of experience spanning school, district and state leadership positions, including as assistant superintendent for the Office of Student Support Services and complex area superintendent for the Campbell-Kapolei Complex Area.