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A new national report finds Hawaiʻi is one of only five states in the country to meet 10 of 10 research-based quality benchmarks for pre-kindergarten programs. However, the report finds the state ranks 44th in the nation for preschool enrollment for four-year-olds and 31st for three-year-olds.

The Hawai‘i Department of Health has confirmed one additional case of pertussis (also known as whooping cough) in a third distinct region on Hawaiʻi Island which is unrelated to previous cases. This new case closely follows 10 recently reported cases and brings the total to 11 pertussis cases on the Island from March – April 2024. Several of the recent cases have occurred in infants too young to be fully vaccinated. 

A redevelopment project to beautify the rundown Kīhei Marketplace ran into strong community opposition Tuesday before the Maui Planning Commission with dozens of testifiers irked about plans for 13 transient vacation rentals.

Graduates will be celebrated throughout the University of Hawaiʻi 10-campus system this spring starting on May 4 and ending on May 11. This includes a May 9 commencement at the University of Hawaiʻi Maui College in Kahului. Molokaʻi is hosting their live commencement ceremony on May 10 for residents who earned a certificate or degree from the University of Hawaiʻi from fall 2021 to spring 2024. It is held only once every four years.

“Seeing students share their voices to talk about the importance of native birds in Hawaiʻi is so inspiring,” said Dr. Josh Atwood, Information and Education Specialist for DOFAW. “They did a lot of research to produce these videos. You get the sense from these videos that even if they haven’t seen these birds in person, the students take pride in them as part of what makes these islands special.”

One resident was displaced by a structure fire in Waiheʻe early Tuesday morning. The fire was reported at 3:08 a.m. on April 23, 2024 at a utility building on Kahekili Highway. The fire resulted in a total of $49,000 in damage to the structure and unknown damages to its contents.

The Color Festival Hawaiʻi, Imua Family Services’ signature friend-raiser event, emerges with spring with a blast of multi-hued rainbows on Sunday, April 28 at the Maui Arts & Cultural Center. The event is a celebration of Maui’s diverse community and the vibrancy that connects us all together. Live music, food and explosions of color are among the highlights at this open air concert.

On Monday night, Kamalei Kawaʻa’s journey on NBC’s “The Voice” came to a close. The singer, originally from Paukūkalo, reached the Playoffs last week, securing a spot in the top 20 after a journey that began in early March.

Three live adult coconut rhinoceros beetles (CRB) have been detected in traps in the Waikoloa area on Hawai‘i Island. The captures during the past week were the first detections of adult CRB on the island since six grubs (larvae) were found in October 2023, in a decaying palm tree by a resident in Waikoloa Village.

Toxoplasmosis, an infection spread only in the feces of feral cats, is likely what killed a nēnē gosling last month in Liliʻuokalani Park and Gardens on Hawaiʻi Island, according to the state Department of Land and Natural Resources. The DLNR Division of Forestry and Wildlife sent the diseased bird to the United States Geological Survey’s […]

To ensure reliable service, maintenance work at the base of two utility poles will impact area traffic along Dairy Road fronting the Maui Marketplace in Kahului on Tuesday, April 30, Wednesday, May 1, and Thursday, May 2, from 7 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. No service interruptions are planned for this work.

Six Maui County high school seniors have been awarded $1,000 each by the Josh and Souk Jerman Foundation Scholarship program. 

Fifty-four trucks and cars, many inoperable, will be towed from the state’s Kahului Harbor on May 6, state officials announced. A team from the state Department of Land and Natural Resources, Division of Boating and Ocean Recreation, and officers from the DLNR Division of Conservation and Resources Enforcement placed notices on each of the vehicles on Monday. The notices warn owners that their car or truck is parked illegally in a state boating facility, which is a violation of one or more laws under Hawai‘i Administrative Rules. During yesterday’s posting, 27 people were also advised that the state and a contractor would be cleaning up the harbor on May 2 and 3.

The grand opening of Kaulana Mahina Apartments—a workforce housing development in Wailuku—took place on Thursday, April 18. This event comes at a time when the chronically undersupplied housing market on Maui has been further impacted by the devastating fires of last August.

Registration is now open for First Tee Hawaiʻi’s programming at Kā’anapali Golf Courses. First Tee Hawaiʻi is a youth development organization that helps kids and teens build their strength of character through golf.

Maui County’s state Senate delegation was united Monday in voting with the majority of senators to kill a bill that would have decriminalized the possession of up to 1 ounce of marijuana.

Officials from US Army Corps of Engineers, state Department of Health and other agencies will discuss the status of debris clearing, how trees in the burn zone are determined to be hazardous and testing for shoreline water quality during this week’s meeting.

The Lānaʻi Culture & Heritage Center hosts its 3rd Annual Kupulau Festival on Saturday from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. in front of the center in Lāna‘i City.

Gov. Josh Green, M.D., has announced a new partnership with HomeAid Hawai‘i to build Ka La‘i Ola, a project that will create 450 units for wildfire survivors on Maui who were not eligible for FEMA assistance. Ka La‘i Ola is the largest interim housing development announced for Maui wildfire survivors to date. Groundbreaking will soon be announced. 

Lahaina will be the second Branch of Tomorrow on Maui. The first is Kīhei, which opened in 2017. Bank of Hawai‘i has served the people of Lahaina for nearly a century—beginning with its first branch in the area on Front Street in 1930. In addition to the new branch, Bank of Hawai‘i Foundation donated $100,000 to Hawai‘i Community Lending for the Lahaina Homeowner Recovery Program.