06/13/2026
🌿 Ho‘omaika‘i to Kumu Pele Kaio 🌿
Congratulations to Hawaiʻi Community College Assistant Professor of Hawaiian Life Styles, Pele Kaio, on receiving the Regents’ Medal for Excellence in Teaching on May 15, 2026.
Through his work as an educator, cultural practitioner, kumu hula of Unulau, and founder of the Pālama Foundation, Kumu Pele continues to inspire and uplift students and community through ʻike Hawaiʻi and leadership.
As one student shared, “He focuses on moving the spirit, and in doing so, he transformed ours.”
Mahalo, Kumu Pele, for all that you do. 🌺
Working information:
Regents’ Medal for Excellence in Teaching
Each year the Board of Regents recognizes one faculty member at each campus for excellence in teaching.
The Regents’ Medal for Excellence in Teaching is awarded by the Board of Regents as a tribute to faculty members who exhibit an extraordinary level of subject mastery and scholarship, teaching effectiveness and creativity and personal values that benefit students.
Pele Kaio is an assistant professor of Hawaiian lifestyles at Hawaiʻi Community College. He is an educator, cultural practitioner and community leader dedicated to advancing Indigenous knowledge systems and leadership.
Kaio serves as kumu hula (hula teacher) of Unulau, a hālau based in Hilo and Waimea, where he guides haumāna (students) in ʻaihaʻa (volcanic style) traditions that foster ʻike Hawaiʻi (Hawaiian knowledge), environmental stewardship and leadership. He is also president and founder of the Pālama Foundation, supporting Native Hawaiian communities through education and cultural initiatives.
“He focuses on moving the spirit, and in doing so, he transformed ours,” said a student.
Kaio also serves as a resource teacher at Kanu O Ka ʻĀina Public Charter School and teaches at the Kō Education Center in Honokaʻa, advancing community-based, place-centered learning.
A student said, “He concurrently weaves accountability into our moral compass, kindling awareness of our relationships with each other, with our environment, and with the world.”
