Off the News

A strong leader in turbulent times

It will be the end of an era — for both Kamehameha Schools and Michael J. Chun — when the president and Kapa­lama campus headmaster retires in 15 months after 23 years.

It was Chun’s conflict with former schools trustee Lokelani Lindsey in the 1990s that galvanized student support and helped intensify the public spotlight on trustees’ questionable micromanagement and actions. That period, plus several later “heavy” ones involving serious student misconduct, have challenged Chun’s mettle.

But dark times often fade to renewal. And to hear his many fans tell it, Chun has been instrumental, and successful, in infusing the Hawaiian spirit into the academic experience. Kamehameha Schools, indeed, will have big shoes to fill.

No Grammy, no problem

A lot of people may be mourning the loss of the Hawaiian music category in the Grammy Awards, in the overhaul announced yesterday by the Recording Academy. But winnowing the number of second-tier categories makes gaming the system harder, thus preserving the stature of an awards program. It’s hard to argue against that, even if it means Hawaiian music gets less attention than it undoubtedly deserves.

There was not enough variety in the Hawaiian Grammy winners over the category’s brief history, so maybe the awards weren’t giving the art its due, anyway.