School starts global search for new leader

Hanahau‘oli School plans to conduct an international search to replace its longtime head of school, Robert Peters, who will retire at the end of the 2012-13 school year.

Peters, 69, has led the private school since 1982.

Under his leadership, Hanahau‘oli has received numerous accolades, completed a multiphase capital campaign that added three buildings to its Makiki Street campus, and opened a professional development center to provide workshops to visiting educators.

Hanahau‘oli School offers pre-kindergarten through sixth-grade classes. Its enrollment stands at about 200.

Tuition at the school this year is $17,580.

Peters said he has been thinking about retirement for several years. After leaving the school, he plans to focus on writing and consulting.

"I’m not planning to stop work per se," he said.

Governor picks new state comptroller

Gov. Neil Abercrombie has appointed Dean Seki, a policy and planning analyst at the state Department of Accounting and General Services, as state comptroller.

Seki also has worked at staff positions with the state Legislature and the state Department of Taxation. His appointment is subject to state Senate confirmation.

"Dean has been a member of the DAGS team for over a decade and is ready to lead the department in tackling present and future capital improvement projects," Abercrombie said in a statement.

Seki replaces Jan Gouveia, the acting comptroller who will return as the DAGS deputy director. Gouveia filled in as comptroller after Bruce Coppa, the former comptroller, was named Abercrombie’s chief of staff in October.

Kohala science students feted at White House

Four Hawaii island students were honored in Washington, D.C., Tuesday for being middle-school winners in a national science fair.

Competition organizers said Genevieve Boyle, Rico Bowman, Mina Apostadiro and Isabel Steinhoff were recognized at the White House, where they shared their project.

The Kohala Middle School students saw no local ways to properly dispose of batteries and predicted that if they gave people the ability to recycle batteries, they could collect 60,000 batteries in 60 days.

Police charge 2 men in attack on witness

Two Hawaii island men turned themselves in at the Hilo police station Monday night in connection with an assault on a 20-year-old man who is a witness in a manslaughter case against one of the suspects.

Waylen Keoni Carenio, 21, whose last known address was in Waimea, and Turner Kaimana Au, 24, of Hilo were charged Tuesday with kidnapping, intimidating a witness, retaliating against a witness and third-degree assault. Both remained at the police cellblock in lieu of $71,000 bail each.

Police said the victim, a witness in a manslaughter case against Carenio, was approached by one of the suspects Feb. 1 outside Coqui’s Hideaway restaurant and brought to a car where the other suspect was waiting. Once inside the car, the victim was restrained and assaulted. He eventually broke free and escaped.

Carenio was indicted last week for allegedly recklessly causing the death of Roy Williams Jr., 44, during a fight outside a bar on Dec. 4. His bail in the manslaughter case is $50,000.