January 2022 Newsletter
Happy New Year! Welcome to AAJA Hawai‘i’s monthly newsletter! Here, you’ll find chapter updates, upcoming events, member bylines and more.
If you have a story or career update you want to share with our AAJA family, let us know at hawaii@aaja.org!
Chapter Updates and Announcements
The board met on Jan. 12 and discussed conducting a member survey, sponsoring an award for the Journalism Education Association’s Hawai‘i Journalist of the Year contest, and potential plans to support the upcoming in-person national convention, which will be held in Los Angeles in July.
Member News
Congratulations to student member Krista Rados, who received a $5,000 Undergraduate Research Opportunities Program (UROP) grant from UH’s Office of the Vice Chancellor for Research. She’ll be studying media use in the Moloka‘i community this spring, interviewing and shadowing community leaders and newsmakers.
Member Bylines
December caps record year for Oʻahu real estate. Home prices expected to rise in 2022
Hawai‘i Public Radio’s Casey Harlow reports on the rising cost of single-family homes on O‘ahu. 60% of single-family homes sold above the asking price in December. “With the interest rates remaining down around 3%, the demand still being very, very high, we expect these trends to continue in the foreseeable future,” Locations senior vice president and principal broker John Connelley told HPR.
The Honolulu Star-Advertiser’s Jayna Omaye writes about the recent selection of 9 people from Hawai‘i or with local ties to key federal positions that aim to better support and advocate for AA and NHPI communities. “Some of these appointees and other local community leaders say this is a good step in the right direction in bringing more visibility to and representation from Hawaii. But many also say that execution is key moving forward, pointing out that there is still a lot more work needed to continue pushing for social, economic and racial justice.”
New caucus focuses on issues facing working families
Hawai‘i Public Radio’s Jason Ubay spoke with the Working Families Caucus about the five bills they’ll be sponsoring this legislative session. “They focus on raising the minimum wage, paid sick and family leave, the earned income tax credit, renter’s credit and exempting unemployment payments from personal income tax.”
Is The Hawaii Legislature Ready To Give Teachers A Raise?
Honolulu Civil Beat’s Suevon Lee dives into the proposed budget for the state Department of Education. “An estimated 8,700 teachers in Hawaii are underpaid based on years of experience, with a gap ranging from $7,700 to $26,000, per the proposed bill. This negatively impacts recruitment and retention, with Hawaii reporting 886 teacher vacancies, 230 in special education alone.”
Groups push Hawaii political candidates for more investment in young children
The Honolulu Star-Advertiser’s Ashley Mizuo writes about Commit to Keiki, a coalition that is pushing political candidates and lawmakers to support more early childhood care and development initiatives. “Commit to Keiki is focused on three issues: access to child care, family violence prevention and intervention, and early childhood mental health. It is currently approaching the candidates for the upcoming 2022 governor’s race about funding programs related to these topics.”
How To Keep Hawaii’s Rarest Plants From Disappearing? Freeze Them
Honolulu Civil Beat’s Cassie Ordonio writes about the Micropropagation Laboratory and Seed Conservation Laboratory in Mānoa. The lab will soon use cryopreservation to protect at-risk plant species for the future. “The concept is new to Hawaii, which started experimenting with cryopreservation in 2020, but the practice already has been used at the Cincinnati Zoo and Botanical Garden, and in other countries including Australia and India.”
Updates and Announcements from AAJA National, Chapters and Affinity Groups
AAJA’s 2022 convention will be held in person at the Sheraton Universal Hotel from July 27 to 30! More information here.
Members can get involved in convention planning by applying to join the Convention Planning Committee or by submitting a convention program pitch. Deadline for both is Jan. 31, 2022.
Applications are open for AAJA’s JCamp, a six-day training camp for high school students. Students selected for the program have all costs covered including airfare, campus housing and meals. Current plans are to hold the camp in-person in Los Angeles, but details are still being developed. Deadline to apply is March 31. More information here.
Apply for AAJA’s VOICES program, a fellowship program that equips undergraduate and graduate student journalists with career-ready skills. The program this year will consist of summer-long training and project work that begins in May and culminates at the AAJA 2022 Convention in Los Angeles on Wednesday, July 28 to Saturday, July 31. More information here.
Job Openings
Hawai‘i Public Radio is looking for a general assignment reporter with at least 5 years of experience to write, edit and produce short and long form news features and shorter stories for on-air newscasts. Closing date is Jan. 31. More information here.
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