Hawaiʻi State Department of Education (HIDOE) Superintendent Keith Hayashi was one of four proud alumni inducted into the Kaimukī High School Hall of Honor for their outstanding achievements and community contributions.

Hayashi, a Kaimukī High School graduate, has served the Department for over three decades at the school, complex area and state level. Prior to his appointment as superintendent in July 2022, he led Waipahu High School as principal for 12 years, a position for which he received numerous awards, including Hawai‘i High School Principal of the Year and the collegiate Shirley B. Gordon Award of Distinction. He is credited with pioneering the Early College program in Hawai‘i public schools and earned the distinction for Waipahu High as the state's first nationally recognized wall-to-wall academy model school.

Inducted into the Hall of Honor with Hayashi were award-winning designer Owen Ho, creator of the "Shaka Santa" and the annual holiday display fronting Honolulu’s City Hall; breakdancer Jack Rabanal, winner of numerous competitions who is training for the sport of breakdancing, which will be an official sport at the 2024 Olympics in Paris; and retired University of Hawaiʻi Athletics administrator and former Rainbow Wahine volleyball player Marilyn Moniz-Kaho'ohanohano.

The group joins previous Hall of Honor inductees including U.S. Senator Mazie Hirono, former U.S. Attorney Florence Nakakuni, ukulele virtuoso Jake Shimabukuro, Broadway star Ruthie Ann Miles, and other distinguished Kaimukī alumni. 

Kaimukī High School graduates are eligible to be nominated 10 years or more after their graduation date. Launched in 2015, the Hall of Honor recognizes exceptional graduates for their accomplishments and service to the community, allowing them to serve as inspirational role models for current and future students.