Every year writers from across the country visit ‘Iolani school. Writers that have been in the New York Times and were awarded the prestigious Pulitzer Prize. The Keables Chair and Scholar programs bring in prestigious writers annually to expose students and teachers of the ‘Iolani community. Although many students know the Keables Chair program as a series of lectures and classroom visits the program has quickly evolved into much more. The respective Keables programs have transformed into one of ‘Iolani’s most influential academic programs helping to promote greater opportunities and experiences for students. Through partnerships with the University of Hawai‘i (UH), ‘Iolani hosts speakers who have won prestigious awards such as the Pulitzer Prize or the National Book Award, who are U.S. Poet Laureates and who work for the New York Times. These talks are rapidly changing by bringing in distinguished speakers that are well versed in different topics allowing the program to go beyond literature and into the future of education.
What began as a small residency program in 1984 has blossomed into what it is today. The Keables chair program was started by Mr. Charlie Proctor to honor renowned ‘Iolani educator Harold Keables who was Life Magazine’s teacher of the year in 1960. The Keables Chair program has evolved into one of ‘Iolani’s most unique educational traditions. The idea behind the program is bringing authors to campus to inspire students and teachers. The programs are funded by community donations to the Harold Keables Fund. With the help of teachers, community and speakers, the Chair and Scholar programs bring meaningful experiences to the community.
‘Iolani students at all levels benefit from attending speeches and interacting in small group sessions with accomplished writers. These interactions and lessons provide valuable opportunities to learn. Mr. Russell Motter, the Head of the Keables Chair Committee, said “If you’re a baseball player, and you want hitting instruction, the opportunity to have … Chipper Jones … a legendary third baseman for the Atlanta Braves, that could change an athlete’s life. So, I think we want the same thing for our students in the classroom… Having professional writers who visit [and] share their story, but also deliver advice, instruction and share with students … can be life changing for people.” They also meet with faculty to share ideas on teaching and inspiration. At the end of their residencies ‘Iolani hosts a talk open to the public at the end of each of the chairs’ stays that is free to anyone. The Keables Scholar was established in 2018 to complement the Chair program.
Mr. Motter said, “This can change people’s lives. As dramatic as that sounds … just having an interaction with someone like that opens worlds of possibilities that wouldn’t have existed had these people not been visiting the school.”
Over time the program expanded due to monetary donations that allowed the committee to allocate resources into a smaller residency program (Keables Scholar program). Mr. Motter said, “We’re in a position right now where we can invite really famous people.
We had two Pulitzer Prize winners this year, come visit the campus. It’s a tribute to the school to our teachers. You know, that we treat people well and they have a good time while they’re here.”
Although the program was built to mostly benefit students, the teachers play a major role in the program. Mr. Motter said, “It’s a program that was designed with students, first and foremost, in mind. It’s for all students.
It’s for teachers. And it’s run with teacher input, with support from the administration. and I think it’s really one of the treasures of the school.
The reputation of ‘Iolani allows for the program to bring in writers from various places and backgrounds. While simultaneously strengthening ‘Iolani’s reputation of being nationally recognized as a place for learning and new experiences for all parties. It not only is a learning experience for the students but it is also a truly unique experience for the Keables Chairs and Scholars themselves. Mr. Motter said “It’s not just students who are changed by these visits.
It’s also the people who we bring in. They’re changed as well, you know they come to Hawaii. [They] haven’t seen it up close and personal like this. They get to see our school and people walk away super impressed with ‘Iolani School and ‘Iolani students … This means something in that world of speakers … I think that … we’re going to see a lot more interdisciplinary [work.]” Over the last few years the Chair and Scholar programs have brought in speakers such as Naomi Shihab Nye, Elizabeth Acevedo, Jodi Kantor, Viet Thanh Nguyen, and Jeff Chang. By leaving writers with a good impression, the program helps to build ‘Iolani’s reputation of academic excellence.
Not only does the program affect the ‘Iolani community but our community in general. Its reach to the broader community through a collaboration with the UH Better Tomorrow series which they are currently collaborating on will allow for the public to be more involved. Mr. Motter said, “This year especially has been a year of real growth for us because of the partnerships that we’ve formed, especially with UH. So I think working with UH opens up a whole new set of possibilities for us.
When we’re able to share the costs, that means that our money is going to go further and we can bring more and more people in. I think that we’re developing a reputation as a really good gig as well.” This reputation allows the program to bring in more prestigious speakers with hopes of expanding the program even further into the public. Mr. Motter said “When we have our community nights, it’s open to the public.
We’ve been trying to develop more of those evenings…. Jodi Kantor’s visit this year was a partnership between our Keables Program and the UH Better Tomorrow series.
So that relationship is growing right now, too.” This ongoing relationship will allow for the reallocation of resources to further expand and bring more speakers for multiple years in the future.
While they’re here, they not only speak in Seto Hall but they also come to classes and workshops that allow for students to interact in a more private setting. Mr. Motter said, “If we have poets, we’ve had a number of poets come through who have delivered fantastic workshops. And this is great for our student poets.
It’s also great for our teachers to be able to watch professional writers in action engaging with our students in really small settings.” As the program continues to grow the committee hopes to bring in more diverse and timely speakers to inspire a broader array of students.
Mr. Motter shared his opinion on the program as the head of the Keables Committee. He said, “These kinds of programs show a different side of ‘Iolani than most people are familiar with, … I think for our students who are kind of geared toward the humanities and maybe even students who think of themselves as mathematicians or scientists or engineers, they get drawn into these events as well…I think that it enhances the education of all students and all teachers.”
