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Daily Smile

[{"type":"text","text":"The birds got the best of this kitty..."}]

Smile 26 4 22

<title>Daily Smile: Wednesday, April 22, 2026</title>

The birds got the best of this kitty...

Daily Smile: Wednesday, April 22, 2026

Lopaka and Tanya Kapanui

Lopaka Kapanui and Tanya Kapanui

Hawai‘i History

Columnists

There are many stories about ghosts and hauntings in our old Hawai‘i newspapers. Some articles briefly mention someone who claims to have seen a ghost, while others unfold over several days with explicit detail. One of our favorite stories takes place in the area we now know as Kamāmalu Playground.

In 1905, Emma Street, as it was called then, was lined with rows of old wooden houses, and in one of them lived the Camara family. They made a living doing laundry for several prominent members of the community, including the Parker family and Princess Kawananakoa.

One night, in their shared bed, something disturbed the two daughters in their sleep. They awoke to a vision of a woman dressed in a white, floor-length gown with long black hair. Her skin was pale and ashen. The girls told newspaper reporters that the strange woman pulled back the sheets and then lay down next to them. It was that moment they both screamed loud enough to wake their parents, who ran to the bedroom just in time to see the haunting woman leave the bed and disappear into the dark.

After that, the family continued their laundry business during the day but refused to return to the house after sunset. They later found out that previous tenants also had a hard time staying in the home, and one family even forfeited their security deposit to vacate the house.

Reportedly, the description of the apparition matched that of the house’s original owner, who died many years earlier. The woman’s son, hoping to retain the Camara family’s occupancy, arrived at the home and said he wanted to speak with his mother. He thought he could tell her not to come back, as she was not wanted, but the family doubted his ability to reason with the spirit and continued looking for another place to live.

During all the commotion, two men showed up, claiming to be ghost hunters, and asked to be allowed into the house. Mr. Camara obliged but became suspicious when he took the men to the room where the ghost was seen, and they began opening trunks and bureau drawers, and examining the dresses and other articles sent there to be laundered. Finally, one of the men asked if they could spend the night in the house, along with Mr. Camara, to welcome the ghost if it appeared. Mr. Camara replied that he would not sleep in the house for a thousand dollars. He suspected the men were more interested in the valuable garments sent there to be cleaned and refused to allow them to stay in the house overnight.     

After the Camara family moved out, the property owner could not find any other tenants who were willing to stay in the house, and the house was finally torn down the following year. About 50 years later, a public park would be built on the site where that haunted house once stood.

One of the first public parks on O‘ahu was Kamāmalu Park, but it wasn’t always along Queen Emma Street.

Set aside in 1912 for the use and purpose of a public park and playground, the plot was originally on the ‘Ewa/makai corner of Fort and School Streets and was referred to as the “Old Fort Street School Lot.” In 1915, it was officially named Kamāmalu Park after the recommendation of the Outdoor Circle, explaining that all the land in the surrounding area was once the property of Princess Kamāmalu, the sister of King Kamehameha IV and Kamehameha V. A year later, a resolution announced that the park would be equipped and provided with playground equipment and dedicated to public use. The official name would now be Kamāmalu Playground.

In 1932, Emma Street, where the haunted house once stood, was renamed Queen Emma Street, and then, in the late 1950s, the Queen Emma Reconstruction Project was proposed. The 73-acre project was bounded by School, Kukui, and Queen Emma Streets, and Nu‘uanu Stream. The plan was to tear down around 850 tenements, dilapidated houses, and old shops in the area, which were labeled as “a hazard and a threat.” More than one newspaper referred to it as the “slum clearing project.”

In 1958, the Parks Board approved the sale of Kamāmalu Playground at Fort and School Streets from the Free Kindergarten and Children’s Aid Association to the Territory, citing that the area was needed for construction of the Lunalilo Freeway. After six years, when the Nu‘uanu section of the freeway and the Queen Emma redevelopment project were complete, the new Kamāmalu Playground was built on the corner of Vinyard and Queen Emma Street, behind the new Nu‘uanu YMCA.

The project brought Honolulu a larger botanical garden, tall condos, a new YMCA, a small shopping center, and a bigger park and playground. But after more than a hundred years, would the ghost of the Emma Street house still exist?

After one of my nightly ghost tours, a young couple stayed a little longer to ask me about Kamāmalu Playground. Before I could explain any history, they went on to share their own strange story.

As part of their evening routine, Mark and Laura usually walk their German shepherd from their condo on Kukui Street to Kamāmalu Park. One night, just as they crossed the Vineyard intersection, their dog somehow slipped his collar and took off toward the basketball courts. They explained that this was highly unusual after his intense obedience school training, but here he was, running through the overgrown grass like he was chasing something.

The couple tried to catch up, but the shepherd continued to elude them until they lost sight of him completely. As they stood near the back of the YMCA building, they heard the vicious barking and yelping coming from the playground. As they got closer, they saw the German shepherd being dragged through the grass and dirt by something they couldn’t see. Whatever it was, their dog was fighting against it with everything he had. The couple sprinted across the park to rescue their pet, but as soon as they got close, the commotion suddenly stopped. The shepherd turned to face them, sat down, and just stared at them, motionless.

Relieved, Mark started toward his dog, but his wife stopped him, saying something felt off. Laura called out to the dog, but it didn’t move. No wagging tail, no panting, and absolutely no reaction to them, aside from its blank stare.

The couple began to walk backward slowly, questioning whether this was actually their dog. They realized it would be a weird coincidence if their dog ran off and they came upon another dog that looked exactly like him. Then Mark saw something out of the corner of his eye. He turned to look and then alerted his wife. There, under the shower tree, was their dog, lying in the grass, tail flapping, looking completely unbothered. When they turned back to look at the dog that was initially in distress, they couldn’t believe what they saw.

[{"type":"text","text":"“It literally vanished right in front of us!” Laura said."}]

They had no explanation for what might have happened to them that evening, and neither did I. However, I did suggest that, when they do take their dog out for walks at night, it might be best not to go to a place with a ghostly history. I then told them the story of what was once at Kamāmalu Playground.

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Kamamalu Playground

<title>Ghostly history of Kamāmalu Playground</title>

A home once stood on the property, then known as Emma Street, and its owner seemed unwilling to stay away even after death. But is she the only spirit that haunts the site?

Ghostly history of Kamāmalu Playground

Yamachika Tom IMG 1913 Large

Tom Yamachika

Government & Politics

Viewpoints

Hawai‘i conveyance tax is imposed any time real estate in Hawai‘i is bought, sold, or leased for a term of five years or more. Goings-on at our legislature give us some conveyance tax fright.

The tax dates back to 1967, in the first decade after statehood. (Act 10, Hawai‘i Session Laws 1966.) At the time the State, not the counties, was administering the real property tax. Because property deeds tended not to disclose the actual sales prices (they said things like “For $1 and other good and valuable consideration” when they mentioned what the real property was being sold for), real property assessors needed data on which to make market value assessments. So, it was decided to impose a rather small tax — it was half a mill, or 0.05 cents, per dollar of consideration. If the property was sold for $1 million, for example, the tax would have been $500.

Over time, the conveyance tax was hiked several times, leading to the structure we have today. Today we have tax brackets, but not with marginal tax rates like we have in income tax. For example, a property sold for less than $1 million is taxed at 20 cents per $100 and a property sold for $1 to $2 million is taxed at 30 cents per $100.  When the sales price is $1 million, the tax is $3,000; if it’s a shade less, then the tax is a little less than $2,000.  The jumps in tax due get larger and larger with the higher tax brackets.

In this legislative session, there are two bills moving that would change the conveyance tax structure to a marginal rate, where hitting a new tax bracket would only expose the price in excess of the bracket amount to the higher tax rate.  These bills are 

.  The description of both bills contains similar language: “Restructures the conveyance tax to a marginal rate system for the sale of properties with residential use, adjusts the tax for multifamily properties to reflect value on a per-unit basis, and applies a cost-of-living adjustment to conveyance tax rates.”

The last part of the description is already scary:  “Applies a cost-of-living adjustment to conveyance tax rates.” Yes, we have inflation going on, and yes, that means a dollar we have today isn’t worth as much as a dollar we had last year. I can understand increasing 

, like fee amounts or bracket amounts, for inflation. But 

? There is no similar reason why rates need to be increased with inflation.  Taxing an amount higher because of inflation yields a higher tax even if the rate is the same.  So, what they are saying is that there will be tax rate hikes. Yikes!

A second reason for dread is that both bills don’t tell us what the politicos have in mind. The rates and the brackets in both bills are blank. Yes, these are “Blankety Blank” bills that we have often mentioned and just as often reviled. With the bills in their current state, it’s impossible to tell if they want to raise rates 10%, 100%, or even 1000%. 

Previous versions of the bills that did have numbers in them, however, called for substantial tax hikes. The House bill as originally introduced contains a maximum tax rate of 6%, more than four times the current maximum tax rate of 1.25%. The Senate bill as originally introduced contains a maximum tax rate of 4.1%.  The only other version of the bill that contains numbers is House Draft 3 of the House bill, which contains a maximum tax rate of 9.5%. Even more scary!

If either of these bills are to pass, it doesn’t seem like numbers are going to be put in them until Conference Committee, which as we know neither requires nor accepts public input. So, we wait nervously for the door of the crypt to open and then we can finally see the monster that comes out.

Hawaii housing general pic unsplash

<title>Community Voices: Conveyance Tax Fright</title>

The Legislature is advancing bills to increase the conveyance tax on properties sold in Hawai‘i, without revealing by how much. The are "Blankety Blank" bills, with the most important numbers left out. Early drafts, however, did propose rate increases as much as four times higher than current rates.

Community Voices: Conveyance Tax Fright

Kelli Shiroma Braiotta Headshot

Kelli Shiroma Braiotta

Food & Dining

, vividly remembers serving tacos on a street corner in Waikīkī back in 2011.

“I started a little taco stand from 2011 to 2015,” he says. “I was in Waikīkī, making tacos from midnight to 4:30 in the morning. And sometimes I would stay there until 5 a.m.; I would take a lot of food with me.

“(Before that,) I was waiting tables and bartending in Vegas,” he adds. “When I moved to Hawai

i, I had to open my business to make the same amount of money. I opened in Kalihi Valley in 2015 on Cinco de Mayo.”

Since the business’s original Kalihi store opening, it has expanded. Alvarado had a Kapahulu location for a few years — “from 2020 to 2023,” he says — and opened in Pearl City. The biz recently opened its third Oʻahu location in the former spot of Pauoa Chop Suey.

“This one is in the neighborhood, so it’s really nice that people can walk here,” Alvarado says. “A lot of people have such long-lasting memories of Pauoa Chop Suey. They’re very acceptant of us; we appreciate how warm and welcoming everyone has been. I tell them, ‘I know we have some big shoes to fill, but I’m confident my feet are bigger!’”

As soon as you walk into the restaurant, the eatery’s new Los Angeles Dodgers-inspired mural is immediately eye catching.

“(For the mural) I already knew what I wanted,” Alvarado says. “I wanted to feel like I’m going right into Dodger Stadium, and all of my favorite players had just won back-to-back World Series.

“This is a big space,” he adds, regarding the restaurant’s size. “It’s kind of bigger than what we need, but it’s nice to space some things out. Now we have more dining (seating). We had that at Kapahulu, but we don’t really have that at Kalihi.”

The menu across all three stores is mostly the same, but the Pearl City and Pauoa locations also feature churros (two for $7) and nacho fries. Nacho fries ($15) are loaded with nacho cheese, shredded cheese, beans, onions, cilantro, sour cream, jalapenos, olives, pico de gallo and salsa verde, according to Alvarado. Customers can also add a protein of their choice for a supplemental charge.

“I love the nacho cheese; I have it on the menu because I like it,” Alvarado says.

Tacos are available as three-taco combo plates — which include three tacos, rice, beans and a fountain drink — or a la carte (prices vary, depending on the protein). Five-inch corn tortillas are filled with a protein of your choice, onions, cilantro and salsa verde. Choose from carnitas, beef, chicken, carne asada or a veggie (rice, beans, cheese, onions, cilantro, pico de gallo and salsa verde) option.

The three-taco combo plate — along with the eatery’s wet burrito combo plate — are the two most popular dishes, according to Alvarado.

“For the meat choice, carne asada — the steak — is the most popular,” he says. “My personal favorite is the carnitas — the crispy, shredded pork.

“The aim is to make it like a hash brown,” he says. “You crispy it up, so that when it gets to you, it has a little crispy texture and it’s still moist. There’s a little squeeze of lime on all the tacos. It gives it this nice freshness.”

The wet burrito combo plate ($17.50-$19, depending on protein) features a 10-inch burrito with cheese, onions, cilantro, olives and your protein of choice. It’s finished with red enchilada sauce, more shredded cheese and sour cream.

“I do the carne asada wet burrito with half carnitas, so it’s both steak and pork in the same (one); that’s my jam,” Alvarado says.

The menu also features regular burritos, quesadillas, macho burritos —with 12-inch flour tortillas — Mexibowls (bowls with rice, beans and a variety of toppings) and nachos.

As the new store gets more settled, Alvarado says customers can look forward to specials, and he is optimistic about the new year. 

“I’ve been doing it (the business) since 2011 and the restaurants have been since 2015, but my workers make it all happen," he says. "I have veterans that moved over (from the Kalihi store to the Pauoa store) and everyone’s willing to take on a little more responsibility. That’s the most precious part — the growth — and everybody being a part of it. One person doesn’t make this; it’s the whole team. We’re as good as our weakest link, and we don’t have any weak links!”

The restaurant is open from 11 a.m. to 7:30 p.m. Mondays to Fridays, and 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturdays (closed Sundays). 

[{"type":"text","text":"Limited customer parking is available in the lot behind the restaurant."}]

Open 11 a.m. to 7:30 p.m. Mondays to Fridays, 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturdays

Customer parking available in the lot behind the restaurant

Alejandros Pauoa owner 030326

<title>Alejandro’s Mexican Food opens in Pauoa</title>

This is the third location for the business, which opened its first store in Kalihi Valley in 2015. Customers can look forward to tacos, burritos, quesadillas, nacho fries and more.

Alejandro’s Mexican Food opens in Pauoa

Christian Shimabuku Headshot

Christian Shimabuku

Sports

Former Kahuku head football coach Sterling Carvalho and his attorney, Eric Seitz, took to O‘ahu Circuit Court on Monday for his lawsuit against the state. 

Monday was the date set by O‘ahu Circuit Court Judge Jordon Kimura during a 

 as Kahuku's head football coach on March 31. A letter was sent to Kahuku parents shortly thereafter, though no reason was provided at the time. He served as the head coach for the Red Raiders from 2018 to 2024, going 59-18 with three straight state titles from 2021 to 2023. 

As was stated in both Carvalho's lawsuit and discussed during Monday's hearing, Carvalho's removal stemmed from an incident in the 2023 season involving a player, Tavian "Manoa" Hallums, and his father, Kalani Hallums. Carvalho sued the DOE, superintendent Keith Hayashi, area superintendent Samuel Izumi and both Hallums. 

A social media post from Kalani Hallums criticizing Carvalho in the middle of the 2023 season made the rounds in the Kahuku community and was soon brought to the attention of Carvalho. 

Carvalho's removal and ensuing lawsuit traces back to a one-on-one meeting between him and Manoa Hallums during a practice following Kalani Hallums' posts. Carvalho says he called Manoa Hallums into a private office at Kahuku's weight room and told him other adults saw his father's posts and wanted to "lick" him. Despite that, Carvalho said he wanted to look out for the "social, emotional and mental health" of Manoa Hallums, a phrase also repeated by the defense. 

After Manoa Hallums voluntarily addressed the team during a practice, Carvalho says he and other coaches also addressed the team, telling players not to take any anger directed toward Kalani Hallums out on Manoa Hallums. 

As many as 21 people were present in support of Carvalho during Monday's hearing, which lasted seven hours, albeit with breaks between multiple sessions. Carvalho's wife sat directly behind him the entire day, appearing to tear up on multiple occasions. 

One of Seitz's first appeals for Carvalho was a personal one, praising his character and honesty. Seitz noted that Carvalho's motivation for leading the Red Raiders was purely intrinsic since he made a mere $3,000 annually as Kahuku's head football coach. During the day, Carvalho teaches math at Hawai‘i Technology Academy, a public charter school under the DOE umbrella on O‘ahu's west side. 

The basis behind the Department of Education's defense, led by attorney Bradford Chun, was that Carvalho did not sign a contract to remain Kahuku's head football coach for the 2024 season. 

The first witness called to the stand was former Kahuku High and Intermediate principal Donna Lindsey, who recently retired after 14 years as principal and 35 years in education. She submitted her retirement on March 28, effective July 1, without the knowledge that Carvalho was going to be removed as the school's head football coach three days later. 

Both Lindsey and Kahuku athletic director Gillian Yamagata, when called to the witness stand, acknowledged they were aware of the incident that occurred between Carvalho and the Hallums that was being investigated by the DOE. 

Area superintendent Samuel Izumi, who oversaw Carvalho's firing, was also called to the stand on Monday, where he stated he wanted to meet with Carvalho in person at his office in Kāneʻohe. Izumi said attempts to meet with Carvalho in person in January were unsuccessful, and the two ended up speaking on a Zoom call on Feb. 14. 

Prosecution and defense both mentioned that when Carvalho was asked if he would handle the situation any differently, Carvalho said he wouldn't, other than having another witness present during his one-on-one meeting with Manoa Hallums. 

While Izumi said he did not have knowledge of Carvalho threatening Kalani Hallums, he believed he had "sufficient evidence" that the "social, emotional and mental health" of Manoa Hallums was compromised. 

Izumi also said he felt a lack of "reflection, remorse or consideration" in Carvalho's demeanor throughout the investigation, noting he didn't read the entire investigation report, also noting Carvalho's lack of desire to meet in person immediately in January. 

Dozens of letters in support Carvalho have poured in since April, but Izumi noted they were all "after the fact."

Another witness on Monday was Stewart Carvalho, Sterling's twin brother. Stewart Carvalho was an assistant coach on Sterling's staff, serving as the special teams coordinator and receivers coach. 

Honolulu Fire Department veteran Kalu Wolfe, whose son, Terahiti, played for Sterling Carvalho in 2022, also took the witness stand to vouch for him. 

Stewart Carvalho, a Lāʻie resident, noted that Manoa Hallums, who transferred in from Mililani in 2022, was a frequent visitor to his home. "He would always come over, sleepovers or food, dinner," Stewart Carvalho said. 

Manoa Hallums would continue to visit Stewart Carvalho's home following a brief break Manoa Hallums took from the team in 2023 after his one-on-one meeting with Sterling Carvalho. Stewart Carvalho said during those visits, Manoa Hallums did not indicate there were any problems or that trauma was being caused. 

The witness who spent the longest time on the stand was Sterling Carvalho, who was asked a bevy of questions about his contractual status with Kahuku by the defense. Sterling Carvalho's contract for the 2024-2025 season was set to expire on June 30 before his March 31 removal. 

Because he was a casual hire, he was never given a contract beyond one year. 

Sterling Carvalho noted that the Red Raiders had a captain for each position, and that Manoa Hallums was voted the receivers captain for 2023. Each captain came together to form the captain council. Carvalho says he didn't know until after the fact that the council voted to remove Manoa Hallums as a captain after a road trip to California in 2023 in which he allegedly had an altercation with a teammate in a hotel room. 

Sterling Carvalho also mentioned how Manoa Hallums' access to the team's Hudl (a film sharing platform) was revoked after he publicly shared plays from team practices, breaking a team rule. 

The defense pointed out Carvalho signed contracts to coach the team for the 2022 and 2023 seasons but not 2024.  

In hopes of getting Hayashi on the witness stand, Seitz said his team subpoenaed Hayashi during the lunch break, which lasted about one hour through 12:45 p.m. However, Seitz said Hayashi was not present at his office, noting he's "never subpoenaed a party" in his life. 

Kahuku athletics director Gillian Yamagata was called to the stand by the defense and acknowledged Sterling Carvalho did not complete his paperwork for the 2024 season. Seitz responded by saying even though Sterling Carvalho did not sign the contract, he still performed it and was paid for it. 

After both sides gave their closing arguments, Kimura requested both parties turn in any additional evidence by 4 p.m. on Wednesday. 

"I'd like to thank my lawyer, Eric Seitz, in doing a phenomenal job today, and at this point in time, we just have to trust the process and let the court decide," Sterling Carvalho briefly told the media afterwards. 

Carvalho is still hoping to be reinstated by the start of Kahuku's 2025 season, which begins on Aug. 9 against defending state champion Saint Louis. 

"I do not," Sterling Carvalho said when asked if he knows when he'll get an answer. "I have never been in this situation."

[{"type":"text","text":"Seitz said afterwards that the timeline for a resolution varies widely. "}]

"(After additional materials are submitted) by the close of business Wednesday, then the judge will decide whether he's going to issue an injunction. Irrespective of that, the case will then be formed by trial track, but they're now setting trials for 2027.

"My hope is that somebody in the DOE will come to their senses. I don't have a lot of hope for that, because I don't understand how they took this action in the first place. How can you possibly fire such a highly respected coach based upon the statements of a kid and his father who wrote the kind of atrocious things he did? I mean, I don't understand. 

"The DOE in Hawai‘i is not very well respected, and the leadership is because that's why it is. I have a son who's a teacher and a daughter in law who's a teacher, and we've been involved with public education all our lives. But my God, these people who run public education, they do outrageous things. And I think that the public needs to be aware of what these people are doing in their names, and decent people like Sterling are being victimized as a consequence on all of the kids that such decent people serve. And that's just too bad."

Although Manoa and Kalani Hallums did not come to the status hearing on July 18 or Monday's hearing, Manoa Hallums made his side of the story public on his personal Instagram account in April. 

Eric Seitz Sterling Carvalho 072825

<title>Former Kahuku football coach Sterling Carvalho makes court appearance following removal</title>

Carvalho sued the Department of Education after getting removed from his position as Kahuku's football coach on March 31.

Former Kahuku football coach Sterling Carvalho makes court appearance following removal

Square Mike Brestovansky Headshot RGZ3736 Large

Michael Brestovansky

The National Science Foundation revealed Friday that it will not fund the Thirty Meter Telescope project on Maunakea, leaving the future of the project in jeopardy.

On Friday, NSF published a Congressional 

 for the 2026 fiscal year which briefly mentioned that the federal agency has removed TMT from consideration for funding for its U.S. Extremely Large Telescope Project.

The agency had announced in 2024 that it could only feasibly fund one of two large-scale telescope projects: either TMT on Maunakea, or the Giant Magellan Telescope in Chile.

The Friday announcement leaves $1.6 billion off the table for TMT, which TMT officials had 

 is essential for the completion of the project.

TMT project manager Fengchuan Liu said in a statement Monday that TMT is “disappointed” in NSF’s decision but still imagined a scenario where the project can receive federal funds.

“We remain firmly committed to finding a path forward for TMT,” Liu said in his statement. “We can imagine a future in which NSF participation in the TMT would open opportunities for significant discovery to the entire U.S. science community, and welcome further conversations to make this a reality.”

While the budget request does not shed much light on NSF’s decision to reject TMT — it devotes all of one paragraph to the Extremely Large Telescope project — the decision was informed by the findings of a 2024 panel evaluating both projects.

The panel was made up of four science advisors: Persis Drell, former director of the SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory in California; Kelvin Droegemeier, former director of the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy; Rick Farnsworth, former associate director of the NSF National Radio Astronomy Observatory; and James Hurrell, former director of the NSF National Center for Atmospheric Research.

 was published Dec. 2024. While the report doesn’t make any explicit recommendations, it does highlight some key deficiencies in the TMT project that may have ruled it out.

Critically, the evaluation notes that site access on Maunakea is a key risk to the entire project, and that being unable to build on the summit would be “an existential threat” to the entire enterprise.

The question of access has loomed over the project for decades. In 2019, Native Hawaiian protestors, in an effort to protect the mountain from further industrial development, camped for months at the Maunakea Access Road, leading to multiple standoffs with police and the arrest of 33 kūpuna.

While TMT has named the island of La Palma in the Canary Islands as a possible alternate site, the evaluation determined that contingency has not been developed to the same level as the Maunakea plans.

“If it became apparent Maunakea was not going to be available, (TMT) would switch to adapting plans for TMT to the Canary Islands site,” the evaluation read. “There was no timeline associated with these decision points … The panel finds (TMT’s) mitigation strategy for this risk, taken as a whole, to be inadequate.”

The backlash by Native Hawaiians to TMT may have had another unexpected impact on the panel’s findings. The panel evaluated both projects’ ability to offer educational outreach programs from K-12 all the way to graduate programs.

But while GMT’s offerings involve universities and organizations in both the U.S. and Chile, TMT’s outreach programs are “almost exclusively focused on Indigenous Hawaiian populations.”

The evaluation stated that TMT would be best served to expand its outreach efforts as quickly as possible to jurisdictions beyond Hawai‘i.

The panel’s report concludes by setting out both projects’ strengths and weaknesses, and advising the NSF director to “optimize the use of taxpayer funding to ensure that both projects have the opportunity to succeed.”

That said, whether it was the director’s decision to cut TMT out of the budget is unclear: the NSF directorship is vacant, prior director Sethuraman Panchanathan having resigned in April.

Daily Smile: Wednesday, April 22, 2026

ASD Staff

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Authors

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