Congratulations to Marc Cutter - Hawaii Automobile Dealers ...

The newly-named 2013 Hawaii State Teacher of the Year, Karen Kutsunai, Kailua
Intermediate, shown with KIA key, receives use for a year of a new KIA Optima
Hybrid presented by Aloha KIA owner Bill van den Hurk following the Hawaii
State Department of Education Teacher of the Year ceremonies held October
26, 2012 at Washington Place in Honolulu. Accompanying the car presentation,
coordinated by the Hawaii Automobile Dealers Association, are 2013 Miss
Hawaii Teen USA, Samantha Neyland, far left, and Brianna Acosta, 2013 Miss
Hawaii USA, far right.
the country to install electric vehicle charging stations at 3
of its locations across Oahu: Aloha Island Mart Kahala, Aloha
Island Mart Waipio-Gentry, and Kailua Shell.
Van den Hurk noted that the gas-electric KIA Optima Hybrid
model, which uses its gasoline engine to generate electric
power to propel the car at times on electric power and at
higher speeds, and certain situations, on gasoline only, won
the Guinness World Record for lowest fuel consumption in a
hybrid gasoline vehicle while driving through all “Lower 48
U.S. States” achieving, through “hypermiling”
techniques, a record 64.55 miles per gallon,
using only five and a half tanks of gas to
cover every one of the Lower 48 states. That
record was 61% better than the car’s EPA gas
mileage rating.
“We all know that top teachers will help
students to go a long way with a good
education,” said Van den Hurk.
The State Teacher of the Year is selected from seven District
Teachers of the Year.
The Polynesian Cultural Center, the Teacher of the Year
program’s corporate sponsor for 27 years, awarded $500 to
each District Teacher of the Year, and an additional $1,000 to
the State Teacher of the Year. Gifts of instructional software
for each District Teacher of the Year and other classroom
technology for the State Teacher of the Year were presented
by SMART Technologies.
The Seven 2013 District Teachers of the Year received $200 Aloha Petroleum, Ltd. gas cards during the State Department of Education’s
Teacher of the Year Ceremonies. Shown l-r are Karen Kutsunai, 2013 State Teacher of the Year, Windward Oahu District, Victoria Coffin,
Leeward Oahu District, Tracie Higashi, Central Oahu District, Paul Holwegner, Kauai District, Aaron Loque, Maui District, Amoreena Nestman,
Hawaii District, and Marcus Pottenger, Honolulu District. Casie Gatan, Aloha Petroleum Ltd. marketing communications manager, presented
the cards at ceremony.
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