PREL honors volunteer Winona Chang

When Dr. Winona Chang retired from the Hawaii Department of Education, she knew she would keep busy. Little did she know she would still be showing up for work nearly 20 years later. The energetic 77-year-old, who was recently honored by the Board of Directors of Pacific Resources for Education and Learning, continues to volunteer two days every week at PREL, devoting her time and considerable expertise to improving education in Hawaii and the rest of the U.S.-affiliated Pacific.

Chang has long been passionate about education in the Pacific region. Shortly after PREL was formed in 1990, she became the nonprofit organization’s first volunteer. This year, when the company announced the creation of a scholarship program for Pacific teachers and teacher candidates, she was the first to contribute to the fund. These firsts prompted PREL’s board of directors to give special recognition to Chang at its most recent meeting.

A graduate of St. Andrew’s Priory and the College of Education at the University of Hawaii, Chang spent six years teaching in the elementary grades in Hawaii public schools before starting graduate studies at Boston University. After returning to Hawaii, Chang worked as an instructor and assistant professor at the UH College of Education, teaching methods classes and supervising student teachers. Later she returned to Boston to pursue a doctorate in education. With her EdD complete, Chang came back to Hawaii and worked as a personnel specialist in teacher certification, and then as a curriculum specialist until her retirement.

Although she was officially retired, the devoted educator quickly found herself drawn back to the field of education. When she heard about a bilingual education program being conducted in Hawaii by the Northwest Regional Educational Laboratory, she applied to work on the project. Her work with this program led her to PREL. Thanks to her teaching experience, Chang has a good understanding of the impact of educational policies on the classroom. She recalls a workshop in Chuuk, Federated States of Micronesia, in which a teacher described teaching a lesson from a textbook made for U.S. schools. The lesson focused on rabbits and their taste for carrots. While rabbits are very familiar to most U.S. children, they are not native to Micronesia and therefore are unknown in that culture. If education is not grounded in elements that are relevant to students, Chang explains, the students will not see the value in going to school.

Though Chang shuns public acknowledgment of her own work, she is quick to recognize that of others. She expresses admiration, for example, for islanders who leave home to pursue a formal education but then return to teach in their home entities. She points out that it takes courage to leave home and dedication to return and teach for pay that is often lower than teachers receive elsewhere. It is Dr. Chang’s own dedication and courage that have helped her make an invaluable contribution to PREL and the region.

PREL is an independent, nonprofit corporation that serves the education community in Hawaii, the U.S.-affiliated Pacific islands, the continental United States, and countries throughout the world. For further information, visit PREL’s website at www.prel.org or contact Julian Heinz by phone at (808) 441-1382 or by email at heinzj@prel.org.