A Culture Of Empowerment & Leadership Development

INPEACE has provided educational programs to Native Hawaiian communities for 25 years, nurturing the growth and development of keiki through ‘ohana-focused models and empowering community members to become educators and active leaders in their own communities because they understand, live, and are invested in the community’s future.

Board of Directors

Konia Freitas, Ph.D.

Board President

Konia Freitas was born and raised in Hawaiʻi on Oʻahu island. She is a Specialist faculty at the Kamakakūokalani Center for Hawaiian Studies at the University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa, where she has served as the Department Chair. As a Specialist Faculty, she works in program planning, curriculum development, and assessment and evaluation. For several years, she worked on initiatives focused on community engagement and engaged scholarship that linked education, research, and practice together in ways that reinforced the fundamental importance of place, Hawaiian culture, and philosophy. Her academic areas of interest include Indigenous planning, Hawaiian-focused education, and Indigenous research methodology. She has professional land use planning experience and holds a Ph.D. in Urban and Regional Planning. Her doctoral research examined the link between education to the necessity of land among Hawaiian-focused public charter schools.

Richard Naiwieha Wurdeman, Esq.

Board Vice-President

Richard Naiwieha Wurdeman grew up on Oahu and graduated from the Kamehameha Schools. He received his B.A. in Economics from the University of California-Berkeley, his J.D. from the William S. Richardson School of Law, University of Hawaii, and an LL.M. from the University of California-Berkeley School of Law. Richard has been vigorously defending and protecting the rights and interests of his clients for over three decades. He is the past President and a current Director of the Native Hawaiian Bar Association. He is also currently serving as the Board Counsel for the Office of Hawaiian Affairs, Board of Trustees. Richard is actively involved in community events and organizations and he has also provided extensive pro bono services to the indigent and underprivileged in Hawaii.

Rochelle Pi’ilani Hussey Ka’aloa, Ph.D.

Board Secretary

Sanoe Marfil grew up in Wahiawa and Nānākuli where she currently resides with her family. She is a respected leader in her community and has had the opportunity to network with diverse individuals and communities across the United States and globally. Sanoe came to INPEACE as a participating parent. She joined the INPEACE ‘ohana in 2010 and worked her way up to her current position as the Chief Program Officer. Sanoe shares her passion for education and culture and leads the staff in the design and creation of educational programming and activities that instill knowledge, appreciation and skills in academic attainment and Hawaiian cultural practices for professionals, families, and individuals of all ages. Her deep community roots and relationships serve as a strong foundation to her ability to establish community partnerships and collaborations that more effectively serves the community in a holistic manner. Sanoe graduated from the University of Hawai‘i- West O‘ahu with a BA in Hawaiian Pacific Studies and is currently pursuing a MA in Hawaiian Culture focusing on the importance of family mo‘okuauhau (genealogy) and mo‘olelo (stories).

Wallace Chin

Board Treasurer

Wally Chin is senior vice president and chief financial officer at the Hawai‘i Community Foundation (HCF). He originally joined the Foundation as its Controller in 2007, and now oversees the Finance, Information Technology, Human Resources, Strategic Planning and Office Administration departments. Prior to joining HCF, Wally worked in various financial leadership roles at Kamehameha Schools as well as its supporting organization Ke Ali`i Pauahi Foundation. Over a period of 20 years, his responsibilities involved overseeing the finance and accounting functions for the multi-billion dollar private school and land owner. Previous to Kamehameha Schools, he worked in various other private companies in finance positions and began his career as a certified public accountant at the Hawaii office of Alexander Grant & Company. He received his B.B.A. in Accounting from the University of Hawai‘i and his M.B.A. from Chaminade University

Kathryn H. Au, Ph.D.

Founding Board Member

Kathy Au, one of the three INPEACE founders, has served on the Board continuously since its inception. Kathy worked at Kamehameha Schools from 1971-95, as a classroom teacher and curriculum developer for the Kamehameha Elementary Education Program (KEEP). She led KEEP’s efforts to develop a literacy curriculum implemented in 10 public schools in Native Hawaiian communities. As a professor at the University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa, Kathy was the first person to hold an endowed chair in education. She developed and led Ka Lama O Ke Kaiāulu, an initiative to help residents of the Waiʻanae Coast become teachers in their own communities. Kathy served as president of the International Literacy Association in 2009-10. A member of the Reading Hall of Fame, she has over 100 publications based on her research on the literacy achievement of students of diverse cultural and linguistic backgrounds.

Alice J. Kawakami, Ph.D.

Founding Board Member

Alice Kawakami is one of three founding members of INPEACE and currently serves on the Board. From 1978 to 1990, Alice worked at the Kamehameha Elementary Education Program (KEEP). Initially hired as a third-grade research demonstration teacher she later coordinated teacher development and dissemination of programmatic support to schools in communities with high proportions of Native Hawaiian students across the state of Hawai’i. In the 1990s, she was the Director of Research and Development for the Pacific Region Educational Laboratory and collaborated with educators in the ten American-affiliated Pacific entities, conducting culturally relevant applied research. She was on the faculty of teacher education programs at the University of Hawaii at Hilo and in the College of Education at the University of Hawai’i. Her research interests currently include culturally grounded ʻāina curriculum, instruction, and assessments and teacher professional development in the Hawaiian-focused charter schools. In 2005, along with Kathy Au and Sherlyn Goo, she received the Native Hawaiian Education Award from Kamehameha Schools for her service as one of the three of INPEACE.

Julianne Chun, Esq.

Board Member

As Vice President and General Counsel for Hawaii Permanente Medical Group (HPMG), the medical group for Kaiser Permanente Hawaii, Julianne oversees all legal and government relations matters for HPMG. She provides legal counsel to the Board of Directors, executive leadership, physicians and administrative staff on various issues, such as care delivery, corporate governance, regulatory compliance and privacy. Before joining HPMG, Julianne was Corporate Compliance Officer at City of Hope, an NCI-designated Comprehensive Cancer Center, and worked as Associate General Counsel and Director of Research Compliance at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, a Harvard-affiliated teaching hospital. She started her legal career with the law firm of Latham & Watkins. Julianne is proud to be the daughter of INPEACE founder Sherlyn Franklin Goo and is honored to serve an organization that has always been her mom’s passion. Julianne grew up in Kuliʻouʻou and now lives in Kailua with her husband and two children.

Kiana Frank, Ph.D.

Board Member

Kiana Frank – born and raised in Kailua Oʻahu – studies how microorganisms (the smallest forms of life that live on land and in water) shape ʻāina for productivity and health by weaving contemporary western techniques with Native Hawaiian Science. She has strong relationships working within communities using scientific hands-on experiences in the ʻāina, our natural laboratories, to inspire the younger Hawaiian generations to cultivate a connection to science through their culture. She is currently employed as an Associate Professor in the Pacific Biosciences Research Center at the University of Hawaii, Mānoa, and also sits on the boards of Native Hawaiian non-profit organizations Kauluakalana and Purple Maiʻa.

Derek Kurisu

Board Member

Derek Kurisu is a dedicated and versatile professional with over five decades of experience at KTA Super Stores in Hawaii. His extensive career began in 1968, advancing through roles from part-time courtesy clerk to Executive Vice President of Perishable Operations. Derek’s education includes a B.S. in Agriculture from the University of Hawaii’s College of Tropical Agriculture and Human Resources (CTAHR). Derek is renowned for creating the Mountain Apple Brand, KTA’s private label featuring over 225 locally grown or manufactured items, and the 1916 brand products, introduced to celebrate KTA’s centennial. He produces two local TV programs, “People in Paradise” and “Seniors Living in Paradise,” and coauthored several cookbooks, including “Kau Kau to Cuisine.” Derek actively engages with the community, supporting senior citizens, students, and businesses across Hawaii, and shares his culinary passion through speaking engagements and cooking demonstrations.

Jon Matsuoka, Ph.D.

Board Member

Jon K. Matsuoka, Ph.D. is currently the Executive Director of Hawai`i Betsuin Buddhist Temple. He was formerly the President and CEO of Consuelo Foundation and Dean and Professor at the Myron B. Thompson School of Social Work at the University of Hawai`i, Manoa. Along with his affiliation with INPEACE, he is also on the boards of The Legal Clinic, Papakolea Community Development Corporation, Hawai`i Civil Right Commission, Journal of Indigenous Social Development, Living Treasures of Hawai`i, Project Dana, and recently termed out of Native Hawaiian Legal Corporation. He resides in Papakolea Hawaiian Homestead and engages in background agriculture including beekeeping.

Walter F. Thoemmes III

Board Member

Walter Thoemmes III is the managing director of the Planning, Industry and Development team, responsible for value creation across Kamehameha Schools’ $6.0B real estate portfolio. His current work involves advancing planning, development and investments for KS land holdings, creating portfolio value and income to support the educational mission; connecting student learning to business and work opportunities; and, creating communities through thoughtful planning and strategic partnerships. He also oversees direct KS investment to key industries, like food systems and creative industries, partnering with local entrepreneurs and promoting a circular economy. A 1984 alumnus of KS, Thoemmes went on to graduate from the University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa’s School of Architecture and worked as a licensed architect for 7 years prior to joining KS.

L. Lokelani Wakinekona Ed.D.

Board Member

Loke Wakinekona is a lifetime Waiʻanae resident. Born and raised in Mākaha, she now resides in Nānākuli where she continues to raise her moʻopuna. Driven by her desire to be part of the solution to the on-going challenge of attracting and retaining caring, dedicated, quality teachers to Waiʻanae schools, Loke began her college career, as a non-traditional student and a participant of INPEACE’s Ka Lama o Ke Kaiaulu program, after the youngest of her three children began attending preschool. After graduating, Loke taught in several Waiʻanae coast elementary schools and eventually attained a Doctor of Education degree (Ed.D.) from the University of Hawaiʻi, Mānoa (UHM). Currently an Assistant Specialist at UHM, her work in K-12 place-based education is dedicated to connecting learning to the relevance and brilliance found in studentsʻ own communities. This entails providing teacher professional development, co-creating curriculum, coordinating field study opportunities, and connecting community organizations and practioners to schools where students, teachers, and community become co-learners/co-teachers. Loke has been an educator for over 25 years.

Sherlyn Franklin Goo, M.Ed.

Emeritus Board Member

Sherlyn Franklin Goo served as both Executive Director and President of the Board when INPEACE began in 1994, then Executive Director and Vice President since 1998. She has held management positions with Bishop Estate as a Federal Relations Officer and Kamehameha Schools as an Associate Executive Director in Early Education, Elementary and KEEP Principal and Assistant to the President. She pursued her education at the University of California and received a Bachelor’s degree in English and continued her education at the University of Hawaii-Manoa acquiring a Master’s degree in Education. She has also served as Vice President and member of Native Hawaii Education Council, Board Member of Hawaii Council on the Humanities, Executive Council Member of Native Hawaiian Leadership Program, Senior Advisory Council for Good Beginnings Alliance, and Community Advisory Council with Samuel and Mary Castle Family Foundation.

Maile Keli’ipio Acoba, MPA

Ex-Officio Board Member, Chief Executive Officer

Maile Keli‘ipio-Acoba grew up in Mā’ili on the Wai‘anae Coast and is excited to have the opportunity to serve the community, hoping to make a difference for Native Hawaiian individuals and families throughout the State. She joined INPEACE as the Vice President of Programs in 2013 and stepped into the Chief Executive Officer position in 2017. With over 30 years of diverse experience in social service management and program design, both in Hawaii and Washington State, Maile is credited with envisioning and coordinating numerous efforts to establish key resources for the broader community, some of which have been recognized at State and Federal levels. Maile holds a Bachelor’s degree in Hawaiian Studies and a Master’s degree in Public Administration, both from the University of Hawa‘ii at Mānoa.

Hi‘ilei

Ho‘āla

Keiki Steps

Ka Lama

Kaulele

Kupu Ola

Early Literacy

Ho‘oulu Waiwai

Center for Entrepreneurship

A Culture Of Empowerment & Leadership Development

Board of Directors