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Hawaii Supreme Court Chief Justice Mark E.Recktenwald addresses winners in Zoom session

The Honorable Mark E. Recktenwald, Chief Justice of the Hawaii Supreme Court, emphasized the important role journalism plays in society in his July 21 address to BIPC scholarship winners and the public in a Zoom session shown live on the press club’s Facebook page.

If you missed this informative event, you can still see it here.

Recktenwald recounted his experience years ago as a journalist in Honolulu.“Just being able to watch those folks gave me incredible respect for journalists and what they do,” Recktenwald said about observing the busy newsrooms during the heyday of newspapers.“A great newsroom to me reflects its community and also helps shape it,” he said. “It informs debate. It holds those in power accountable and it tells the story of those who otherwise wouldn’t have their stories told.”

A 1978 Harvard University graduate, Recktenwald was a reporter for the United Press International Honolulu Bureau prior to pursuing a law degree, which he received in 1986 from the University of Chicago.BIPC awarded scholarships totaling $5,600 to five students this year.

The press club annually awards scholarships to students pursuing a higher education in journalism or a related field.The scholarship recipients are:

• Tianna Morimoto, a 2015 graduate of Konawaena High School and 2019 graduate of Chapman University with a degree in communication studies with a broadcast journalism minor. Morimoto, who interned at West Hawaii Today during the 2018-19 winter break, is pursuing a master’s degree in journalism at the University of Nevada at Reno. Morimoto, a two-time BIPC scholarship winner, is the recipient of the $1,500 Bill Arballo Scholarship.
• Jordan Virtue, a 2016 graduate of Hawaii Preparatory Academy and 2020 graduate of Harvard University, where she was on the editorial staff of The Harvard Crimson, the school’s student-run daily newspaper. Virtue, who has published a feature story in the Washington Post about shave ice, is entering University of Oxford, where she’ll pursue a master’s degree in history. A three-time BIPC scholarship winner, she is the recipient of the $1,000 Marcia Reynolds Scholarship.
• Danielle Brown, a 2017 graduate of Hilo High School, and junior English major at George Fox University, where she is also an intercollegiate tennis player. Brown is a two-time BIPC scholarship winner and the recipient of $1,000 from the combined Bob Miller and Jack Markey scholarships.
• Piper Haitsuka, a 2019 graduate of Makua Lani Christian Academy and sophomore journalism major at California State University-Sacramento. Haitsuka is, for the second consecutive year, the recipient of the $600 Yukino Fukabori Scholarship.
• Ku’uhiapo Jeong, a 2018graduate of Kamehameha Schools-Hawaii is a junior at the University of Hawaii at Hilo this fall and has declared communications and psychology majors. He plans to pursue a career in public relations. Jeong is the recipient of the $500 Hugh Clark Scholarship.

Because of the COVID-19 pandemic, the BIPC Scholarship awardees this year were honored via aThe BIPC Scholarship committee for 2020 is: Robert Duerr, writer for Hawaii Fishing News and numerous national outdoor publications, BIPC treasurer and committee chair; Royelen Boykie, planned giving steward for Food & Water Watch; and John Burnett, police and courts reporter for Hawaii Tribune-Herald, BIPC immediate past president and three-time BIPC Scholarship recipient.