LIHUE — Five students, representing three public high schools on Kauai, were acknowledged for their achievements by the Kauai Government Employees Federal Credit Union at a Friday luncheon at Gaylord’s at Kilohana.
Kellie Joto, Brennan Suniga and Jaya-Lynne Ruiz-Acantilado of Kauai High were joined by Raven-Brittney Landagora of Kapaa High and Vincent Altomare of Waimea High in receiving scholarships from Corinne King, CEO of KGEFCU, and the credit union’s scholarship committee, chaired by Amy Esaki.
Joto is currently a liberal arts major at Kauai Community College. During her career at Kauai High School, Joto was a member of the Academy of Hospitality and Tourism, the Key Club, the Japanese Club, and served as chair for both the Wilcox Key Kids and the Wilcox Elementary School Family Night.
She was also active in the community with the Festival of Lights, the Matsuri Festival, the Kauai Independent Food Bank, the Kauai United Way, The Salvation Army, and served with the Colors for Cancer run.
As a high school senior, Joto graduated with a 4.0 grade-point average as a valedictorian summa cum laude, and received the Na Lima Kokua Award for being in the top 10 percent of her class for participating in extracurricular activities.
Suniga has been an honor roll student during his four years at Kauai High School, participating on the Mock Trial Team, Key Club, and basketball and volleyball programs.
His community participation includes helping students at the King Kaumualii Elementary School, highway trash pickup, and The Salvation Army.
He has been accepted to the University of Las Vegas in Nevada.
Ruiz-Acantilado, active in the Diversity Club and Compassion in Action at Kauai High, also serves as the school Leo Club secretary.
On the principal’s list all four years in high school, Ruiz-Acantilado made the honor roll as a senior.
Her community involvement includes work at the Kauai Independent Food Bank, The Salvation Army, the East Kauai Lions Club pancake breakfast, the Zonta Club of Kauai, the Kauai Powwow, and other events.
Although she has not yet decided on a college, Ruiz-Acantilado has been offered scholarships at Coucher College in Maryland and Simmons College in Massachusetts.
Landagora will be graduating from Kapaa High, where she is a member of the Key Club and Interact Club. She tutors students from Kapaa Elementary School.
She has been on the honor roll all four years at Kapaa High, and is “ready to experience life on the Mainland and to further her exposure to the world and gain solid career experience.”
Landagora will be attending San Jose State University, majoring in early childhood education.
Altomare, graduating from Waimea High, has also been on the honor roll for four years. He belongs to the National Honor Society, the Kauai Interscholastic Federation boys soccer team and the TRYBE Band, and is a talent show winner.
He is also a member of the Kauai Youth Honor Band, the Kauai All Island Band and a trumpet section leader at the school’s band.
Involved with the JROTC program for four years, Altomare said the experiences of his parents taking him to movies as a child and exposure to media courses in high school determined his course of study to become a filmmaker at Northern Arizona University.
