Kathy Chock began her teaching career in 1966 at He’eia Elementary School. From 1968-1976 she taught grades 5 and 6, was the K-6 science resource teacher and mentored student teachers at John H. Wilson Elementary School. In 1976-1978 she taught grades 5 and 6, was science fair chairperson at Hahaione Elementary. During this time she developed a state curriculum curriculum guide for K-3 pedestrian safety and implemented “Kaleo’s Safe Walking Kit” via teacher workshops for the Hawaii State Department of Education. From 1978-1995 she taught at Lunalilo Elementary, beginning as a SLEP teacher (1978-1980) then as gifted/talented teacher (1980-1995) for K-6. Her students developed skills in creativity and inquiry, problem-solved through research projects and participated in state and national competitions in science and language arts. Her students were NASA National winners in “Future Aircraft Design” and “Interplanetary Art,” state winners for several years in Language Arts Showcase, state and national winners in the Invention Convention. Partnering with Moanalua Garden resource specialists she provided hands-on learning experiences in the Hawaiian environment which culminated in yearly field studies, hiking, and camping for several days in a tents at Kualoa, Kailua Beach or a mountain bog in Kokee, Kauai. As a member of the state environmental education task force she led teacher workshops and contributed to EE framework development. As an educator for Future Flight Hawaii, she spent weekends participating in space education workshops for students and teachers throughout the state of Hawaii. As a Challenger Center National Educator, her students participated in the Marsville Project designing systems for survival in a Martian habitat. She received the State Presidential Award for Excellence in Science Teaching in 1991 and 1992. She participated in Project Keau’hou, Hawaii Department of Education State Task Force, representing elementary teachers in the State of Hawaii that same year. Ms. Chock regularly sought the expertise and resources of professionals to enrich the educational experiences of her students. "It is rewarding to be with others and share the learning process - the joy of discovery, the feeling of accomplishment, and the rewards of perseverance and teamwork,”
In 1995 she retired from the Hawaii State Department of Education as a classroom teacher. In the 1995-1996 school year she coordinated nine space education teacher-student workshops on the islands of Oahu, Maui, Kauai, and Hawaii with a team of sixty teachers. In the summer of 1996 she coordinated statewide “Future Flight Hawaii” space science programs for students and teachers based at Kauai Community College. In 1997 she was selected to be a national NASA Galileo Educator. She was trained at JPL in Pasadena, attended national workshops and tasked to provide at least four hands-on teacher workshops annually throughout the State of Hawaii.
Working with Dr. Peter Mouginis-Mark at University of Hawaii Planetary Geosciences, she developed an educational poster, “Volcanoes of Hawaii."
From 1995-1999 she was selected to be an Artist-in-the-Schools for the State of Hawaii. She worked with students in ceramics at Waialua, Koko Head, Kamiloiki, Hahaione, Lunalilo, John H. Wilson Elementary Schools, and Roosevelt High School. She worked with students in creating jewelry at Kaimuki High School. As an Artist-in-Residence, she worked with students at Kilohana Elementary on Molokai, Ele’ele Elementary on Kauai, and Waiehu Elementary on Maui in year-long projects culminating in school-wide showcases of student creations and written expression.
1999-2018 She became a K-3 Art teacher at Kamehameha Elementary School, Kapalama Campus. She facilitated development of K-6 curriculum using the "Nani Ke Ao Nei” mural located on the administration building. In 2017 she was selected art teacher of the year by Hawaii Art Educators Association, receiving her award at the NAEA convention in New York. She led Hawaii State Department of Education art workshops for the K-5 Art Toolkit.
Kathy Chock has her ceramic pieces in the collection of the State of Hawaii Foundation for Culture and the Arts. As an artist/educator she believes everyone is an artist. Her task is to empower others to express their feelings and ideas through art.
2002 M.Ed., Nova Southeastern University
1966 B.Ed., Elementary Education & Professional Education Diploma, University of Hawaii at Manoa
