COE Faculty Receives Special Recognition by the Hawai‘i Council on Economic Education

Gail A. Tamaribuchi, associate specialist in the College of Education (COE) Institute for Teacher Education, was recognized for her contributions to economic education by the Hawai‘i Council on Economic Education (HCEE) at their 2009 Annual Dinner. She has been at the University of Hawai‘i at Manoa for the past 24 years, teaching social studies secondary education and serving as director of the Center for Economic Education.

Specializing in bridging effective teaching strategies with economic content for both elementary and secondary teachers, Tamaribuchi has been responsible for more than 75 teacher training workshops and courses in the COE. She has been active in social studies and economic education at the national level and has authored and co-authored several economics curricula and articles.

"To be honored for my work at the HCEE’s elegant dinner was a great honor. Working with teachers for the past 24 years has been my greatest pleasure. Mentoring and helping them to develop critical thinking skills for their students has been the focus of my work. Economic education has been a dream career," said Tamaribuchi, pictured between COE alumni and Mililani Middle School teachers, Clav Caalim and Kory Aoki.

Before her university career, Tamaribuchi taught high school history and economics, earning two Hawai‘i Economics Teacher of the Year awards.
She has been recognized nationally, receiving the Freedoms Foundation George Washington Honor Medal for Excellence in Economic Education twice; the Orrel Davis Award for Outreach to the Business Community from the COE; the Stephen L. Jackstadt Award for Contribution and Support to Promote Economic Literacy for Youth in Hawai‘i from HCEE; and the prestigious John C. Schramm Award for Leadership by the National Council on Economic Education and the National Association of Economic Educators.

Created in 1965 as a statewide partnership among business, labor, and education, the HCEE is dedicated to promoting and improving economic education in Hawai‘i’s public and private schools and to increasing the economic and financial literacy of Hawai‘i’s students and residents. Its goal is for people to have the knowledge, understanding, and skills to make informed economic choices in their lives and for their community.