LifeChanger of the Year Nominee Profile

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Brad Chun

Position: Physical Education Teacher
School: N?n?kuli Elementary School
School District: Hawaii Public Schools
City, State: Waianae, HI

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Brad Chun was nominated by his colleague, Kaydi Hashima.

"Early in the morning, before the sun even peeks over the Waianae Mountains, Mr. Chun is already hard at work at Nanakuli Elementary School. As a relatively new fourth grade teacher, I am always greeted with a warm 'Good morning,' along with a quick chat about our weekends or some small talk about sports to start the day off right. Mr. Chun then heads straight to the recess field and basketball courts to check for any safety hazards that might have popped up over night; and by 6:45 a.m., students are trickling onto campus. Who do they head towards? Mr. Chun, of course!

Without hesitation, the students jump right in, helping him carry out and set up sports equipment for recess. They converse, laugh, and play around with their favorite teacher/coach. Because of his long tenure in this community, many students have parents who were taught by Mr. Chun, and he has developed great relationships with all of our students. To outsiders, Mr. Chun may simply look like a P.E. teacher, but to the students of Nanakuli Elementary, he is so much more than that.

Mr. Chun is the reason students rush to school bright and early just to lend a helping hand. He is their voice of reason during conflicts on the field, and he is exactly whom the kids look forward to chatting with after long sessions in the classroom.

Mr. Chun is selfless in every way, always putting students first. He believes in them and raises them as his own by generously teaching them how to play the various sports properly; but more importantly, he also teaches the importance of 'Playing with Aloha'—the title of a video he produced a few years ago to show incoming students the Nanakuli way.

To some, Mr. Chun is simply a P.E. coach, but to our children of Nanakuli Elementary School, he is the Golden Sunshine (our school mascot) they need to brighten up their day."

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Comments (4)

Patrina Tremel Posted over a year ago

I had the honor of working with Mr. Chun when I taught at Nanakuli Elementary from 2014-2015. He always had new ideas to get students involved and improve physical activities. Mr. Chun is a professional educator who displayed compassion, love and patience daily. I miss working with him!

Randy Taketa Posted over a year ago

"Aloha, "Resilience, "Culture, and "Compassion are the core beliefs at Nanakuli Elementary School. Physical Education teacher Brad Chun epitomizes these beliefs each day. Brad shows the true spirit of Aloha by counseling students, and talking to former students and parents. Creating and providing activities for rainy days during recess, testing students, and adjusting student behavior during the day are some of the ways he demonstrates his resilience. Brad uses the culture of our school to develop games for our annual "Makahiki", and field day activities. Lastly, his strongest attribute is empathy for everyone. As a colleague of Brad for more than 13 years, he has made me see and feel what compassion is all about. He has changed my life, and certainly for the many students that come back to visit him each day after school.

Maria Manandic Posted over a year ago

Mr. Chun shows compassion for all our students st NES and definitely is a life changer for our students. He treats them all like his own children and sets them up for success!

Dennis Tynan Posted over a year ago

It has been a great honor to work alongside Brad these past two years. As a new school administrator, I have learned so much from watching how he interacts with students, particularly his way of holding them to high expectations of behavior while supporting them on occasions where they fall short from time to time. He has a way of making learning fun and our kids are just crazy about him. No doubt he has changed a lot of kids' lives over the years and I totally support this nomination!