Lawmakers are considering a measure to provide the Department of Education with a wave of funding to make surfing a prep sport across the state.
House Bill 2277 would provide an unspecified dollar amount to the state department to promote and support surfing as an interscholastic sport in all the state’s high school athletic leagues. Surfing is currently a sanctioned sport statewide, however, only one league participates: Maui.
“The Legislature finds that surfing is of significant cultural, social, and economic value to the people of Hawaii, as well as the many visitors who travel to the State for surfing,” reads the bill co-introduced by 26 representatives from across the state, and one co-sponsor from Oahu.
Big Island lawmakers signing on as co-introducers were Reps. Nicole Lowen (D-North Kona), Jeanne Kapela (D-South Kona, Ka‘u), Gregor Ilagan (D-Puna), Mark Nakashima (D-Hamakua, Hilo), and Chris Todd (D-Hilo).
The measure also notes the accomplishments of Carissa Moore, an Oahu resident who became the first woman to win gold in surfing’s debut as an Olympic Sport in 2021, and the “many other Hawaii surfers who have dedicated themselves to honoring and preserving the sport and spirit of surfing in Hawaii.”
Moore said in testimony that passing the bill would open the door for surfing to be pursued as “a serious and legitimate interscholastic sport in Hawaii’s schools, which is something that Hawaii’s children so desperately deserve.”
“It’s brought me so much joy and taught me so many valuable lessons in life. And I think that, not only has it taught me how to balance school and surfing and athletics, but it’s also taught me to find, you know, peace in stressful situations. And during this time of COVID, it’s a really nice place to escape and find peace. And that can be a really great place for kids to find some mental peace,” she told members of a joint Committee on Education and Economic Development on Tuesday. “So I just wanted to say that I’m definitely in support of bringing surfing into the school system.”
She also noted in written testimony that the sport — born in Hawaii — is adored by millions of people around the globe, which could translate into a positive boon for the state’s economy.
“From a financial point of view, one would be hard pressed to dismiss the economic attributes that this Bill would ultimately foster. When surfing thrives in Hawaii, so will local businesses,” she wrote.
Also offering testimony in support of House Bill 2277 was Keith Amemiya. The former executive director of the Hawaii High School Athletic Association and current executive director of the Central Pacific Bank Foundation said he has been working for over a decade with Moore and her father, Chris Moore, to make surfing an official high school sport.
“Now, with the Legislature’s help, we’re as close as we’ve ever been to making this long-overdue dream happen for many public high school students statewide,” he said.
Making surfing a sanctioned high school sport across the Aloha State, the birth place of surfing, has been in the works since the early 2000s. The Board of Education first approved surfing as a prep sport in May 2004, but funding, safety concerns, liability and other challenges prevented the sport from becoming sanctioned.
In 2011, then-Gov. Neil Abercrombie announced surfing as a state-championship sport, with hopes to hold the first state tournament by spring 2013. However, it wasn’t until 2016 that the Board of Education approved the necessary policy to establish surfing as a high school sport.
Since then, only the Maui Interscholastic League has implemented surfing as a prep sport. Maui meets were last held in spring 2020, with 2021 season canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Keith Hayashi, interim superintendent for the state Department of Education, in written testimony said that while the department would appreciate the funding to support surfing in high school programs, an appropriation would not address the larger risk factors that make surfing difficult for high schools to sanction.”
“These risks include concerns around accessible and safe surfing areas to conduct practices and the inability to control the practice environment,” he said.
There also appears to be little interest in the sport, at least on Oahu with no high school principal on the state’s most populous island proposing to implement a surfing program. An informal survey of principals showed only six of 23 were interested in surfing as an interscholastic sport, he said.
Hayashi also expressed concern over funding, particularly as the department works to restore funds reduced amid the pandemic and address existing budget shortfalls.
“Without those funds, the Department will face severe constraints on its ability to continue to promote equity and access to needed resources and support for all students,” Hayashi said.
The committees on Education and Economic Development each unanimously passed the measure, with a procedural amendment changing the effective date to 2050, following a joint hearing Tuesday at the state Capitol. Oahu Rep. Val Okimoto voted “aye with reservations.”
“I’m hoping that we can find a way to incorporate this into the school system but right now due to the what the DOE has shared and the liability that might be an issue in the future, I will be voting with reservations at this time,” she said.
It’s unclear if surfing has been sanctioned as a high school sport in other states, which could provide Hawaii students with a chance to compete against peers across the nation.
“I do know that there’s interscholastic competitions that are routinely held in California that bring surfers from across the country to crown a so called national championship but they’re not official competitions involving officially sanctioned high school surfing,” said Raymond Fujino, DOE Educational Administrative Services director. “But of course, we’re open to showcasing the best that we have in high school surfing and would support any opportunity for them to compete against high school surfers in other states.”
There are 18 participating schools in the BIIF, though not all participate in every sanctioned sport. Attempts to reach BIIF Director Lyle Crozier were unsuccessful as of press-time following the vote Tuesday afternoon.