Keoneʻula Elementary School made history when it became one of the first elementary schools in the country to include drone studies in its curriculum.
Around 300 students at the ʻEwa Beach school on Oʻahu received certificates on May 21 to the pride of their teachers and families.
HPR paid a recent visit to the Keoneʻula Elementary campus, which is just down the street from ʻEwa Makai Middle School, whose drones teams were featured previously on The Conversation.
Fourth grade student Emmie Iaea, who is nine years old, got interested in drones when she was taught meteorology and math to figure out wind speeds. She’s been fascinated in hearing her coach’s stories about real world search-and-rescue cases in the Koʻolau Range.
“The most fun thing about learning about the drones is how to program it, like controlling it to do what you want to do,” she told HPR. “You could find lost children and do stuff that you can't really do in person.”
Ryukai Grollman is a fifth grader, and he’s set his sights on continuing his drone studies in middle school.
“I'm going to try to get into the drone program at ʻEwa Makai,” he said.
Piloting drones may be one of his ambitions later in life as well, he said. “I kind of want to do computer engineering, and maybe I could design a drone too, and maybe engineer it to do something really cool.”
For instructor and coach Amos Balongo, the drone program was an opportunity to witness and showcase the kids’ hard work and learning abilities.
“I was excited and invigorated, because we had a good team and good leadership, and the students have really worked so hard,” Balongo said. "I am so proud that they are putting Hawaiʻi on the map as the first school in the nation to be able to do this at this level, and not only on the FAA trust certification but for other certifications that demonstrate their skills.”
And he’s not alone. Principal Paul Taga shared in the pride of seeing Keoneʻula students achieve new heights.
“We're very proud that 300 of them are gonna receive this certification on Thursday in front of their parents, in front of some of our Department of Education big wigs, and showing what the students of Keoneʻula Elementary can do,” Taga said.
This story aired on The Conversation on May 21, 2026. The Conversation airs weekdays at 11 a.m. Jinwook Lee adapted this story for the web.
