Many fine educators go on to successful careers in politics. This is certainly true of Patricia Hatsue (Fukuda) Saiki, a history teacher from Hawaii who has served in the both her Hawaii State House of Representatives, Hawaii State Senate, and in the US House of Representatives.
Pat was born on May 28, 1930, in the city of Hilo on the Big Island of Hawaii. She was the oldest of three girls born to Kazuo and Shizue Fukuda. Her father was a tennis coach at Hilo High School and her mother was a seamstress.
Pat graduated from Hilo High School in 1948. Following her high school graduation, she enrolled at the University of Hawaii, Manoa, where she earned her bachelor’s degree in 1952. She then became a history teacher at Punahou School, a private co-educational college prep school in Honolulu. She also taught at Kaimuki Intermediate and Kalani High, both public schools in Honolulu. At one point, Pat taught in Toledo, Ohio, where she had moved with her husband, Stanley M. Saiki, so that he could complete his medical school residency.
A talented classroom teacher, Pat originally decided to go into politics when she became dissatisfied with working conditions that she and her fellow teachers in Hawaii faced. With her colleagues, she worked with the Hawaii Government Employees Association to establish a teachers’ chapter. Her colleagues then elected her to be the president of that chapter. In 1968, Pat joined the Republican Party and ran successfully for a seat in the Hawaii State House of Representatives, a post she held until 1974. It was at that time that the former educator was elected to the Hawaii State Senate, where she served her district until 1982. Later, Pat was elected to the US Congress, a post she held from 1987 to 1991. After she left Congress, she was appointed by President George HW Bush to be the Administrator of the Small Business Administration. She served in this capacity from 1991 to 1993.
In 1993, Pat returned to the teaching profession when she became a professor at Harvard University’s Institute of Politics at the John F. Kennedy School of Government. Today, Pat devotes her energy to advocate for women, minorities, and the elderly.
To read more about this amazing educator, see the articles about her at Densho Encyclopoedia and at US House of Representatives.
