Social studies teacher and politician Della Au Belatti of Hawaii

I love to tell stories about talented educators who also make a mark in politics. One of these is Della Au Belatti, a high school social studies teacher who also serves in the Hawaii State House of Representatives.

Della was born on March 14, 1974, in Manoa Hawaii. As a young girl, she attended high school at the Maryknoll School in Honolulu.

Della earned her Bachelor’s degree in History from Princeton University in 1996. That same year, she completed her student teaching at Trenton Central High School in Trenton, New Jersey. After her graduation, she accepted a position as a social studies teacher at her alma mater, Maryknoll High School. She taught there from 1996 to 2000.

In 2003, Della earned her Juris Doctorate from the William S. Richardson School of Law at the University of Hawaii, Manoa. From 1993 to 1996, the talented educator spent time as an intern for United States Senate in the office of Hawaii Senator Daniel K. Akaka. She also worked as a law clerk for both Circuit Court Judge Dexter D. Del Rosario and Associate Justice Simeon R. Acoba.

In 2006, Della was elected to represent District 24 in the Hawaii State House of Representatives on the Democratic ticket. She served in that capacity from 2007 to the present time. She has served on the Committees for Health, Human Services, and Judiciary. In 2017, she was appointed to the position of State House Majority Leader.

To learn more about Della Au Belatti, read her biography at VoteSmart.