Words4 is excited to announce its new president, Krislyn Ishibashi ’26, a senior at Punahou School, who will lead the student-run nonprofit into its next chapter of literacy outreach. Outside of Words4, Ishibashi serves as an editor-in-chief of Ka Wai Ola, Punahou’s art and writing magazine, and as a speech captain on the Speech and Debate Team. She is joined by a dedicated leadership team, including Chrystal Haraguchi ’26 as vice president, and Neal Sehgal ’27, Steven Yang ’27 and Charles Ye ’26 as directors.
Words4 was first founded in 2020 by Punahou student Sascha Pakravan ’22, who started the nonprofit as a junior with the vision of improving literacy access for young readers across Hawai‘i. Since then, the organization has grown steadily under successive student leaders.
This February, Words4 hosted a successful book drive that brought the community together in support of young readers. With the help of students in grades 2 – 8, the team collected an amazing 1,427 books! To celebrate, the top advisory classes were treated to pizza parties.
The majority of the donated books have already been distributed to local elementary schools, including Aiea, Lehua, Kanoelani, Kalei‘opu‘u and August Ahrens Elementary, helping hundreds of students gain better access to reading materials.
In addition to the book drive, Words4 also initiated its Book Buddies summer reading program at Waikiki Elementary School. The program ran across four Mondays, engaging both kindergartners and fourth grade students. They participated in group reading sessions, mini lessons and interactive games designed to build reading comprehension skills – all while making reading fun.
“As I enter my second year as president of Words4, I’m driven to help younger students with reading comprehension because literacy opens doors to pursue dreams, develops emotional intelligence, and creates a platform for self-expression,” Ishibashi said. “One of my cherished memories in elementary school was in books, where I read about fantasy characters and felt their emotions alongside them. As I grew, books helped me learn how to be attuned to and aware of emotions of those around me. Now, my dream is to become a lawyer, so that I can use my empathy and the power of written and verbal words to fight for a good cause.”
With new leadership and a strong team of student volunteers, Words4 continues its mission to share the joy of reading and support literacy across Hawai‘i’s schools.
Photos by Words4 Leadership Team