Carlotta Stewart Lai | |
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Born | Brooklyn, New York | September 16, 1881
Died | July 6, 1952 Honolulu, Hawaii | (aged 70)
Nationality | American |
Education | Oahu College (Punahou School) |
Occupation(s) | Teacher, school principal |
Spouse | Yun Tim Lai |
Parent(s) | Thomas McCants Stewart, Charlotte L. Harris Stewart |
Relatives | McCant Stewart, Gilchrist Stewart (siblings) |
Carlotta Stewart Lai (September 16, 1881 – July 6, 1952) was an educator and administrator in the Hawaiian public schools for four decades.[1] She was the first African American school principal in Honolulu.[2][3] Lai, an African American from New York, worked as a teacher and educational leader at a time when these occupations were largely closed to African Americans on the U. S. mainland, and she achieved professional success at a time when African Americans represented only 0.2 percent of the population of Hawaii.[4]