Milestone Reached with PhD awards in Hawaiian Language

The University of Hawai’i at Hilo presented two doctorates in Hawaiian and Indigenous Language and Culture Revitalization over the weekend.  Honored at the event were Kauanoe Kamanā, the first student of Native Hawaiian ancestry to receive a PhD from the UH Hilo Ka Haka ‘Ula O Ke‘elikōlani College of Hawaiian Language, and Katrina Edmonds, a Maori educator from New Zealand.  Ka Haka

Fern from Hilo, Hawaii. File photo by Wendy Osher.

Kamanā is a founding member of the non-profit ‘Aha Pūnana Leo program for language revitalization.  She also serves as the Director of Ke Kula O Nāwahīokalani’ōpu’u Hawaiian immersion school in Keaau.  Her dissertation focused on ho‘oponopono, or traditional Hawaiian conflict resolution practices at the school.

Edmonds, meantime, earned her PhD in December of 2008, but was unable to attend ceremonies at that time, and was honored alongside Kamanā this year. Her dissertation established reliability standards for writing proficiency tests.

(Information courtesy the University of Hawaii)