Hui No‘eau seeks Maui County high school juniors and seniors for Ka Ulana ‘Ie Junior Cohort program

Hui No‘eau Visual Arts Center is offering a new opportunity for Maui County high school juniors and seniors: Ka Ulana ʻIe Maui Junior Cohort with Kumulāʻau and Haunani Sing. Ka Ulana ‘Ie Maui Junior Cohort will engage up to 20 Maui County high school students in a 3-month intensive ulana ‘ie cohort.

The cohort will be led by O‘ahu-based kanaka maoli cultural educators and practitioners, Kumulāʻau and Haunani Sing who will travel to Maui to deliver programming and public events at the Hui throughout the cohort. Students will learn the skill of ulana ‘ie – the art of weaving the ʻieʻie root – as they immerse themselves in the cultural significance of this art form through pule, oli, and ‘ōlelo Hawai‘i. This is the first ever youth cohort offered by the Sings, who have completed adult cohorts on Maui, Hawai‘i Island (Kona and Hilo), and on O‘ahu. 

Lloyd Kumula‘au Sing Jr. and May Haunani Balino-Sing are Ke Kumu Hawai‘i, a husband and wife business team who share and teach Hawaiian basketry and culture-based education programs to the community. For the last 15 years, they have provided programs for community colleges, professional staff development workshops for educators and practitioners, and have hosted privately sponsored workshops. They are educators in the public and private school sectors, sharing with aloha about Hawai‘i’s host culture.

The curriculum requires commitment from each student to attend all scheduled cohort sessions at Hui No‘eau’s Makawao campus; as well as additional time and diligence to complete projects in between the scheduled sessions. Scheduled cohort dates are:

• Intro Session: Feb. 1 and 2, 2025 / 9 a.m. – 4 p.m.
• Session 1: Feb. 15 and 16, 2025 / 9 a.m. – 4 p.m.
• Session 2: March 22 and 23, 2025 / 9 a.m. – 4 p.m.
• Session 3: April 26 and 27, 2025 / 9 a.m. – 4 p.m.

The cohort will culminate with an educational exhibition of students’ completed artwork opening May 2025; a panel discussion on May 31, 2025, led by the Sing’s, cohort members, and invited Maui-based cultural practitioners; and publication of an in-depth educational pamphlet that will engage the community in discussions about healing humanity’s mauli ola through the proliferation and perpetuation of ancestral knowledge and indigenous lifestyles.

The application deadline is Dec. 15, 2024, there is no cost for students to participate in the cohort program. A Question and Answer Session with Kumulāʻau and Haunani Sing will be held on Dec. 2 from 4-5 p.m. via Zoom. Email kmeyer@huinoeau.com to register or with questions. 

For additional information about Ka Ulana ʻIe Maui Junior Cohort program and to apply visit https://form.jotform.com/242776331687164.

Ka Ulana ʻIe Maui Junior Cohort is supported in part by the Laila Twigg Smith Art Fund of Hawai’i Community Foundation, and the Hawai‘i Council for the Humanities, through support from the National Endowment for the Humanities.