OHA Awards $300,000 to Kualapuʻu School Project Hoʻokahua on Molokaʻi

The Hoʻokākoʻo Corporation announces receipt of a two-year grant extension from the Office of Hawaiian Affairs (OHA) Kumuwaiwai Naʻauao Educational Resources Grants program totaling $300,000, which will support Native Hawaiian elementary students at Kualapuʻu Public Charter School on Molokaʻi.

The award will help reinforce and strengthen connections to ʻōlelo Hawai‘i (language) and moʻomeheu (culture) and support OHA’s Mana i Mauli Ola Strategic Plan by increasing the number of Native Hawaiian elementary students who enter the educational system ready to learn and engage in traditional learning systems that reestablish strong cultural foundations and identity.

Hoʻokākoʻo and Kualapuʻu School are offering Hoʻokahua (to lay a foundation) – now a three-year program to develop, expand, and sustain Papa Mālaaʻo through Papa ʻElua (K-2) Hawaiian language education. This initiative aims to train and license Hawaiian-language immersion teachers at the school.

“There is a severe shortage of qualified teachers state-wide, but particularly on Molokaʻi and among Hawaiian immersion teachers.This partnership with OHA will help us fill this gap by supporting teacher training and licensure in elementary and Hawaiian languageeducation,” says David Gibson, Hoʻokākoʻo Executive Director.

Hoʻokahua aims to increase the number of licensed and qualified Hawaiian language immersion teachers and strengthenHawaiian-medium early education on Molokaʻi, improving its students’ academic performance and Hawaiian language acquisition.