Kauaʻi Community College was awarded $1,194,119 by the U.S. Department of Education (U.S. Ed.) to provide clear, culturally responsive pathways for Native Hawaiians to earn careers as high school teachers without having to leave the island.
According to the Kauaʻi CC Factbook, “Native Hawaiian students fare worse than their non-Native peers. Since the onset of the pandemic, the number of Native Hawaiian students completing a degree or certificate has decreased 24% from 2019 to 2022.”
Kauaʻi CC Director of Institutional Effectiveness and University Center Valerie Barko said the grant was established by the U.S. Ed. Native Hawaiian Education Program.
The Ka Lamakū: Pathways into Secondary Education grant will provide free early college classes at Kauaʻi’s three public high schools and at Kawaikini Public Charter school. All students accepted into the online associate of science in teaching program will receive individualized support, student success plans, and be eligible to apply for a $2,000 scholarship.
Another important aspect of this grant will be a full-time project coordinator and Native Hawaiian liaison at Kauaʻi CC with the goal of fulfilling kuleana to Native Hawaiians and Hawaiʻi by providing cultural professional development, training faculty on Indigenizing curriculum, and offering student support plans.
“We are a Native Hawaiian serving institution of higher education, and that should be ingrained in everything we do,” Barko said. “Hiring a Native Hawaiian liaison will help continue moving the college towards this goal, and will also help further identify and define what it means to be a Native Hawaiian serving institution.”
