Native Hawaiian Education (NHE) FY 2018 -- Project Abstracts

(S362A180043) Friends of the Future (HI) $835,259: Opportunities for Learning and Achievement (OLA) Project proposes to combine academic and native language and culture as a strategy to increase student engagement that will reduce summer learning loss; improve achievement; improve student knowledge; increase academic performance of Native Hawaiian culture and language among K-12 Native Hawaiian students. Also, the project will demonstrate the effectiveness of combining academic and native language/culture study as a strategy to increase student engagement in learning and readiness for academic success. Refinement of a successful pilot during the grant period will allow partners to integrate culture studies and academic content into a diverse, multi-grade level, year-round learning experience), expands student and family access to college and career planning resources and builds early literacy skills to accelerate early academic growth. OLA plans to serve up to 1,437 high needs Native Hawaiian students enrolled in eight Konawaena Complex and Kau Complex schools on Hawai‘i Island.

(S362A180007) Partners in Development (HI) $621,994: The Pili A Paʻa Expansion Project proposes to create an encompassing Community School Model that addresses academic and socio-emotional needs to improve Native Hawaiian achievement in grades Kindergarten through 12. The three goals of the Pili A Pa‘a Expansion Project include: 1) To increase the instructional capacity of teachers through a systematic, research-based approach to developing pedagogical skills responsive to Native Hawaiian learners; 2) To equip Native Hawaiian students with college and career readiness skills; and 3) To develop meaningful avenues of participation for families in support of student achievement. The project will serve three school sites in the Kohala Complex in the West Hawai‘i Complex Area on the island of Hawai‘i: Kohala High, Kohala Middle and Kohala Elementary Schools. In three years, 880 students, 350 unduplicated families and 70 in-service teachers will be impacted by grant activities.

(S362A180059) Bishop Museum (HI) $231,150: Students and Teachers Stoked on Stem Project proposes summer internship with academic-year components to provide Native Hawaiian students, teachers and community members with broad exposure and immersive experience in STEAM (science, technology, engineering, art and math) activities through the museum’s unique biological and cultural resources. Continued involvement throughout the academic year, along with community programs that target the support circles and communities of participating students and teachers will increase exponentially the reach of the program. The program will expose another 360 high school students to STEAM concepts at the museum through field trips; engage 36 new teachers in active discussion about STEAM applications through 9 Teacher Forums; reach an estimated 3,600 family and community members through average use of annual museum memberships provided to students; welcome 72 students, teachers and community members to an annual Ho‘ike and presentation of the STEAM project; and facilitate an estimated 60,000 quality educational interactions between community members and STEAM interns.

(S362A180016) University of Hawaii (HI) $700,000: Postsecondary Support Project Increasing the Success of Native Hawaiian Youth with Culturally Responsive Coaching

proposes to enhance and expand a highly successful support model addressing the needs of Native Hawaiian youth at risk of failure to succeed in postsecondary education. The project has four objectives: 1) Refine and enhance culturally responsive academic coaching strategies; 2) Expand and scale-up those culturally responsive strategies which have been demonstrated as effective; 3) Establish a Training and Technical Assistance Center on Culturally Responsive Supports across each of the UHCC campuses; and 4) Conduct a rigorous evaluation to determine effectiveness/efficacy. Six UHCC Campuses are targeted for project activities, ensuring statewide coverage across the three years of the project. This culturally responsive model proposes to use valid qualitative and quantitative process and outcome measures of student success. Approximately 1,600 Native Hawaiian will be directly impacted.

(S362A180030) Maui Family Support Services (HI) $783,973: Ho’owaiwai Kaiāulu Project (which means “to enrich and bring prosperity to our community”) proposes to provide a continuum of services for Native Hawaiian/Part-Hawaiian (NHPH) expectant mothers, families with children ages 0-5, youths, men, fathers and other caregivers on Maui and Moloka`i.

Project goals are 1) Hawaiian keiki (children) will enter kindergarten prepared for school success; 2) Hawaiian `ohana (families) will increase protective factors to reduce risk of child abuse and neglect; 3) Hawaiian ‘ōpio (youth) will increase protective factors to reduce their risk-taking decisions that could result in alcohol, tobacco and other drug abuse/misuse; and 4) Hawaiian kāne (men), makua kāne (fathers) and ‘anakala (uncle or father figures) will increase their nurturing and attachment to their families. Ho’owaiwai Kaiāulu plans to screen approximately 1,500 pregnant women and/or new mothers annually. The project will serve 100 families each year on Maui and Moloka`i over the three-year duration of this project.

(S362A180020) University of Hawaii (HI) $1,041,375: The Noeau Program proposes an intense Hawaiian immersion summer camp for college-age Hawaiian language students while participating in and learning Hawaiian culture activities with kūpuna (elderly, native Hawaiian speakers and practitioners). Purposefully organized into three projects running simultaneously – Piilani Immersion, Lauulu Literacy, Oihana – the partnership program will ultimately increase the number of Hawaiian students in professional degree programs and professional careers, in which Native Hawiians are currently underrepresented. Hawaiian immersion camp classes will be held on both Maui and Oahu Islands. Reading books written in Hawaiian will be printed and distributed on each island, to every Hawaiian immersion family in the State as well as libraries and schools. Experts will teach Hawaiian culture activities (fishing, taro cultivation, poi pounding and board construction, etc.) to Hawaiian language, culture and business major students at camp to encourage them to carry on these traditions. This project will provide another desperately needed source of language lessons for all age groups. The project will serve 120 students and 15 graduate assistants over three years.

(S362A180011) University of Hawaii (HI) $329,790: Ne‘epapa Ka Hana (NKH 2.0) Expanding Native Hawaiian Student Access and Teacher Training from Middle School Mathematics to the STEM Workforce proposes an evidenced-based model that is comprised of technology-enabled and socio-culturally responsive curricula and training for improving inclusive mathematics pedagogy in Hawai‘i. NKH 2.0 will focus on 6th and 7th grade students to increase confidence, engagement, assessment scores and projected representation of Native Hawaiian

students in STEM fields, as reported by teachers. This focus will be amplified through earlier intervention. Outcomes include improvement in student academic performance in middle school mathematics, higher rates of access to high school STEM coursework and persistence toward on-time graduation, fostering a higher enrollment rate in STEM programs and higher representation in STEM careers. The project also proposes to advance knowledge on the application of socio-culturally responsive problem-based learning (SCR-PBL) curricula, and connectivism as a new learning paradigm in broadening participation and success of at-risk and Native Hawaiian students in STEM courses. NKH 2.0 will collaborate with 10 existing NKH teacher partnerships to develop SCR-PBL curricula for 6th and 7th grade (Year 1); field-test the scalability and replicability, refinement of the curricula; train 40 teachers per year on the islands of O‘ahu, Hawai‘i, Kaua‘i, Maui and Moloka‘i (Years 2 and 3); and disseminate the materials statewide (Year 3). There will be more than 90 partnerships with mathematics teachers serving 1,000 students per year in grades 6-7.

(S362A180024) University of Alaska Fairbanks (AK) $321,743: Teacher Ambassadors Sharing Knowledge (TASK) Project seeks to increase Native Hawaiian student interest and readiness in science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) careers by providing a place-based, culturally-relevant STEM-infused Career and Technical Education curriculum, supplies and training for student cultural exchange STEM projects and intensive teacher professional development workshops to underserved, underperforming schools. Objectives and activities: 1) improve Native Hawaiian student performance on standardized tests; 2) increase the number of teachers delivering culturally-relevant STEM instruction (this objective will include a Cultural Exchange Workshop in Alaska where teachers learn about incorporating culturally relevant science into their classroom teaching); and 3) prepare Native Hawaiian students to become future leaders in the workforce by providing supplies, training and experience necessary to create STEM projects. The Student Cultural Exchange Academy will introduce students to campus living and college expectations. The project will serve 80 teachers and an estimated 1,600 K-12 students (approximately 20 students per teacher) in two service areas: nine schools within the Nanakuli-Waiane Complex Area on the Island of Oahu, Hawai‘i and the Lower Yukon School District in Alaska over the course of the 3 year project.

(S362A180056) Ho`okako`o Corporation (HI) $223,340: The Hawaiian Arts and Early Literacy Project aims to strengthen the English and Hawaiian literacy foundation of nearly 600 at-risk K to 3rd grade students at Kamaile Academy and Kualapu`u Public Charter School. Students will develop their early reading and writing skills through strong literacy instruction fortified by Hawaiian visual and performing arts. The integration of Hawaiian Arts will further tell the stories of students’ and their families’ local area culture and Hawaiian heritage, building upon their existing community strengths. Several stakeholder groups of the school community including students, teachers, parents and local community partners will collaborate to support the project’s goal and objectives. These objectives are 1) Form a leadership team to plan and coordinate K-3 Arts and Literacy instruction and integration; 2) Assure K-3 teachers have professional development support for Literacy and Arts instruction; 3) Equip instructional specialists to build and grow their competencies; and 4) Assure K-3 students have a minimum of 45 minutes weekly of Hawaiian Arts instruction. If successful, the impact will be improved literacy outcomes for 600 students who will participate in the project each year, over the three-year project period starting in 2018.

(S362A180010) University of Hawaii (HI) $682,271: Project Na Kumu Alaka‘i’ has the goal to continuously increase the enrollment of Native Hawaiian students in postsecondary education or in postsecondary certification programs, leading to employment. Project objectives and activities include: 1) Mentoring students on cultural, academic and career issues/exploration towards postsecondary education or in postsecondary certification programs, leading to employment.; 2) Assessing students for the placement in one of three tiered support groups; 3) Individualized computer based accelerated instruction in reading and math to diagnose, correct and accelerate learning in reading and math; 4) Tutoring for reading, writing, math and Accuplacer and SAT/ACT tests, including assisting students to access online tutoring services offered by University of Hawaii campuses; and 5) Financial assistance for student cost defrayment for college course tuition. An online professional development platform and resource center to effectively promote the adoption and replication of the intervention model across the state is planned. Professional development and support will be provided to at least 36 Hawaii Department of Education (HIDOE) faculty (12 teams of 2 teachers and 1 high school counselor) at 12 high schools – 2 on O‘ahu, 6 on Hawai‘i, 1 on Maui, 1 on Lāna‘i, 1 on Moloka‘i and 1 on Kaua‘i. Each team will work with at least 12 students (144 in total). The total number of HIDOE personnel and students served will be 282 (36 faculty, 144 cohort participants, 102 additional students) by the end of the project.

(S362A180033) University of Hawaii (HI) $630,588: Project Hoolei – Casting the Educational Net will create the next generation of PreK-12 academic learners who are stronger readers; provide opportunities for families to exist at the core of their children’s learning; facilitate programs grounded in Hawaiian culture and language; and give Native Hawaiian students the education necessary to gain quality jobs in STEM, health pathways or in trade professions. Hoolei’s supplemental education opportunities taught both in English and Hawaiian will meet three goals:1) increase literacy and improve reading strategies for at-risk population and Native Hawaiian children grades PreK-3 and their family members; 2) improve unemployment rates and underemployment of the at-risk population by providing educational opportunities for Native Hawaiian students, including charter school students and Hawaiian immersion students in grades K-12 in STEAM fields; 3) increase educational opportunities for Native Hawaiian students to be conducted in the Hawaiian language. Six sites (Hawaii Island; Oahu; Maui; Kauai; Lanai; and Molokai) will run a minimum total of 60 supplemental education programs and/or training sessions. Hoolei plans the following annual outcomes: 1) Serve a minimum of 500 at-risk Native Hawaiian PreK-3 students and family member participants in literacy-focused learning opportunities; 2) Serve a minimum of 850 at-risk Native Hawaiian PreK-12th grade students including charter school students and Hawaiian immersion students and family members participating in supplemental learning opportunities related to STEAM, health or trade professions; 3) Serve a minimum of 200 at-risk Native Hawaiian high school students that are graduating from high school or enrolled in college or in the workforce in fields related to STEM, health or trade professions; and 4) Serve a minimum of 150 hired intermittent staff (teachers, teacher assistants, volunteers, etc.).

(S362A180045) Hawaii Department of Education (HI) $604,729: Project Ke Ala Na’auao (the path to enlightenment) was created to continue the work of educators in the Nanakuli-Wai’anae Complex Area (NWCA) to forge a path for all students to reach educational success. The project builds upon a foundation of positive school relationships, strong community

partnerships and focused leadership to extend the learning opportunities available to its students. Project goals are 1) To support the widespread use of innovative instructional practices by training teachers to plan and implement project-based learning activities; 2) To support the widespread use of internet-based education software as a way to document evidence of student learning; 3) To foster positive relationships with community members who provide cultural expertise for both the teacher training and the summer learning opportunities component of the program; 4) To provide summer learning opportunities for grade 6-11 students that foster kuleana (sense of responsibility) for self, family and community and create opportunities for transitions between elementary and intermediate, intermediate and high school and high school and college by using summer learning opportunities to familiarize students with new campuses, new students and new learning expectations. Ke Ala Na’auao goals will be met through focused professional development; teacher planning teams; the creation of an online repository for project resources and student evidence of learning; and challenging summer transition learning opportunities for students, grades 6-11.

(S362A180065) La’i’Opua 2020 (HI) $868,870: West Hawaii KOA (Knowledge, Opportunity, Achievement) proposes to implement a project to serve high need Native Hawaiian students enrolled in two partner school complexes (Konawaena, Kealakehe) in West Hawaii. The project goal is to develop high quality education programs that increase the academic achievement and learning readiness of at-risk Native Hawaiian students. Four project objectives are to: 1) Provide summer learning options for students in grades K-12; 2) Increase academic performance of Native Hawaiian students in Reading, Math and Science; 3) Improve student knowledge of Native Hawaiian culture and language; and 4) Provide college readiness for Native Hawaiian students. Approximately 1,250 students in grades K-12 will participate in project programs.