OUR SCHOOLS • KE KULA 'O SAMUEL M. KAMAKAU
Keiki of all ages explore culture together

By Eloise Aguiar
Advertiser Windward O'ahu Writer

KAILUA — The children at Ke Kula 'o Samuel M. Kamakau charter school are like family, with the older students responsible for contributing to the younger ones' behavior and learning.

Eleventh-grader Kuike Kamakea-Ohelo teaches first-grader Aiku'e Napoleon-Ahn how to handle a fishing net. At their charter school, the older students take on the responsibility of mentoring younger pupils. Deborah Booker • The Honolulu Advertiser

The young leaders set the example and make sure the younger students are attentive, said Kehau Pe'a, who teaches a class of second- to fifth-graders.

"So if anybody gets scoldings, it's the older kids," said Pe'a, 31.

The school is among an estimated two dozen charter schools in Hawai'i. Authorized by the Legislature in 1999, charter schools use public money and are part of the Department of Education, but operate largely independent of the state school administration. Advocates say this makes them more efficient, responsive and creative.

Ke Kula Kamakau reflects those qualities in its multi-grade classes, cultural themed lessons and project-based programs. But it also reflects the problems experienced by some charter schools in financing and facilities.

The school used a federal grant to supplement its meager state allocation during its first three years, but that has run out and rent has become a burden as all DOE money is used to pay teachers.

The school has no allocation for administration and no money to buy books, so teachers create their own. The school must also create its own curriculum material as a way to economize.

The school hopes to overcome some of its rent problems when it transfers to the YWCA Camp Kokokahi facility in Kane'ohe. Before the school can move, though, officials must find money to upgrade parts of the facility.

But the struggle is worth it, the staff believes.

Ke Kula Kamakau sits on the edge of Kawainui Marsh on the grounds of Kailua United Methodist Church, isolated from the rest of Kailua but with a clear vision that the school and the community are intertwined.

Each week the students leave the campus to malama 'aina — care for the land — and learn about conservation, Hawaiian culture and restoration of historic sites in the marsh or at Alala Point at the entrance to Lanikai.

Recognizing that nutrition plays an important role in the ability to learn, students help make healthy snacks for the whole school twice a week as part of the Healthy Hawaii initiative.

Each class has a turn at making the snacks. This week, kindergartners and first-graders were making banana-ginger muffins without eggs. Some of the ingredients were provided by Mark Paikuli-Stride, a Maunawili farmer who goes to the school twice a week to help with the snack program.

Paikuli-Stride, 34, said the school's nutritional program was one of the deciding factors in sending his child there.

He said he also likes the family style of learning.

The small school — it has 60 students — has limited resources and counts on parent involvement, he said.

"For a school like this, parents got to be involved to survive," Paikuli-Stride said. "We want it to survive."

The school divides its students into four classes: K-first grade has 14 students, second-fifth has 14, sixth-eighth has 23, and ninth-12th has nine. The school will graduate its first senior this year.

Each class incorporates team teaching, in which several teachers work together and classes are usually broken up into smaller groups for lessons.

The small groups also give the school an opportunity to teach life lessons, such as how to handle problems and how to behave, said Makalapua Ka'awa, school director. Each child is given a responsibility such as the morning chant, reciting the spiritual thought for the day or presenting projects.

"Everybody feels important here," Ka'awa said. "They all have a chance to shine."

Like so many charter schools, Ke Kula Kamakau faces financial struggles, having to educate students using less money than the state Department of Education provides for its other students. The state spends about $6,775 per pupil, while charter schools receive about $3,800 per pupil, though Gov. Linda Lingle has vowed to fix that inequity.

"For many of us, if that's all we get, our future is really questionable," Ka'awa said.

Officially the school can't afford Ka'awa. But because the school is part of the laboratory-school program of the University of Hawai'i at Hilo — involved in curriculum development, teacher training and research — she is hired by UH.

Despite all the challenges, the school pursues its mission to teach by state standards while providing intimate learning opportunities that arise from unique themes such as ea, which means sovereignty but includes self-determination and empowerment, Ka'awa said.

Kukea Naber, a senior who is taking a course at Windward Community College, said he wouldn't choose any other school. Naber joined a Hawaiian immersion school as a kindergartner and moved to Ke Kula Kamakau three years ago. He had the option to attend public school, but declined.

"I see what the public schools have to offer," Naber said. "I would stick to this because I think I learn more in life skills and book learning."

• What are you most proud of? "Our wonderful students, our dynamic and dedicated team of teachers and our supportive families," Ka'awa said.

• Everybody at our school knows: Kupuna Noelani McGuire, "our No. 1 source of support and love," according to Ka'awa.

• Our biggest challenge: Strengthening the use of the Hawaiian language beyond the classroom and school.

• What we need: Equitable financing and resources from the state.

• Projects: Multimedia projects including a Hawaiian language newspaper and a compact disc of student-composed health-related songs. Students are making hula instruments for an upcoming Ho'omau concert at the Waikiki Shell.

• Special events: On the third anniversary celebration of the school, students and teachers made fresh poi, steamed fish, chicken lu'au, limu salad, haupia, and sweet potato dessert, which was shared with families at a luncheon Jan. 10. Kupuna Noelani McGuire was honored for her work with the elementary program; special guest was Kupuna Lilia Hale. The afternoon was spent in Hawaiian sports and games.

Informational sessions for 2003-04 enrollment will be held in March and April, although applications are accepted throughout the year.

To get your school profiled, reach education editor Dan Woods at 525-5441 or dwoods@honoluluadvertiser.com.