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The Honolulu Advertiser
Posted on: Sunday, July 6, 2003

$4M grant helps early education efforts here

Associated Press

The W.K. Kellogg Foundation has awarded a small Hawai'i nonprofit group a $4 million grant to help in early education efforts.

The Institute for Native Pacific Education and Culture will use the money to help 1,000 children on O'ahu's Wai'anae Coast and in Keaukaha on the Big Island to prepare for kindergarten.

The targeted children generally enter kindergarten two years behind their peers, and some of them never catch up educationally, INPEACE executive director Sherlyn Franklin Goo said.

The group and its partners have developed a five-year plan to coordinate services for the children. Among other things, the children will be assessed at age 3 to detect any learning barriers at an early age, with follow-up evaluations during the five years.

INPEACE's partners in the effort include the state Department of Education, University of Hawai'i, Kamehameha Schools and the Good Beginnings Alliance.

Kellogg's SPARK initiative has awarded grants to Hawai'i, six other states and the District of Columbia. SPARK stands for Supporting Partnerships to Assure Ready Kids.