Ka Wai Ola - Office of Hawaiian Affairs, Volume 17, Number 6, 1 June 2000 — TRUSTEE MESSAGES [ARTICLE+ILLUSTRATION]

TRUSTEE MESSAGES

CHAIRPERSON'S MESSAGE

Ualike nōalike- weareone

ĪOO OFTEN Hawaiians eonclude that the only people able to solve Hawaiian problems are Hawaiians. The reahty is the help of nonHawaiians has always been essential. In days long since past, Hawaiians such as Princess Bernice Pauahi Bishop and Queen Lili'uokalani were married to non-Hawaiians. Charles Reed Bishop played a key role in establishing the Bishop Bank, the Kamehameha Schools and the Bishop Museum. Belgian priest Father Damien's sacrifices for Hawaiians are legendary throughout the world. In the poliūeal arena, others have advocated for Hawaiians. Senator Daniel K. Inouye's support for programs whieh benefit Hawaiians is well known. Programs such as Alu Like, Papa Ola Lōkahi, the Native

Hawaiian Culmre and Arts Program, the Kaho'olawe Island Reserve Commission, the Native Hawaiian Education, Housing and Health Acts are all made possible with the leadership of non-Hawaiians Inouye, Abercrombie and Mink. Dr. Terry Shintani has been instrumental in the field of health. He has spent countless years working to improve the eating habits and health of Hawaiians. Govemor Ben Cayetano, I, myself, and others participated in his diet program. Everyone was affected. Everyone lost weight. Diabetics no longer took insulin shots. Some participants stopped taking their high blood pressure pills. We all ate healthier foods such as poi, taro, sweet potato and 'ulu, il foods our ancestors ate. Most important, we leamed we should teach our children how to eat better by

eating better with them. Dr. Shintani's diet has positively impacted the health of Hawaiian families everywhere. Dr. William Wilson, has stood out in the field of education. A Hawaiian language professor at the UH Hilo, "Pila" was named the "Teacher of the Year" in 1999. He has taught thousands of university students the Hawaiian language for nearly 25 years. For

nearly 30 years, Pila and others have successfully lobbied Congress to fund the 'Aha Pūnana Leo preschool program. Today, Pūnana Leo is the most celebrated immersion preschool in the United States and is the recipient of many national awards. This program is emulated by other indigenous peoples throughout the United States, the Pacific Islands and Europe. In 1987, Pila convinced thenSuperintendent Charles Toguchi to initiate a Hawaiian immersion program in the DOE. What started with approximately 100 students now has nearly 2000 Hawaiian-speaking chifdren in grades K-12. In 1995, Pila and others convinced OHA to purchase a school site. Today, the school, now name Nāwahīokalani'ōpu'u, is one of only two Hawaiian immersion schools that start with kindergarten and end with grade 12. In 1996, Pila, successfully lobbied the Legislature, the govemor, the University of Hawai'i's Board of Regents and OHA to fund the

masters of arts degree in Hawaiian language and literature. This program remains the only indigenous language graduate program in the entire United States. In 1998, with the help of Representative Sam Lee, Pila helped establish the first-ever College of Hawaiian Language at UH-Hilo. Finally, just last month OHA and the DOE joined hands to contribute up to $7.5 million to the DOE Hawaiian immersion program statewide. This partnership is the result of Pila's urging OHA to file a lawsuit against the DOE in 1995 for the DOE's failure to provide adequate fiinding to Hawaiian language education. People like Sen. Inouye, Dr. Shintani and Professor Wilson have been instrumental in addressing problems impacting Hawaiians. At OHA we have many excellent employees who are not Hawaiian who labor tirelessly on behalf of Hawaiians. They clearly demonstrate that our successes are critically linked to our ability to work together. ■

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