Ka Wai Ola - Office of Hawaiian Affairs, Volume 12, Number 11, 1 November 1995 — Response to Trustee Kealoha column [ARTICLE]

Response to Trustee Kealoha column

Editor's note: the following artiele is in response to a eolumn about Kamehameha Schools written by Trustee Samuel Kealoha Jr., and is presented in the interest of fairness and as a puhlie information service to our beneficiaries.

Trustee Kealoha raises a number of issues regarding Kamehameha Schools/Bishop Estate's (KSBE) educational programs in his October eolumn. We appreciate this opportunity to respond. In April, the trustees of KSBE announced pians to open four new elementary schools in the state by 2005. Two schools will be on Hawai'i, one on Maui and another ' on O'ahu. This announcement was accompanied by the trustees' affirmation of a new direction for all KSBE educational efforts going forward. This new direction will focus on five key areas. • Emphasizing and maintaining po'okela at KSBE's secondary school campus on Kapalama Heights. • Opening and operating four new eiementary schools; • Increasing KSBE's annual preschool populahon from the current levels of 580 students to 1 ,800 students by 2005; • Emphasizing quality summer programs on the Kamehameha Schools campus, and: • Providing post-high school fmaneial aid for Kamehameha and nonKamehameha graduates. The decision to adopt this new direcuon was made after spending more than 18 months reviewing every KSBE educational program. Our study confirmed what has been a matter of trustee discussion for many years: Kamehameha is most effective in improving the education achievement of Hawaiians when Hawaiian students are taught in Kamehameha facilities by

Kamehameha teachers using Kamehameha eunieulum. Based on this, the current trustees decided unanimously to concentrate on those KSBE programs whieh include all of these elements. KSBE's mission It is important that none of us lose sight of the fact that the State of Hawai'i, through the Department of Education, has the primary responsibility for educating all of Hawai'i's children, including Hawaiian children. KSBE's mission is to carry out in perpetuity the wishes of Ke Ali'i Bemice Pauahi Bishop to educate children and youth of Hawaiian ancestry to become good and industrious men and women. This will be done through the Kamehameha Schools as resources permil. A key aspect of KSBE's mission that is often overlooked is that KSBE must exist in perpetuity — it must be around forever. And because KSBE is a!so self-sustain-ing - we earn our own funds for operations - the trustees must balanee resources of today with current needs and the needs we know will exist in the future. The investments we make - and the obligations to whieh we commit future trustees - are all made with that balanee in mind. The commitments we have made going forward. particularly with regard to our pledge lo open and operate four new schools in the state by 2005, cannot and should not be discounted. By concentraling on what Kamehameha does best, we are ensuring that every dollar KSBE spends on education does the greatest amount of good for aU our students, and, ultimately, for our people. And that is what these changes are all about. Richard S.H. Wong Chairman. Kamehameha Schools Board of Trustees