Ka Wai Ola - Office of Hawaiian Affairs, Volume 13, Number 3, 1 March 1996 — Kauaʻi Hawaiian language students get a boost [ARTICLE+ILLUSTRATION]

Kauaʻi Hawaiian language students get a boost

OHA grant money at work

by Pearl Leialoha Page About 90 evening students from Waimea, Anahola and Llhu'e on Kaua'i are Iearning Hawaiian this semester because of a grant from OHA, whieh pays for three superb lecturers. The classes are provided through Kaua'i Community College (KCC) and its Hawaiian language program.

"Those classes are paekeel. It's crucial at this point in time to receive funding from OHA for this program." - Ilei Beniamina

Dennis Chun, a Hawaiian eanoe voyaging expert and KCC Hawaiian studies coordinator, and Pat Litchult, resource developer for KCC, applied for monies to continue this worthwhile endeavor. OHA awarded $29,963 to support three evening Hawaiian language lecturers: Koki Williams, who teaches in Waimea, mostly with students from Kekaha homesteads; Keoni Inciong, who teaches in Kapa'a with students coming from Anahola homesteads; and Hōkūlani Cleeland, who conducts~cteses~on the eam-

pus in Llhu'e. About 60 percent of the students in this outreach program are of 50 percent Hawaiian ancestry. "It's bringing together the Hawaiians who feel they've been left out and it has brought them back into their culture and language," eomments Chun. "Till now, language efforts have targeted children and colIege students, but it was the older Hawaiians who were more forcibly cut off from their language, when the speaking of Hawaiian in public schools was banned over the last 90 years. This program has enabled the adult Hawaiians to reverse the alienation from their language."

Ilei Beniamina, a tenured assistant professor, says many of the night students are parents of keiki enrolled in Pūnana Leo and Kula Kaiapuni who want to be able to keep up with their ehildren's language abilities. In addition, the strength of these schools and programs are dependent on the quality o_f Hawaiian language that we are able to perpetuate, Beniamina says. "Those classes are packed," she adds. "It's crucial at this point in time to receive funding from OHA for this program, because as far as education goes, it seems that

Hawaiian language courses are the first thing to be cut when the state feels the squeeze." Beniamina, a native speaker from Ni'ihau, added that strengthening Kaua'i's Hawaiian programs is a plus for everyone because it ean most easily draw on the expertise of native speakers from Ni'ihau to enrich its program. Litchult reports that the OHA grant allowed the eollege to leverage some additional federal funds. "The OHA grant gave us a boost with the feds who then awarded us a three-year grant of over $300,000 to support the Hawaiian language learning center, Hale Ho'oula Na'auao, whieh pulls together both adults and kids," she says.

That's especially important as the enrollment of Hawaiian students has been on the rise since 1993, when the college experienced its highest enrollment in Hawaiian students in its 20-year history. In 1993, 18.3 percent (268 students) of the student body were Hawaiian. This represents a 10 percent increase in Hawaiian students since 1990, and the trend is continuing, said Beniamina. Only two other groups surpass that percentage: Filipinos (29.1 percent) and Caucasians (23.4 percent).

Beniamina feels that the smaller enrollment at KCC enables the school to maintain high-quality instruction. However, the outreach Hawaiian language program is still in a precarious situation as far as funding is concerned. "Possibly some of the federal monies ean go to the outreach program with a revision of the (federal) grant application," Chun says. "Hindsight is always clearer." he adds. "We are also working with Pūnana Leo to help secure funding for continuing the outreach program." The OHA grant is a one-time grant covering just the spring semester. As an initial contact for eol-

lege enrollment, Beniamina said it's important that Hawaiians see other Hawaiians when they walk through the door to inquire about classes. Identifying with other Hawaiians in higher education is very important to their self-esteem. "That's what happens during the evening Hawaiian language classes and when they "see us," Beniamina said. "Some of these students have very big dreams when it comes to reviving the language. We're here to encourage their visions and empower their own ability to live their heritage."

Hokulani Cleeland goes over a writing assignment with the Hawaiian "Composition class on Kaua'i Photo by Hōkūlani Cleeland