Ka Wai Ola - Office of Hawaiian Affairs, Volume 13, Number 6, 1 June 1996 — Education co-op keeps Hawaiian students in school and on the job [ARTICLE+ILLUSTRATION]

Education co-op keeps Hawaiian students in school and on the job

bv Patrick Johnston oy Purdy anei Alika Gomes grew up in the Hawaiian community on Maui, have seen its good and bad, and now want to give something back. They are getting some help along the way. For the past several months, Purdy and Gomes have been part of Maui Community College's Cooperative Education Program Cohort (CEPC), an innovative job skills program run by MCC and supported by an OHA education grant. The program had students from Maui and Moloka'i work 20 hours/week for Hawaiian businesses and agencies during the 16-week spring semester. Students were paid using money from the OHA grant. This allowed students to get critical work experience and earn some money, all while gaining course credit.

Participating Hawaiian organizations, for their part, were able to get mueh needed help without the added cost of extensive training. Built into the program were seminars on work-related issues and a monthly lecture series that helps teach participating students more about their cultural roots. The lecture series was carried out by Po'okela, a program created in 1986 to increase the recruitment, retention and graduation of native Hawaiian students. Learning Hawaiian values was also part of the on-the-job experience. Companies and organizations were chosen on the basis of how Hawaiian values were part of their working environment. The concepts of 'ohana, lōkahi, and ha'aha'a were all part of the work experience. Program Developer Joanne Rode says this was done to help empower the student with a stronger sense of their own cultural roots so as to help ensure that they graduate and, ideally, get hired by the participating organization. Gomes and Purdy spent the semester at Queen Lili'uokalani Children's Center. They both said they went there because they liked the work the agency was doing for the

Hawaiian community, respected the legacy of the queen, and wanted to be a part of the agency's efforts. QLCC was so happy with the work they did, they hired them on for the summer. "We got a lot out of it," Gomes explains. "We learned a lot in a very short period of time. It was very enlightening." Purdy agrees. "Working at QLCC helped me learn about working with both adults and children. I was also able to learn about my Hawaiian culture, something I wasn't able to do when I was younger." CEPC participant Gayla Haliniak-Lloyd spent the semester at Alu Like's office in Moloka'i. She also will be reporting there for work this summer. "I think it is a fabulous program for a person like me. I thought I wouldn't be able to do this, but I applied my skills and leamed while on the job." Ruth Poaipuni, Alu Like's Moloka'i employment and training coordinator, feels that Gayla has been a great asset to Alu Like's operation.

"Because of the formal classroom training Gayla received at MCC, a lot of valuable work time has been saved. As a result we were able to train Gayla in a minimal amount of time to do a broad range of clerieal activities." Maui Community College will likely be continuing the program in the upcoming academic year and is encouraging Hawaiian organizations and businesses to get involved. "It is a win/win program," says Billy Akutagawa, director at Moloka'i's native Hawaiian health center, Na Pu'uwai. "Our funds are restricted and this allowed to get free help without the cost of extensive training. If the program is offered in the future we will make use of it." For OHA's education efforts, the program is part of their recruitment and retention program. The program's aim is to get more Hawaiians in college and ensure that they graduate.

"Working at QLCC helped me learn about working with both adults and children. I was also able to learn about my Hawaiian culture, something I wasn't able to do when I was younger." Joy Purdy

"We got a lot out of it. We learhed a lot in a very short time. It was very enhghtening." Alika Gomes

"I think it is a fabulous program for a person like me. I thought I wouldn't be able to do this, but I applied my skills and learned while on the job." Gayle Haliniak-Lloyd