Ka Wai Ola - Office of Hawaiian Affairs, Volume 16, Number 9, 1 September 1999 — TAKEN FOR A RIDE [ARTICLE+ILLUSTRATION]

TAKEN FOR A RIDE

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By Jayson Harper FOR THE fourth consecutive school year, students at Kula Kaiapuni 'o Ānuenue Hawaiian immersion school find themselves without bus transportation. At issue is $85,000 in funding that the Department of Education (DOE) says it doesn't have to provide transportation for 270 Ānuenue students living in leeward, windward and central O'ahu. The DOE considers Anuenue a, 'school of ehoiee', making it exempt from subsidized transportation, however it continues to pursue funding through other agencies, according to spokesperson Greg Knudsen. On Aug. 11, students, teachers and supporters of Ānuenue rallied in front of the DOE building in Honolulu to protest its position on this issue. "For Hawaiian people, speaking our language and educating our children in our language and in our culture is not a ehoiee. It's a right, it's a duty, its not something we could live without. It's being true to who you are as a people," said Kahele Dukelow, a teacher at Anuenue. Kula Kaiapuni 'o Anuenue is a Hawaiian language immersion school that comes under the control of the DOE. Established as an island-wide immersion site in 1995, Ānuenue is the

only one that provides Hawaiian language education from kindergarten through 12th grade on O'ahu. Since 1995, Ānuenue has fought with the DOE for funding for bus transportation. Eaeh year the school must rely on donations £rom individuals and other agencies for funding. In 1995 the OHA Board approved temporary funding with a grant of $43,613 for bus transportation and another $64,960 in 1998, with the parents agreeing to pay an additional dollar a day to cover the remaining costs. However, for many at Ānuenue the struggle goes beyond transportation. "We're tired of being ignored

and being put off. We need Board of Education support, we need the governor's support. Everybody else has done their part. It's time for the state to do its part. We've always had to fight for what we have. Nothing has ever been given to us," said Dukelow. "There is one indigenous language in this state, Hawaiian. It's also an official language in this state along with English. English-speaking schools get busing and we feel

we deserve the same treatment. We need permanent solutions, not a band aid," Dukelow added. The DOE classifies Ānuenue as a "magnet" school or a school offering a unique program to attract students from other schools. CastleHigh School is an example of another magnet school offering a theater and arts program. Anuenue offers math, science, reading, language arts, music, writing

and physical education classes, taught in Hawaiian. Hawai'i State School Superintendent Paul Lemeihu has been supportive of Ānuenue's efforts, however the issue stdil has far to go. Governor Ben Cayetano and the Legislature have both emphasized education and fulfilling the needs of Hawai'i's children, but neither has taken a position on the transportation issue, instead deferring the matter to the DOE. ■

Since 1995 Eiila Kaiapuni co Anuenue have had the difficult taskoffinding funding to pay for services that pubfic schools get fbr free, transportation.

Over 100 students from Kula Kaiapuni 'o Ānuenue Hawaiian immersion school held signs in front of the DOE building in Downtown Honoluiu to protest its decision not to provide funding for bus transportation.

PHOTO JAYSON HARPER I J . ■ in r ^ k