The University of Hawaii at Hilo Kipuka Native Hawaiian Student Center was recently awarded three five-year grants totaling more than $8 million through the Title III, Part F Alaska Native and Native Hawaiian Serving Institutions program to help support the success of Native Hawaiian students.
The programs and their grant award include:
Pa‘ie‘e: Indigenizing the University of Hawaii at Hilo and Hawaii Community Campuses ($2,998,734)
This cooperative grant is between UH-Hilo (lead) and Hawaii Community College with the following main objectives:
• Increase Native Hawaiian student enrollment and retention through Hawaii Island place-based service-learning pathways
• Increase Native Hawaiian students, faculty, and staff engagement through the creation of Indigenous resources and spaces at UH-Hilo-Hawaii Community College Manono and Ko Education Center Honokaa
• Increase Native Hawaiian student graduation and transfer through faculty professional development activities
E Hakalau ai na Manu: Native Hawaiian Student Engagement and Support ($2,729,837)
This project aims to increase student persistence and retention in their first and second year at UH Hilo through three activities:
• Enhance student engagement through learning environments by renovating the Kipuka Native Hawaiian Student Center to better engage and support Native Hawaiian students
• Foster campus and community engagement to strengthen access for Native Hawaiian first-year students through peer mentoring
• Strengthen leadership development for second-year students through participation in leadership development opportunities
Ho‘olana: Access and Enrollment, Retention, and Graduation Success for Native Hawaiian Students ($2,675,468)
This project’s goal is to support student success from their freshmen to senior year at UH Hilo through the following:
• Facilitate student success for freshmen students, including summer bridge programs and a first-year experience course, that incorporates place-based, service-learning activities that increases understanding of the cultural significance of Hawaii Island
• Enhance campus and community engagement for Native Hawaiian sophomores
• Strengthen leadership development for students that contribute to their persistence to graduation
“All of our project goals include increasing Native Hawaiian student enrollment through retention efforts, increasing Native Hawaiian student graduation rates, and increasing Native Hawaiian student engagement in Hawaiian language and culture learning pathways,” explained Principal Investigator Gail Makuakane-Lundin.
“I am especially gratefully to the Kipuka staff, especially Associate Director Hualani Loo and Student Development Coordinator Ho‘oleina Ioane, who authored two of the grant proposals. The grants provide us the opportuntiy to work with our colleagues on campus and across other UH campuses to create new pathways for Native Hawaiian students to achieve success.”
Kipuka also received a one-year supplemental ANNH grant of $551,298 to expand and enhance the Kukulu: Strengthening Native Hawaiian Leadership by Building Retention and Graduate Efforts program.
