Hope for Kids ʻEkahi

In June 2009, a cohort of nonprofit partners in Hawaiʻi was convened. Partners worked with children to promote resiliency, develop life skills and instill environmental stewardship.
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Hope for Kids ʻElua

In June 2016, a new cohort of partners, all committed to bringing hope to children through delivering ʻāina-based education was convened.
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Hope For Kids

OVERVIEW

In 2008, when Hau‘oli Mau Loa Foundation was first considering how it would develop its grantmaking program focused on children, the board and staff of the Foundation heard multiple times from a range of experts who work with children in Hawai‘i that too many of our children lack hope. This sounded an alarm for us, especially because our benefactor sought to expand opportunities for children to build hope. So we explored what might instill hope in our children. That was the beginning of the Hope for Kids Initiative.

Implementing the Initiative with Partners

BACKGROUND

The Foundation established Hope for Kids to expand opportunities for children in Hawaiʻi to build hope and a positive future. The initiative is now in its second phase. In the first phase, ʻEkahi (One) which started in June 2009, a learning cohort of ten nonprofit partners in Hawaiʻi was convened. The Partners, who also received multi-year funding from the Foundation, were all working with children in programs that promote resiliency, develop life skills and instill a sense of environmental stewardship.

Upon reflecting on the first six years of work, including talking with the ʻEkahi Partners, reviewing the videos they created with Palikū Documentary Films, and the evaluation findings they developed together with Pacific Resources for Education and Learning (PREL), the Foundation concluded that its work was not done and it would continue Hope for Kids with a second phase, ʻElua (Two). The Foundation began ʻElua on June 1, 2016 with nine partners. These nine ʻElua Partners, like the ten ʻEkahi Partners, are committed to bringing hope to children through delivering ʻāina-based education. The Foundation's definition of ʻāina-based education is based on work done by Dr. Brandon Ledward and adapted by the Foundation to mean: Learning in a cultural context through and from the ʻāina, or that which feeds and sustains us – the land, sea, and air. An initial pilot evaluation report, based on the work of six of the ‘Elua partners, and prepared by Dr. Anna Ah Sam, was released in late 2019. It illustrates the theories underlying the work of the ‘Elua partners as well as the outcomes and measurable indicators of progress. Equally important, it provides information about the data collection methods employed by each partner. A subsequent interim evaluation report was prepared by Dr. Ah Sam with significant input from all Partners in early 2022 which summarizes work done and adaptations made during the COVID pandemic and a final report is anticipated for the end of the initiative in late summer, 2022.