Why did you choose Ka Haka ʻUla o Keʻelikōlani?

I chose to attend school at KHʻU because I understood it to be the best way for me to learn the Hawaiian language. My grandmother was a native speaker, but knowledge of the language wasn’t passed to us before she passed away when I was young. As such, I really wanted to restore ʻōlelo Hawaiʻi in my ʻohana.

What is the value of Ka Haka ʻUla to you?

The value of Ka Haka ʻUla lies with the fact that it is one of the very few spaces where the Hawaiian langauge permeates throughout at all times. This allows for quick language acquisition and a high-level of fluency. Ka Haka ʻUla is also a space where support is always given as much as it is received, fostering growth in knowing who we are as Hawaiians, as the people of this place.

How did you grow as a person and how was your life impacted because of your time at Ka Haka ʻUla?

Because of my education at Ka Haka ʻUla, I was able to better understand myself as a kanaka, the goals I want to achieve in life, and the confidence to know that those goals were within reach.