Keiki O Ka 'Aina Family Learning Centers received a $50,000 community and economic development grant from the Office of Hawaiian Affairs. The funds will be used to build an educational and cultural training center in Kalihi Valley and for workforce development activities.
An outing caps a course where inmates learn parenting skills
WAILUKU - Father's Day came early for six Maui prison inmates who spent yesterday with their children at the Maui Ocean Center accompanied by guards and nonprofit organizers.
"This is great. This is the best thing ever," said Paea Tasini, 30, an inmate celebrating with his three children. "It takes the bitterness away from your heart. Sometimes when you have to do jail time ... it sort of puts a callus on your heart."
The occasion yesterday marked the celebration of six inmates graduating from the nonprofit No Na Kamalii Program, a 10-week course teaching them parenting skills, including supervised play with their children at the Maui Community Correctional Center each week.
On Maui, jailed dads, kids bond
June, 16 2006 - Honolulu Advertiser
MA'ALAEA, Maui - Having spent the past six years in prison, Terrence Vasquez was a near stranger to his 10-year-old daughter, Tiara, when they joined the Maui Community Correctional Center's No Na Kamali'i program for incarcerated dads and their children.
The program's parenting classes and weekly play groups restored their father-daughter bond, and the two were inseparable yesterday during an outing to the Maui Ocean Center aquarium.
"Now we're so close," said Vasquez, 36, of Kula, who is serving a 20-year sentence for manslaughter in connection with a traffic death.
Tiara, a slender, energetic girl, said she enjoys her weekly visits with her father and has a long list of activities planned for when he gets out that includes fishing, camping, movies, picnics and family nights.
Six inmate dads and their 14 children participated in the supervised excursion, the first such field trip for No Na Kamali'i, a partnership between the Maui jail, Neighborhood Place of Wailuku, the Queen Lili'uokalani Children's Center, the Keiki O Ka 'Aina Program and the Hui Malama Learning Center.
Continue reading article at the Honolulu Advertiser
Keiki O ka Aina receives grants
January 16, 2006 - Star Bulletin
Keiki O Ka 'Aina Family Learning Centers received a $10,000 grant from the Harry and Jeanette Weinberg Foundation, a $25,000 community development grant from the Office of Hawaiian Affairs and a $2,000 grant from the Atherton Family Foundation.
Link to Star Bulletin news briefs
Island Life - Show Biz
December 27, 2005 - Honolulu Advertiser
Wayne Harada - KHON's Leslie Wilcox wanted to show her Lokahi kids a "whale" of a good time during the holidays, so she teamed up with Atlantis Adventures to enable 250 kids and parents from Keiki O Ka 'Aina in Kalihi and the Pacific Justice and Reconciliation Center in Wai'anae to take a morning cruise last Tuesday.
Aboard the Navatek I, the Lokahi guests cruised from Aloha Tower Marketplace to Koko Head in smooth seas and beautiful weather; there were whale sightings, too. Atlantis tossed in breakfast for everyone and gifts for each child. That's really what Christmas is all about - giving, sharing. ...
Originating link to Honolulu Advertiser.com
A H-KISS for early education
September, 28 2005 - KHON2
The first five years of a child's life will determine to a large degree what kind of adult that child will become.
Some children may begin with disadvantages, but there are resources available to help.
Some pre-schoolers are obviously enjoying the Keiki O Ka Aina Program, but early education isn't always this easy for some children. For those children and their parents, there is H-KISS.
Continue reading article at KHON Channel 2
Hawai`i Briefs
June 5, 2005 - Honolulu Advertiser
Hear kids' books read over phone
Young children will be able to hear stories read over the phone starting today by calling 536-READ.
Keiki O Ka 'Aina Family Learning Centers is behind the free literacy project, which will feature a new book every week. The aim is to help children from pre-kindergarten to third grade reap the benefits of being introduced to good books.
The stories range from a minute-and-a-half to four minutes and include works by authors such as Eric Carle, Kevin Henkes and Margaret Brown.
The first four stories will be:
"The Boo Baby Girl Meets the Ghost of Mable's Gable" by Jim May
"Goodnight Dinosaurs" by Judy Sierra
"I Love You the Purplest" by Barbara Joosee
"Don't Let the Pigeon Drive the Bus" by Mo Willems
The list of books is available at www.keikiokaaina.org, along with a way to purchase them online.
Originating link at Honolulu Advertiser.com
Program for youths seeking mentors
March, 28 2004 - Star Bulletin
Organizations concerned about youth have banded together to provide a mentoring program for children on Oahu, Kauai and Maui who have a parent in prison.
The groups include Hawaii Youth Services Network; the Hawaii Intergenerational Network; Big Brothers, Big Sisters of Honolulu; Keiki O Ka Aina Family Learning Centers; Kauai Team Challenge; Maui Youth & Family Services; and the state Department of Public Safety.
Continue reading article at the Star Bulletin
Hawaiian preschool gets federal grant
October 2, 2003 - Star Bulletin
A native Hawaiian preschool program on Oahu received a $1.9 million grant from the U.S. Department of Education, school officials said yesterday.
Keiki O Ka Aina Family Learning Centers will receive funding over the next three years.
The nonprofit was established in 1996 to address the needs of native Hawaiian children under the age of 5. Last year, 870 children attended preschool programs at 21 different sites on Oahu.
Link to Star Bulletin news briefs
Bennett coup doesn't mean recognition near
June 15, 2003 - Honolulu Advertiser
The Lingle administration is touting a minor victory in its quest to achieve federal recognition for Native Hawaiians. Figuratively speaking, state Attorney General Mark Bennett has used his silver tongue to unclog a federal pipeline pumping some $30 million a year into Native Hawaiian education.
The relieved beneficiaries include Ka'ala Farm's Cultural Learning Center in Wai'anae, the 'Aha Punana Leo Hawaiian language immersion program and the Keiki O Ka Aina Family Learning Center.
As far as we're concerned, the more educational programs there are available in Hawai'i, the better off we'll all be.
Continue reading article at the Honolulu Advertiser
Feds clear grants for Native Hawaiians
June 13, 2003 - Honolulu Advertiser
Educators whose programs benefit Hawaiians are celebrating now that a kink in the pipeline supplying them with federal money an estimated $31 million for the next fiscal year has been cleared.
The wheels of the federal government that churn out grants under the Native Hawaiian Education Act ground to a halt about a month ago. Top state officials believe the hang-up stemmed from concerns about the constitutionality of Hawaiian-only programs.
Continue reading article at the Honolulu Advertiser
Federal grants to Hawaiians restored
June 13, 2003 - Star Bulletin
Gov. Linda Lingle says she has persuaded the Bush administration to resume $31 million in federal grants for native Hawaiian education after funding was held up for unknown reasons.
Lingle said the money for the Native Hawaiian Education Act was held up after U.S. Assistant Attorney General William Moschella sent a letter to U.S. Sen. Olympia Snow, R-Maine, chairwoman of the Committee on Small Business and Entrepreneurship, that raised concerns about the constitutionality of government programs giving native Hawaiians special benefits.
Continue reading article at the Star Bulletin
Hawaiian spoken at traveling preschool
May 19, 2003 - Honolulu Advertiser
WAIMANALO - The sound of the conch shell blown by 3-year-old Kapaia'ala lets everyone know it's time for lina poepoe, circle time.
Ka'imiola Earle, left, teaches the Hawaiian language to preschoolers at the Waimanalo District Park gym twice a week. Parents are encouraged to attend the sessions. The free traveling sessions are also taught twice a week at the Kailua Beach Park pavilions.
Welcome to the Keiki o ka 'Aina Family Learning Centers' free traveling preschool, a new program where only Hawaiian is spoken.
Continue reading article at the Honolulu Advertiser
Hawaii groups get $6 million in grants
October 20, 2002 - Star Bulletin
Nine federal grants worth $6 million have been awarded to Hawaii groups to support native Hawaiian education.
The funds were awarded by the Department of Education under the Native Hawaiian Education Program's Special Education and Higher Education initiatives, according to a news release Friday from U.S. Sen. Daniel Inouye's office in Washington, D.C.
The largest award was a three-year grant of $2.3 million to Aha Punana Leo, Inc.
Other three-year grants included:
$483,115 to the Consortium for Hawaii Ecological Engineering Education.
$400,869 and $212,126 to the Institute for Native Pacific Education
$957,511 to Keiki O Ka Aina Preschool, Inc.
$473,796 to the Pacific American Foundation.
$573,083 and $111,110 to the University of Hawaii.
A one-year grant of $500,000 was awarded to the Native Hawaiian Island Council Program.
Originating article at the Star Bulletin
Bush cuts would affect Hawaiian schools' budgets
February 6, 2002 - Honolulu Advertiser
Parents of preschool children enrolled in a program that gives them homework assignments to complete together are sure to be disappointed by President Bush's proposed budget for Native Hawaiian education, the school's director said yesterday.
Keiki O Ka Aina Preschool is one of many Hawai'i schools that stand to lose next year under the president's proposed education budget, which cuts spending for Native Hawaiian education programs by 40 percent.
Continue reading article at the Honolulu Advertiser
School gets moms back to nurture
May 21, 2001 - Star Bulletin
Stay-at-home mothers and their children learn at Keiki o ka 'Aina Preschool
Keiki o ka 'Aina Preschool operates on the principle that parents are their children's most important teachers.
At the preschool, parents and children learn together.
Four mornings a week, stay-at-home moms gather at Kalihi Valley Church for exercise, parenting classes, Christian fellowship and ideas on how to nurture themselves. Meanwhile, their children play with blocks, water, paints, playground equipment and one another.
Continue reading article at the Star Bulletin
