‘Āina-Based Learning Takes Root in Kīlauea: Along Kaua‘i’s north shore, a sense of community runs deep. However, for Dr. Kapua Chandler, upholding a connection to the people, places and history of her ancestral home holds an even more profound significance. For the past eight years, she’s tirelessly worked to bring the first public charter middle and high school, Namahana, to her community. Through an ‘āina-based curriculum, students will receive a dynamic education that strengthens their relationships with land and community when the school opens its doors in 2025.

Namahana Education Foundation (NEF), the nonprofit organization that oversees fundraising for Namahana School, today surpassed a creative fundraising challenge designed to raise $1 million for Namahana School’s pre-opening needs, when $500,000 in community donations were doubled by a generous matching gift from Mike Kaplan and Rose Contreras. This generous funding, as well as the momentum of donors and community members mobilizing across Kaua‘i’s North Shore, supports Namahana School's rapidly approaching opening in 2025. NEF continues to seek capital and community support to accelerate the next phase of the initial campus buildout.  

The Kaua‘i County Planning Commission unanimously approved the Namahana School Special Use Permit application at its Tuesday, Dec. 12, meeting.

On Dec. 12, Līhue Civic Center echoed with the voices of North Shore community members expressing their support for Namahana School’s Special Use Permit (SUP) application. The SUP, which was approved by a unanimous vote of the Kaua‘i County Planning Commission, grants permission for the school to develop its campus on 11.3 acres of agriculturally-zoned land adjacent to Kīlauea Town.

In this conversation with G70 President Charles Kaneshiro, we take a deeper look at the process that led to Namahana’s campus design – including the challenges and opportunities of designing a school with no local models to emulate.

Watch the short feature from KITV sharing the news that Kauai Planning Commission approves special zoning permit for new school.

We recently spoke with Namahana School Leader Dr. Kapua Chandler and Big Picture Learning Co-Founder Elliot Washor – two leaders on the frontiers of educational innovation. The eye-opening conversation helped to clarify key concepts that are central to Namahana’s vision and values, such as the advisory structure and ‘āina-based learning, as well as how the international Big Picture Learning network helps to guide Namahana’s educational model.

It’s official! Namahana owns the 11.3 acre parcel across from the post office in Kīlauea and is now in the Special Use Permit application process. To prepare for a Fall 2025 opening of 7th and 8th grades, we are now entering Phase I and will be raising funds to build temporary facilities to house our first cohort of students. Head over to our website to see our site plans for Phase I.

Congratulations to Namahana School for being awarded $1.01MM over three years from the federal Charter School Programs (CSP) grant program, administered by the U.S. Department of Education (DOE). This federal grant will support Namahana School's operating expenses. This is a tremendous accomplishment and further supports Namahana’s curriculum and policy development, staffing hiring and training, and community engagement activities.

Melanie Parker, the executive director for the Namahana Education Foundation, was thrilled to receive a match gift of $500,000 in unrestricted funds from Kilauea residents Mike Kaplan and Rose Contreras.

Over the course of two months, Namahana School raised $1.4 million in community donations to secure an 11.3 acre parcel in Kīlauea Town for its future campus. The fundraising campaign, launched in early May, was an ambitious bet for the public charter school, which plans to welcome its first cohort of students in fall 2025.

In April 2023, Namamaha Education Foundation was presented with the opportunity to purchase an 11.3 acre property in Kilauea Town for the future campus of Namahana School. $1.1 million of the total $2.1 million sale price needed to be raised in cash by June 9 in order to secure to property.

Namahana Education Foundation seeks an ambitious and imaginative advancement professional who has found success working with committed volunteers and campaign counsel to design and implement a comprehensive multi-million dollar campaign.

Namahana Education Foundation is seeking a Kauaʻi-based administrative professional to join its small, start-up team.

A fundraising effort to secure a permanent campus for Namahana School received a substantial financial boost when anonymous donors committed $420,000 to the endeavor.

An anonymous donor has made a pivotal matching gift to Namahana School to help it obtain a permanent campus in Kīlauea Town.

Namahana School has targeted the fall of 2025 for when the first cohort of students will be arriving at the new charter school in Kilauea.

The planned middle and high school for students on the North Shore is fundraising to buy an 11-acre campus.

In an extraordinary turn of events, Namahana School has been given the opportunity to purchase a parcel of centrally located land in Kīlauea Town.

Donation Will Propel the Effort to Build New Public Charter School on Kaua‘i’s North Shore.