Ka Wai Ola - Office of Hawaiian Affairs, Volume 11, Number 2, 1 February 1994 — Ka nūhou mai Alu Like News from Alu Like [ARTICLE+ILLUSTRATION]

Ka nūhou mai Alu Like News from Alu Like

(presented by Ka Wai Ola O OHA and Alu Like as a public service)

ALU LIKE

Alu Like's library project: turning Hawaiians on to books

Libraries are an invaluable educational and informational resource that have been underused by the native Hawaiian tyAlu Like's Native Hawaiian Library Project is trying to change this. "Our basic mission is to provide library services to native Hawaiians," says library project coordinator Robert Velligas. "We feel that Hawaiians are not traditional users and we want to stimulate their interest." The library project is divided into two sub-projects: the Community Cultural Presentation Project and the Community Literacy Project. The Community Cultural Presentation Project uses a van to take books to schools, libraries and community events in predominant-

ly Hawaiian neighborhoods. Being mobile allows them to reach Hawaiians who live all over the islands and might not have easy access to the state public library system.

In addition to books, the project offers story-telling for kids - with a focus on Hawaiian cultural history and legends - and e u 1 1 u r a 1 activities like quilt- tracing a n d ho'oponopono work-

shops for adults. The Community Literacy Project has two parts: parent workshops and homework centers. In the parent workshops, Alu Like sends a librarian to

preschools with high percentages of Hawaiian and native Hawaiian students, to encourage parents to read to their children. The librarian also provides parents with tips for activities to do with children and bibliographies on material that they ean use with them. The homework centers are located near Hawaiian homesteads and are places where students from kindergarten to grade 12 ean go to get help in their studies. It also provides educational material and clerks trained to provide reference

services for students looking for additional information. "We want to be able to link students with the public libraries," says Velligas.

Last month, as part of their work with the schools, Alu Like began a project that uses kūpuna to incorporate Hawaiian history, language and culture into the public school eunieulum. Moloka'i will be the first island to benefit ffom the new eunieulum. The library project assists Hawaiians living in remote regions with its books by mail project whereby people ean fill out applications and be eligible to borrow

books without having to got to a library. The project also administers a fellowship for native Hawaiians enrolled in the graduate Library and Information Studies program at the University of Hawai'i. The fellowship pays for mition, books, and other school-related expenses. Velligas feels that native Hawaiians ean get a lot out of the library system but many tend to feel that it doesn't have anything to offer them. "They feel it doesn't apply to them because native Hawaiian subjects are hmited." Mueh of the problem stems ffom a general laek of demand by the general public for Hawaiian books, Velligas says. Publishers respond to demand. If the market is small they are mueh more hesitant to produce any materials.

For information on Alu Like's Native Hawaiian Library Project eall 839-7784.

Library proiect instructor visitinq Waiāhole.