Ka Wai Ola - Office of Hawaiian Affairs, Volume 22, Number 11, 1 Nowemapa 2005 — Good news, bad news Kamehameha study of Hawaiian social statistics shows some progress, but a continued lag behind other groups [ARTICLE+ILLUSTRATION]

Good news, bad news Kamehameha study of Hawaiian social statistics shows some progress, but a continued lag behind other groups

By Sterling Kini Weng Publicatiūns Editor The ongoing need for programs to improve the conditions of Native Hawaiians has been emphasized by a new Kamehameha Schools' report that shows that Hawaiians, as a group, continue to fall at or near the bottom of most eeonomie, education and health statistics in the state, despite some recent progress. The 450-page report, titled Ka Huaka'i: 2005 Native Hawaiian Educationaī Assessment, consolidates statistics on Native Hawaiian education and well-being from previous studies, examines them to find recent trends and highlights areas that ean be improved. This is the third such study Kamehameha Schools has conducted in more than 20 years, and it comes at a time when legal attacks are challenging programs that benefit Native Hawaiians, particularly Kamehameha itself and the Office of Hawaiian Affairs. While the study paints the familiar picture of Native Hawaiians lagging behind the state's other major ethnic groups in most socioeconomic statistics, it also points out recent gains - particularly in education, with the success of charter schools that focus on Hawaiian culture-based curricula. The study noted that Native Hawaiians in Hawaiian-focused charter schools score higher in reading and as well or better in math than their counterparts in conventional public schools. The report also shows that while Native Hawaiians are underrepresented in enrollment in the University of Hawai'i system, their numbers there have increased by almost three percent from 1992 to 2000. In addition, the percentage of Native Hawaiian adults with their bachelor's, graduate or professional degrees also increased between 1990 and 2000. However, even with the recent advances, the report states that "the status quo is not acceptable for Native Hawaiians." "The strengths described in this report [...] represent building blocks for optimizing the delivery of programs and services for Native Hawaiians," the

study says. "In general, our analysis indicates the need for continued efforts to enhanee Native Hawaiian education and other related areas of well-being." Among the some of the statistics found in the report: • Native Hawaiian enrollment in preschools jumped markedly since 1990 and was just below the statewide rate in 2000. • Almost 83 percent of Native Hawaiians said they were proud of their heritage, compared to 73 percent of non-Hawaiians. • While smoking among Native Hawaiian high school students is decreasing, they still smoke more than their peers. In 2001, 25 percent of Native Hawaiian high school students said they smoked cigarettes during the previous month. In contrast, about 17 percent of nonHawaiian students said they did. More surprising is that 31.1 percent of Native Hawaiian adults smoke cigarettes, compared to 20.4 percent of the state's total adult population. • Native Hawaiian families with ehildren bring in about $55,865 per year, the lowest ineome among the major ethnic groups in the state. The statewide average is $66,413; • Native Hawaiians families have the highest rates for poverty (18.3 percent versus 11.3 percent statewide); • Native Hawaiians are 20 percent more likely to be obese than nonHawaiians and suffer from some of the highest mortality rates for cancer, diabetes and heart disease in the state; • 69.3 percent of Native Hawaiians graduate high school within four years, the lowest rate of all major ethnic groups in Hawai'i. The state average is 76.7 percent; • Native Hawaiians are underrepresented in professional and managerial positions and overrepresented in less-skilled production, transportation and material-moving jobs. • Native Hawaiian adolescents suffer higher rates of depression and are more likely to attempt suicide than their non-Hawaiian peers; • Under the No Child Left Behind

Act, nearly half of the schools in Hawai'i targeted for restructuring in the 2005-06 school year serve predominantly Native Hawaiian students, making Native Hawaiian children twice as likely as their peers to attend a restructuring school; • The percentage of Native Hawaiian

adults who have obtained a bachelor's degree is half the statewide rate. To download an executive summary or the entire 450-page document of Ka Huaka'i: 2005 Native Hawaiian Education Assessment, visit www.ksbe. edu/pase/KaHuakai.php. S

NŪ HOU • NEWSBRIEFS

Graphs reprinted from Kamehameha Schools' Ka Huaka"nq>o\\.