Ka Wai Ola - Office of Hawaiian Affairs, Volume 29, Number 4, 1 ʻApelila 2012 — Organizations, get your free checkups here [ARTICLE+ILLUSTRATION]

Organizations, get your free checkups here

By Cheryl Corbiell Peter Hanohano sees himself as a doctor of sorts - one that focuses on the heahh of Native Hawaiian organizations. In his work leading the Ho'okahua Capacity-Building Program through OHA's subsidiary Hi'ilei Aloha LLC, Hanohano helps organizations build firm foundations for long-term sustainability. As part of the process, he meets with organizations and performs organizational assessments. "The assessment process is like a patient experiencing muhiple symptoms and going to a medical doctor to find a cure," said Hanohano. "The doctor asks many questions to gain a better understanding of the patient's condition and then prescribes an effective remedy. "In my work, I'm assessing the organization's condition and with the assistance of a skillful eonsultant, we may prescribe a solution that results in improved organizational heahh and sustainability." Ho'okahua - whose motto is "the foundation first and then the building" - offers a wide spectrumof organizational-development services from gaining IRS nonprofit status to creating detailed marketing plans. "I look at the services we are providing Native

Hawaiian organizations as teaching organizations how to fish," said Hanohano. "The proverb says: 'Give a man a fish and you feed him for a day. Teach a man to fish and you feed him for a lifetime,' and that is true for organizations. Often the organization's need is not dol-

lars but to gain skills." After an assessment, Hanohano brings in a consultant that ean help meet the organization's greatest need. "Because we work with Hawaiian organizations and grassroots Hawaiians, we

look for consultants that are culturally competent and who embrace their own Hawaiianness," he said. "We want them to enjoy the joumey together. It is like arranging a date. I ensure the consultant understands the organization's needs and is grounded in Native Hawaiian culture. It is important that the client and consultant communicate from a eommon base. For example, a consultant could teach an organization to increase sales, but the goals must be compatible with Native Hawaiian culture and values." In December, Elite Element Academy Head of School Kanoe Ahuna sought help fromHo'okahua.

For four years, the nonprofit K-12 private school has taught Hawai'i students through an individualized online teaching program. "Our students are young people involved in nontraditional talents and sports such as semiprofessional skateboarders and surfers, students from rural remote areas on outer islands, such as Kaua'i and Hawai'i, and also students frompartnerships with charter, puhlie and private schools," said Ahuna. The school, whieh also goes by E2A, is accredited and licensed by the Hawai'i Association of Independent Schools and Western Association of Schools and Colleges. The school's trustees and staff are on the brink of expanding their student base and curriculum approach. The academy is seeking International Baccalaureate certification and international accreditation to be recognized as an intemational school delivering Hawaiian culture-based education globally and in Hawai'i. Ahuna recognized they needed help with the expansion and reorganization plan. "Peter Hanohano helped identify the major transition phases and the immediate need for a strategic plan," said Ahuna. "He hired a strategicplanning consultant who was culturally competent in both Hawaiian and western practices, whieh was a comfortable fit for us." The consultant and the E2A's board and staff worked for three months to craft a three-year straSEE HO'OKAHUA ON PAGE 29

HO'OKAHUA CAPACITY-BUILDING PR0GRAM MISSI0N: To identify, promote, develop and support culturally appropriate, sustainable opportunities that benefit Native Hawaiians AREAS 0F ASSISTANCE: nonprofit formation, grant writing, board training, leadership and staff development, strategic planning, and creating or improving business and marketing plans and policies and procedures C0NTACT: Peter Hanohano ADDRESS: 711 Kapi'olani Blvd„ Suite 1430, Honolulu, Hl 96813 INF0: (808) 596-8990, ext. 1005 or peterh@hiilei.org

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Leaders of Elite Element Academy sought help from the Ho'okahua Capacity-Building Program when the school wanted to expand and reorganize. The school, whieh teaches students through an individualized online learning program, organizes activities, like this one planting koa in Waimea. - Courtesy: E2A

Hanohano

HO'OKAHUA Continued from page 12

tegic plan. "Unele Peter was invaluable working along with us and the consultant to pull all the complex components together," said Ahuna. In addition, Ho'okahua and E2A shared the cost of the consultant's fees. E2A is ready for the future. "It is a mammoth undertaking, but we have the skills to proceed," said Ahuna. "We may need help from the Ho'okahua Program again for other organizational challenges, but for now we are empowered. We are starting our new journey to foster the Hawaiian values and culture of old in a new century for nā keiki of today." Hanohano encourages Native Hawaiian businesses, community groups and organizations, or organizations serving primarily Native Hawaiians, to contact him and "share their organization's vision, opportunities and challenges." "It is our belief that these thriving Native Hawaiian nonprofits and businesses will form the foundation of our beloved Hawaiian nation, regardless of the outcome of the political process," he said. "This is to help us to heeome a self-governing and self-determined people, controlling our own destiny and future." ■ Cheryl Corbiell is an instructor at the University ofHawai'i Maui College-Moloka 'i and an ACE reading tutor at Kaunakakai Elementary School.

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