Ka Wai Ola - Office of Hawaiian Affairs, Volume 38, Number 7, 1 July 2021 — A School Without Walls A Partnership With Kealakehe High School [ARTICLE+ILLUSTRATION]

A School Without Walls A Partnership With Kealakehe High School

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By ūeann Thornton This past fall, Kealakehe High School (KHS) and the Hawai'i Department of Education partnered with Lili'uokalani Trust (LT) to offer an aina-based Alternative Learning Opportunity (ALO).

readiness, life skills, and community service. Math, science, English and history are woven into cultural and natural resource stewardship projects such as forest restoration, marine and coastal water quality, species monitoring, and out-planting. The intended outcome of the program is for students to successfully graduate and transition into academic and/or professional pursuits after graduation. Beyond the tangibles of courses, credits, and diplomas, ALO's goal is to inspire learning and bring forth students' self-identity, confidence and their inherit talents and creativity. Overall, the objective is for students to heeome meaningful contributors in West Hawai'i communities

Transplanting Pō'ū o Hi'iaka for drylond forest restoration efforts. - Photos: Courtesy

and re-connect to aina and the value of reciprocity. In an end-of-year survey, ALO participants reflected on the statement "I feel personally responsible for taking care of this plaee." At the beginning of the school year students, on average, felt the statement was "somewhat like them" but by the end of the year, students, on average, felt the statement was "mostly" or "very mueh" like them with an average change of 1.2 points on a 5-point scale.

Co-taught by a KHS teacher and an LT aina educator, ALO provides KHS students who are not succeeding in traditional classrooms with a unique learning environment in the ahupua'a of Keahuolū. The outdoor learning environments, or "classrooms," encompass the upland forest, low dryland, and coastal areas where aina drives and facilitates real world and handson learning. The curriculum developed for the program is project-based and covers both core subjects and electives required for graduation including heahh and wellness, job

As one student shared, "Before I never really knew the places so if I'm being honest I didn't really care, but now that I got to know the places more, I gained a responsibly and respect." Another student shared, "I feel like I belong here." The first cohort of ALO participants began the program as rising sophomores in fall 2020 and will graduate in spring 2023. It is imperative, now more than ever, that our kamali'i be educated in the ways of Hawaiian culture and heeome ambassadors and advocates of protecting and preserving our homelands for future generations. ALO may be one way to support this aim while preparing youth for successful futures. ■ Deann Thornton isfrom 'Ōla'a, Puna, and is the aina educator at Lili'uokalani Trust. Her interests include working with youth and Native Hawaiian plants. She is a huge advocate for place-based learning and restoration work.