Kanu o ka ‘Āina: Redefining Success Through College, Community, and Culture
At Kanu o ka ʻĀina New Century Public Charter School the idea of success goes beyond just academics. Success does not come from a universal Western model; it is based on the needs of the haumāna and the community around them. Kanu students are taught that their kuleana goes out from themselves to their families, to their community, to the lāhui. Individual success is important, but it has to be done in service of the collective. Haumāna are taught the importance of connection, of realizing how interdependent we are to each other and to the ʻāina that sustains us. The path of individual student successes leads them to realize their dreams and then to come back to their communities to help others follow their own dreams.
“Everything that they learn has to be reciprocated out into the community. Everything is a kuleana.”