Four Ke Kula o Ehunuikaimalino students will perform on the same bill as Grammy-nominated singer Janelle Monae this weekend during Teach For America’s 25th Anniversary Summit in Washington, D.C.
Four Ke Kula o Ehunuikaimalino students will perform on the same bill as Grammy-nominated singer Janelle Monae this weekend during Teach For America’s 25th Anniversary Summit in Washington, D.C.
More than 14,000 Teach For America corps members, alumni, staff and education officials from around the nation are expected to attend the summit, which runs Friday through Sunday. The students will be performing at the Verizon Center, a venue that holds more than 18,000 people. The conference will include specific sessions and events focused on educational equity for indigenous students.
After opening with a traditional oli, the students – Laakea Foster (sixth grade); Kukamaehumakakoaokalani Inaba (eighth grade); Kainoa Fernandez (ninth grade), and Andelen Olelo Losalio (11th grade) — will perform a special hula written and choreographed by Kukamaehumakakoaokalani for the event. The students applied and were selected to represent Teach For America’s Native Alliance Initiative.
“We believe in the infinite potential of our keiki and are proud to have our Kona students representing Hawaii at this national gathering of educators from across the country and around the world. Our hope is for our students to share their heritage, and the unique and special values and culture of our island home,” said Jill Baldemor, executive director of Teach For America — Hawaii.
She also noted that the students will have the opportunity to meet with different people and see various institutious while in the nation’s capital including tours of Georgetown University, the Library of Congress and the U.S. Capitol building.
The pupils, who completed final practice and lei preparation earlier this week, will be accompanied by Lihau Godden, their teacher at the Kealakekua school. Godden joined Teach For America — Hawaii after graduating from Kamehameha Schools-Kapalama and Lewis and Clark College.
“The idea that ‘one day, all children in this nation will have the opportunity to attain an excellent education,’ is a very important and worthy, albeit lofty goal. Teach for America is taking steps to try and reach this goal by getting as many people interested in education and systematic change as possible. I believe that there is a desperate need for more people to get involved with education, in any way they are willing, and TFA is a very effective avenue for that,” Godden said.
Teach For America – Hawaii works in partnership with communities to expand educational opportunity for children facing the challenges of poverty. Founded in 2006 on Oahu and 2009 on Hawaii Island, the program recruits and develops a diverse corps of college graduates and professionals to make an initial two-year commitment to teach in high-need schools and become lifelong leaders in the movement to end educational inequity.