“Hānai i nā keiki e ulu ka lahui.”
Nurture our children and our families will thrive.
“O ke kahua ma mua ma hope ke kūkulu.”
Build upon a firm foundation.

Ke Kula Kamaliʻi ʻo Hānaiaulu is a Hawaiian immersion childcare center, catered specifically to student parents and their success in their collegiate journey. It is our pleasure to announce that we now provide our services to faculty, staff and the community. We pride ourselves on our quality service of early childhood education in a Hawaiian language medium.

Nuʻukia – Vision

The vision of Hānaiaulu is to serve students, families and our community as a whole through Hawaiian language immersion and culture-based early childhood education and care in order to increase graduation rates at Windward Community College, as well as perpetuate the continuation of Hawaiian language and culture in the homes and lives of our families through quality early childhood care and education of our children.

Ala Nuʻukia – Mission

Our Mission at Ke Kula Kamaliʻi ʻo Hānaiaulu is to foster a learning environment that will enhance the growth and development of every child through language and culture while creating a safe and nurturing space.

Eligibility

All are eligible for services at Ke Kula Kamaliʻi ʻo Hānaiaulu.

Requirements

1. Enrollment or proficiency in Hawaiian language
2. Interview with staff or director after application
3. Orientation
4. Minimum of two (2) visits with our student parent academic advisor *student parents
5. Attendance at weekly family engagement meetings

Priority

Space is limited. Priority will be given to full-time students attending Windward Community College. Additional priority is given to students who are PELL eligible. In the case where demand is higher than space available, other factors may be considered, but not limited to: GPA, number of credits completed, number of credits needed to graduate, commitment to Hawaiian language use in the home, coursework taken, record of service to the Windward Community College community.

Application Information

If you are interested in applying for child care at Ke Kula Kamaliʻi ʻo Hānaiaulu, please fill out and return the appropriate application to the site director.

Puanani Kama
Hānaiaulu Childcare Center Director
puananir@hawaii.edu
808-462-4799

For all students in the UH and WCC system, fill out and return the:

For all non-student, faculty, staff, and community members, fill out and return the:

Applications are first come first serve and have no due date. When you turn in your application it will be marked the day it has been turned in and we will get in touch with you in the order we received each application.

A Short History

Students’ persistence to degree completion is of utmost importance to Windward Community College. Through an AAUW campus action grant, student parents on campus worked with project directors Susan Wurtzburg, PhD, and Ardis Eschenberg, PhD, to create a survey which outlined childcare needs and their impact on students. This group, with the addition of several key staff and faculty members concerned with childcare, including Mary Ann Nemoto from the Learning to Grow Project and Woody Garrison of Instructional Technology, then worked to create an action plan to address these needs. U.S. Department of Education Title III Native Hawaiian Serving Institution funds were then secured by Ardis Eschenberg using this action plan in order to renovate Hale ‘Ākoakoa and build Ke Kula Kamali‘i ‘o Hānaiaulu.

In Spring 2017, Ke Kula Kamali‘i ‘o Hānaiaulu held a groundbreaking ceremony to start the process of renovations. Shortly after, the college held their first annual fundraiser to purchase furniture needed for the space as it cannot be purchased with this source of grant funding. In Spring 2019, construction was finished and we were able to hire our infant & toddler specialist, as well as a few student aides. We look forward to our Fall 2021 opening to both students and our wider community net.