Our Approach

Founded in September 2017, HawaiiKidsCAN: The Hawaii Campaign for Achievement Now is on a journey to the future of public education in Hawaii—one in which all keiki have access to great schools, regardless of their zip code. Our movement uses research and communications, grassroots organizing and direct advocacy to make that bright vision of the future a reality.

Our Team

David Miyashiro

Founding Executive Director

Aisha Heredia

Community & Outreach Manager

 

Advisory Board

Jeff Arce, chair; Jill Baldemor; Nancy Barry; Tea Giacomelli; AJ Halagao; Tiffany Huynh; Elisa Yadao

 

Key Initial Investors

Harold K.L. Castle Foundation
Hawaii Community Foundation
HEI Charitable Foundation
Chamberlin Family Foundation

Our guiding stars

On this journey, our guiding stars are:

Our work

Our advocacy begins with research and communications, so we know what’s happening across Hawaii—and so everyday people know what’s happening in public education.

  • 4 island-specific guides to education
  • 1 roadmap to the future
  • 2 reports
  • 15+ headlines
  • 3 op-eds
  • 1 student-led candidate forum with KFVE

We engage, educate and empower community members through grassroots organizing, so everyday Hawaiians understand their collective power to affect change through civic action.

  • 2 alternative break youth fellowships
  • Supported advocates to deliver 170+ pieces of testimony before legislature and Board of Education
  • 10+ students spoke w/ policymakers
  • 25+ students and teachers trained
  • 20+ partners

We remove barriers in the community to direct advocacy for better laws, turning groundswells of community support into winning campaigns for policy change.

Winning policy for all keiki

Here’s how our campaign for HB 2607 in 2018 advanced a new state law, greater equity in computer science education among Hawaii public school students and $500,000 for STEM learning!

➊  In the State of Computer Science in Hawaii 2018, we highlighted STEM inequity and identified a solution: HB 2607.

➋  Many news outlets featured the report or our related work, including the ­Star-Advertiser, KITV, Civil Beat and Hawaii Business Magazine.

➌  We visited CS classrooms to see great education in action. then we brought stu­­dents and teachers from local high schools to the Capitol to meet their lawmakers—and explain why HB 2607 matters.

➍ Code.org helped us crunch the numbers to support the bill. We found that Hawaii could double its number of computer science teachers, classes and learners in just one year by passing HB 2607 with a $500,000 budget!

➎ We rallied more than 60 percent of public testimony that lawmakers received for HB 2607 and its Senate companion: the voices of students, school leaders, educators, tech professionals and more.

➏ The legislature passed HB 2607 unanimously—and Gov. Ige invited us and our partners to the bill signing!