Kamehameha Schools
Encyclopedia
Kamehameha Schools formerly called Kamehameha Schools/Bishop Estate (KSBE), is a private co-educational college-preparatory institution that specializes in Native Hawaiian language and cultural education. It is located in Hawaii
and operates three campuses: Kapālama
(Oahu
), Pukalani (Maui
), and Keaau (Hawaii island
). Kamehameha serves over 6,500 students from preschool through the twelfth grade
. Kamehameha was established in 1887 under the terms of the will of Bernice Pauahi Bishop
, a direct descendant of King Kamehameha the Great
and last living member of the House of Kamehameha
. Bishop's will established a trust called the "Bernice Pauahi Bishop Estate" that is Hawaii's largest private landowner.
The schools' controversial admissions policy prefers applicants with Native Hawaiian ancestry and has excluded all but two non-Hawaiians from attending since 1965. A lawsuit challenging the school's admission policy resulted in a narrow victory for Kamehameha in the Ninth Circuit Court; however, Kamehameha ultimately settled, paying the plaintiff $7 million.
, be held in trust "to erect and maintain in the Hawaiian Islands two schools... one for boys and one girls, to be known as and called the Kamehameha Schools." She named five trustees to invest her estate at their discretion, use the income to operate the schools, and also:
She also directed the Hawaii Supreme Court to appoint replacement trustees and all teachers be Protestant, without regard to denomination.
After Bishop's death in 1884, her husband Charles Reed Bishop
carried out her will
. Reverend William Brewster Oleson (1851–1915), former principal of the Hilo boarding school founded by David Belden Lyman
in 1836, helped organize the schools on a similar model.
The original Kamehameha School for Boys opened in 1887 on a site currently occupied by Bishop Museum
. The girls' school opened in 1894 nearby. By 1955 both schools moved to a 590 acres (2.4 km²) headquarters in Kapālama Heights
.
(EEOC) brought suit against Kamehameha Schools alleging that its requirement that all teachers be Protestant was religious discrimination in violation of the Civil Rights Act of 1964
. Although Kamehameha Schools conceded the practice was discriminatory, the School maintained that it was bound by the provisions of Bernice Pauahi Bishop's will which established the charitable trust creating the School as well as mandating that all the teachers "be persons of the Protestant religion." Accordingly, the School sought to fall within one of the applicable exemptions to the Civil Rights Act. The United States District Court for the District of Hawaii
found in the School's favor ruling that the religious education exemption, the religious curriculum exemption and the bona fide occupational qualification exemption were each applicable to Kamehameha Schools. The United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit
reversed the decision of the District Court holding that none of the exemptions to the Civil Rights Act were applicable since the School was essentially a secular and not primarily a religious institution despite certain historical traditions that included Protestantism. As a result, the requirement that all teachers be Protestant was held to be a violation of the Civil Rights Act.
At that time, critics alleged that the trustees were micromanaging the schools. Trustees were appointed "lead trustee" of a particular part of estate operations. In particular, Lokelani Lindsey, lead trustee for educational affairs, was blamed for low morale among students and faculty.
On August 9, 1997, University of Hawaii
(UH) Board of Regents Chair (and former Kamehameha Schools Principal) Gladys Brandt, retired judge Walter Heen, Msgr. Charles Kekumano
, federal judge Samuel Pailthorpe King
, and UH professor Randall Roth published a report titled "Broken Trust" in the Honolulu Star Bulletin which, among other things, called on the State Attorney General to fully investigate KSBE management. The report alleged, among other things, that:
On August 12, 1997, Governor Ben Cayetano
directed Attorney General Margery Bronster
to perform a preliminary investigation into the allegations. In her report on September 10, 1997, she found that "the rights of the beneficiaries may be at substantial risk," and that there were "credible allegations that the intent of Bernice Pauahi Bishop is not being implemented."
Another essay appeared in November, with Brandt, UH Professor Isabella Abbott
, respected Hawaiian cultural educator Winona Beamer, and others as authors. Its headline was "Tyranny, distrust, poor decisions reign at Kamehameha".
The investigation continued through 1998, when Bronster sought the permanent removal of Lindsey and fellow trustees Richard Wong and Henry Peters. On May 6, 1999, after a six-month trial, Lindsey was permanently removed as trustee (Lindsey later appealed her removal). A day later, trustees Wong, Peters, and Gerard Jervis were also temporarily removed. The fifth trustee, Oswald Stender, voluntarily resigned. An interim board was appointed by the Hawaii Probate Court to run the estate.
Bronster had been re-appointed by Cayetano who was a Democrat, and since twenty-three of the twenty-five senators were Democrats, some political observers thought approval of Bronster's renomination would be assured. However, the investigation proved costly for Bronster, whose confirmation was defeated by the Hawaii State Senate on April 28, 1999 by a vote of 14-11.
Things finally started to change when the US Internal Revenue Service retroactively revoked Bishop Estate's tax exempt status for the trustees breach of duties and unlawful use of tax exempt charitable trust assets for political lobbying, triggering about $1 billion in back taxes and penalties.
Jervis resigned permanently on August 20, 1999. The trials for permanent removal of the remaining three trustees were set for December 13, 1999. Wong offered his permanent resignation on December 3, 1999; Peters did the same on December 13; and Lindsey voluntarily resigned on December 17. Many of the court files relating to Bishop Estate were ordered sealed citing the need for "closure and healing."
The replacement Bishop Estate trustees continued to use the same attorneys and law firms as their predecessors. Deputy attorneys general tried to explain to the replacement trustees that these attorneys and law firms either provided flawed legal advice or stood by silently while they ignored good advice. Some claimed "there had been no thorough housecleaning; instead, the old guard had been put in charge and handed the keys."
In 2002, the Hawaii Supreme Court threw out the criminal indictments against three Bishop Estate trustees on procedural grounds and ruled no new charges could be brought.
In 2005 two of the authors of the newspaper series published a book about the issues in this investigation.
In 2009, after a large decline in the endowment, trustee compensation ranged from $97,500 to $125,000 per year, and trustees turned down any pay increases.
campus, established in 1996 in Pukalani
, serves 1,084 students. The campus on the island of Hawaii
, established in 2001 in Keaau, serves 1,118 students. In addition to three campuses, Kamehameha Schools operates thirty-two preschools throughout Hawaii. Preschools serve over 1,000 students statewide.
The five-member Board of Trustees of the Estate of Bernice Pauahi Bishop administers the Schools. The 1999 reorganization limited Board micromanagement. A Chief Executive Officer manages day-to-day operations and has autonomy over educational matters.
Bishop's original bequest consisted of 375000 acres (1,517.6 km²) of land worth around $474,000. According to the Broken Trust book introduction, a 1995 Wall Street Journal article described Bishop Estate as "the nation's wealthiest charity," with an endowment estimated at $10 billion - greater than the combined endowments of Harvard and Yale universities. As of June 2008, the endowment was US$9.4 billion, but by the end of the year it was estimated down to $7.7 billion. Approximately 75% of the endowment is in financial assets, and 25% is in real estate; over 365000 acres (1,477.1 km²) remain. However, the book value
of the land for accounting purposes is probably much lower than fair market value.
When compared against the endowments
of major U.S. colleges and universities, only six schools (Harvard University
, Yale University
, Stanford University
, Princeton University
, University of Texas System
, and Massachusetts Institute of Technology
), each with much higher enrollments, have higher endowments than Kamehameha Schools.
Admissions policy has been a subject of controversy. Because far more applicants claim Hawaiian ancestry than the schools can admit, virtually all students have some Hawaiian blood. Non-Hawaiians have attended, but this is extremely rare. In 2002, Kamehameha admitted one non-Hawaiian student, Kalani Rosell, to its Maui campus, for the first time in 40 years. Rosell was admitted after all qualified Hawaiian applicants had been admitted. This decision sparked alumni protest.
Kamehameha's admissions policy was the focus of two federal lawsuits. They contended that preferring Native Hawaiians is a race-based exclusion that violates U.S. civil rights law. Both lawsuits have since settled.
dismissed the lawsuit, finding that Kamehameha Schools' policy served a "legitimate, remedial purpose by improving native Hawaiians' socioeconomic and educational disadvantages".
In August 2005, however, a three-judge panel of the 9th Circuit of Appeals reversed 2–1, ruling the policy racially exclusionary. A protest march to Iolani Palace and rally on the palace grounds attracted an estimated 10–15,000 participants, including Hawaii's governor and lieutenant governor.
The Ninth Circuit agreed to rehear the appeal before a 15-judge en banc
panel in February 2006. On December 5, 2006, by a vote of 8–7, the en banc panel reversed the earlier decision by the three-judge panel, affirming Kay's ruling.
The majority ruled that Kamehameha's policy does not run afoul of a civil rights law, citing what it said were unique factors in the history of Hawaii, the plight of Native Hawaiians and the schools' distinctively remedial mission, which Congress has repeatedly endorsed. The dissent stated that civil rights law "prohibits a private school from denying admission to prospective students because of their race", and was very skeptical of the majority interpretation, stating, "The fact that Congress has passed some measures promoting Native Hawaiian education says nothing about whether Congress intended to exempt Native Hawaiian schools from § 1981 [civil rights law]".
Following the decision, attorneys appealed to the United States Supreme Court. However, before the Supreme Court decided whether to hear the case, Doe v. Kamehameha was also settled. Both this settlement and the Ninth Circuit's decision prompted a procession at the Kapalama High School, leading to an all-school assembly. On February 8, 2008, Goemans disclosed that the amount of the settlement was $7 million USD.
On August 6, 2008, Kamehameha announced that it had sued John Doe for releasing the settlement amount. On the same day, John Doe's attorneys, Eric Grant and David Rosen, filed another lawsuit against Kamehameha on behalf of four non-Hawaiian children who wanted to attend the school.
and various supplementary courses in Hawaiian literature, culture, history, song composition and performance, chant, and dance
.
Kamehameha offers a distance learning program for learning Hawaiian culture over the Internet. The program includes a series of instructional videos entitled Kulāiwi for learning the Hawaiian language that are available for free online streaming.
Kamehameha Schools operates Kamehameha Publishing, which prints and sells Hawaiian books, posters, and multimedia.
, in which each graduating class participates as a graduation requirement by singing Hawaiian songs
. Each class sings a coed song, and students in grades 10-12 sing a men's and women's song. Five judges evaluate the musical performance and use of the Hawaiian language
. Following the singing portion, the hōike, an exhibition of hula
and song, takes place.
The most recent Song Contest was held on March 18, 2011 and featured songs performed by Aunty Irmgard Farden Aluli. The ninety-second Contest has yet to be announced.
Hawaii
Hawaii is the newest of the 50 U.S. states , and is the only U.S. state made up entirely of islands. It is the northernmost island group in Polynesia, occupying most of an archipelago in the central Pacific Ocean, southwest of the continental United States, southeast of Japan, and northeast of...
and operates three campuses: Kapālama
Kapālama
-History:The name comes from ka pā lama in the Hawaiian language which means "the enclosure of lama wood". "Lama" was the Hawaiian name for endemic ebony trees of genus Diospyros that were used in religious ceremonies....
(Oahu
Oahu
Oahu or Oahu , known as "The Gathering Place", is the third largest of the Hawaiian Islands and most populous of the islands in the U.S. state of Hawaii. The state capital Honolulu is located on the southeast coast...
), Pukalani (Maui
Maui
The island of Maui is the second-largest of the Hawaiian Islands at and is the 17th largest island in the United States. Maui is part of the state of Hawaii and is the largest of Maui County's four islands, bigger than Lānai, Kahoolawe, and Molokai. In 2010, Maui had a population of 144,444,...
), and Keaau (Hawaii island
Hawaii (island)
The Island of Hawaii, also called the Big Island or Hawaii Island , is a volcanic island in the North Pacific Ocean...
). Kamehameha serves over 6,500 students from preschool through the twelfth grade
Twelfth grade
Twelfth grade or Senior year, or Grade Twelve, are the North American names for the final year of secondary school. In most countries students then graduate at age 17 or 18. In some countries, there is a thirteenth grade, while other countries do not have a 12th grade/year at all...
. Kamehameha was established in 1887 under the terms of the will of Bernice Pauahi Bishop
Bernice Pauahi Bishop
Bernice Pauahi Bishop , born Bernice Pauahi Pākī, was a Hawaiian princess, philanthropist, alii, and direct descendant of the royal House of Kamehameha. She was the great-granddaughter of King Kamehameha I and last surviving heir...
, a direct descendant of King Kamehameha the Great
Kamehameha I
Kamehameha I , also known as Kamehameha the Great, conquered the Hawaiian Islands and formally established the Kingdom of Hawaii in 1810. By developing alliances with the major Pacific colonial powers, Kamehameha preserved Hawaii's independence under his rule...
and last living member of the House of Kamehameha
House of Kamehameha
The House of Kamehameha , or the Kamehameha Dynasty, was the reigning family of the Kingdom of Hawaii between the unification of the islands by Kamehameha I in 1810 and the death of Kamehameha V in 1872...
. Bishop's will established a trust called the "Bernice Pauahi Bishop Estate" that is Hawaii's largest private landowner.
The schools' controversial admissions policy prefers applicants with Native Hawaiian ancestry and has excluded all but two non-Hawaiians from attending since 1965. A lawsuit challenging the school's admission policy resulted in a narrow victory for Kamehameha in the Ninth Circuit Court; however, Kamehameha ultimately settled, paying the plaintiff $7 million.
History
In 1883, Princess Bernice Pauahi Bishop directed that the remainder of her estate, mostly inherited from her cousin Princess Ruth KeelikōlaniKeelikolani
Princess Ruth Luka Keanolani Kauanahoahoa Keelikōlani , was a member of the Kamehameha family, the founding dynasty of the Kingdom of Hawaii. She served as Royal Governor of the Island of Hawaii. As primary heir to the Kamehameha family, Ruth became a landholder of what would become the Bernice...
, be held in trust "to erect and maintain in the Hawaiian Islands two schools... one for boys and one girls, to be known as and called the Kamehameha Schools." She named five trustees to invest her estate at their discretion, use the income to operate the schools, and also:
...to devote a portion of each year's income to the support and education of orphans, and others in indigent circumstances, giving the preference to Hawaiians of pure or part aboriginal blood.
She also directed the Hawaii Supreme Court to appoint replacement trustees and all teachers be Protestant, without regard to denomination.
After Bishop's death in 1884, her husband Charles Reed Bishop
Charles Reed Bishop
Charles Reed Bishop was a businessman and philanthropist in Hawaii.Born in Glens Falls, New York, he sailed to Hawaii in 1846 at the age of 24, and made his home there. Bishop was one of the first trustees of and a major donor to the Kamehameha Schools in Hawaii...
carried out her will
Will (law)
A will or testament is a legal declaration by which a person, the testator, names one or more persons to manage his/her estate and provides for the transfer of his/her property at death...
. Reverend William Brewster Oleson (1851–1915), former principal of the Hilo boarding school founded by David Belden Lyman
David Belden Lyman
David Belden Lyman was an early American missionary to Hawaii who opened a boarding school for Hawaiians. His wife Sarah Joiner Lyman taught at the boarding school and kept an important journal. They had several notable descendants.-Family life:David Belden Lyman was born in on July 28, 1803 in...
in 1836, helped organize the schools on a similar model.
The original Kamehameha School for Boys opened in 1887 on a site currently occupied by Bishop Museum
Bishop Museum
The Bishop Museum , is a museum of history and science in the historic Kalihi district of Honolulu on the Hawaiian island of O'ahu...
. The girls' school opened in 1894 nearby. By 1955 both schools moved to a 590 acres (2.4 km²) headquarters in Kapālama Heights
Kapālama
-History:The name comes from ka pā lama in the Hawaiian language which means "the enclosure of lama wood". "Lama" was the Hawaiian name for endemic ebony trees of genus Diospyros that were used in religious ceremonies....
.
Controversy
In 1991, The Equal Employment Opportunity CommissionEqual Employment Opportunity Commission
The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission is an independent federal law enforcement agency that enforces laws against workplace discrimination. The EEOC investigates discrimination complaints based on an individual's race, color, national origin, religion, sex, age, perceived intelligence,...
(EEOC) brought suit against Kamehameha Schools alleging that its requirement that all teachers be Protestant was religious discrimination in violation of the Civil Rights Act of 1964
Civil Rights Act of 1964
The Civil Rights Act of 1964 was a landmark piece of legislation in the United States that outlawed major forms of discrimination against African Americans and women, including racial segregation...
. Although Kamehameha Schools conceded the practice was discriminatory, the School maintained that it was bound by the provisions of Bernice Pauahi Bishop's will which established the charitable trust creating the School as well as mandating that all the teachers "be persons of the Protestant religion." Accordingly, the School sought to fall within one of the applicable exemptions to the Civil Rights Act. The United States District Court for the District of Hawaii
United States District Court for the District of Hawaii
The United States District Court for the District of Hawaii is the principal trial court of the United States Federal Court System in the state of Hawaii. It is located at the Prince Kuhio Federal Building in downtown Honolulu, fronting the Aloha Tower and Honolulu Harbor. The court hears both...
found in the School's favor ruling that the religious education exemption, the religious curriculum exemption and the bona fide occupational qualification exemption were each applicable to Kamehameha Schools. The United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit
United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit
The United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit is a U.S. federal court with appellate jurisdiction over the district courts in the following districts:* District of Alaska* District of Arizona...
reversed the decision of the District Court holding that none of the exemptions to the Civil Rights Act were applicable since the School was essentially a secular and not primarily a religious institution despite certain historical traditions that included Protestantism. As a result, the requirement that all teachers be Protestant was held to be a violation of the Civil Rights Act.
Reorganization
According to the will, the Hawaii State Supreme Court appointed trustees. However, many trustees were political insiders, and by 1997 trustees were paid $800,000 to $900,000 annually.At that time, critics alleged that the trustees were micromanaging the schools. Trustees were appointed "lead trustee" of a particular part of estate operations. In particular, Lokelani Lindsey, lead trustee for educational affairs, was blamed for low morale among students and faculty.
On August 9, 1997, University of Hawaii
University of Hawaii
The University of Hawaii System, formally the University of Hawaii and popularly known as UH, is a public, co-educational college and university system that confers associate, bachelor, master, and doctoral degrees through three university campuses, seven community college campuses, an employment...
(UH) Board of Regents Chair (and former Kamehameha Schools Principal) Gladys Brandt, retired judge Walter Heen, Msgr. Charles Kekumano
Charles Kekumano
-Life:Charles Kekumano was born in 1919 in Kona on the island of Hawai‘i. Educated at Saint Louis High School in Honolulu, he studied for the priesthood and was ordained for the Diocese of Honolulu. He earned a doctorate in Canon law from The Catholic University of America in Washington, D.C...
, federal judge Samuel Pailthorpe King
Samuel Pailthorpe King
Samuel Pailthorpe King was an American lawyer and judge. Since 1972 he served as judge on the United States District Court for the District of Hawaii.-Life:...
, and UH professor Randall Roth published a report titled "Broken Trust" in the Honolulu Star Bulletin which, among other things, called on the State Attorney General to fully investigate KSBE management. The report alleged, among other things, that:
- the method of selecting trustees (appointment by the Hawaii Supreme Court) was flawed
- the trustees did not fully understand their responsibilities
- the trustees were not accountable for their actions.
On August 12, 1997, Governor Ben Cayetano
Ben Cayetano
Benjamin Jerome "Ben" Cayetano served as the fifth Governor of the State of Hawaii from 1994 to 2002. He is the first Filipino American to serve as a state governor in the United States.- Early years :...
directed Attorney General Margery Bronster
Margery Bronster
Margery S. Bronster is a lawyer who served as Attorney General of Hawaii from 1995 to 1999.-Career:Bronster graduated from Brown University, where she became fluent in Mandarin Chinese, and then Columbia University Law School in 1982. She went into private practice for Shearman & Sterling in New...
to perform a preliminary investigation into the allegations. In her report on September 10, 1997, she found that "the rights of the beneficiaries may be at substantial risk," and that there were "credible allegations that the intent of Bernice Pauahi Bishop is not being implemented."
Another essay appeared in November, with Brandt, UH Professor Isabella Abbott
Isabella Abbott
Isabella Aiona Abbott , was an educator and ethnobotanist from Hawaii.The first native Hawaiian woman to receive a PhD in science,she became the leading expert on Pacific algae.-Early life:...
, respected Hawaiian cultural educator Winona Beamer, and others as authors. Its headline was "Tyranny, distrust, poor decisions reign at Kamehameha".
The investigation continued through 1998, when Bronster sought the permanent removal of Lindsey and fellow trustees Richard Wong and Henry Peters. On May 6, 1999, after a six-month trial, Lindsey was permanently removed as trustee (Lindsey later appealed her removal). A day later, trustees Wong, Peters, and Gerard Jervis were also temporarily removed. The fifth trustee, Oswald Stender, voluntarily resigned. An interim board was appointed by the Hawaii Probate Court to run the estate.
Bronster had been re-appointed by Cayetano who was a Democrat, and since twenty-three of the twenty-five senators were Democrats, some political observers thought approval of Bronster's renomination would be assured. However, the investigation proved costly for Bronster, whose confirmation was defeated by the Hawaii State Senate on April 28, 1999 by a vote of 14-11.
Things finally started to change when the US Internal Revenue Service retroactively revoked Bishop Estate's tax exempt status for the trustees breach of duties and unlawful use of tax exempt charitable trust assets for political lobbying, triggering about $1 billion in back taxes and penalties.
Jervis resigned permanently on August 20, 1999. The trials for permanent removal of the remaining three trustees were set for December 13, 1999. Wong offered his permanent resignation on December 3, 1999; Peters did the same on December 13; and Lindsey voluntarily resigned on December 17. Many of the court files relating to Bishop Estate were ordered sealed citing the need for "closure and healing."
The replacement Bishop Estate trustees continued to use the same attorneys and law firms as their predecessors. Deputy attorneys general tried to explain to the replacement trustees that these attorneys and law firms either provided flawed legal advice or stood by silently while they ignored good advice. Some claimed "there had been no thorough housecleaning; instead, the old guard had been put in charge and handed the keys."
In 2002, the Hawaii Supreme Court threw out the criminal indictments against three Bishop Estate trustees on procedural grounds and ruled no new charges could be brought.
In 2005 two of the authors of the newspaper series published a book about the issues in this investigation.
In 2009, after a large decline in the endowment, trustee compensation ranged from $97,500 to $125,000 per year, and trustees turned down any pay increases.
Campuses and governance
Kamehameha Schools operates three campuses, which together served 5,372 students K-12 in 2008. The main campus, established in 1887 as the Kamehameha Schools for Boys, occupies 600 acres (2.4 km²) on Kapālama Heights and serves 3,196 students, including 550 boarding students from neighbor islands. The MauiMaui
The island of Maui is the second-largest of the Hawaiian Islands at and is the 17th largest island in the United States. Maui is part of the state of Hawaii and is the largest of Maui County's four islands, bigger than Lānai, Kahoolawe, and Molokai. In 2010, Maui had a population of 144,444,...
campus, established in 1996 in Pukalani
Pukalani, Hawaii
Pukalani is a census-designated place in Maui County, Hawaii, United States. The population was 7,380 at the 2000 census. The general volcano-slope region, including nearby Makawao and Kula, is referred to as upcountry by locals, and is one of the four major population centers on Maui, the other...
, serves 1,084 students. The campus on the island of Hawaii
Hawaii (island)
The Island of Hawaii, also called the Big Island or Hawaii Island , is a volcanic island in the North Pacific Ocean...
, established in 2001 in Keaau, serves 1,118 students. In addition to three campuses, Kamehameha Schools operates thirty-two preschools throughout Hawaii. Preschools serve over 1,000 students statewide.
The five-member Board of Trustees of the Estate of Bernice Pauahi Bishop administers the Schools. The 1999 reorganization limited Board micromanagement. A Chief Executive Officer manages day-to-day operations and has autonomy over educational matters.
Bishop's original bequest consisted of 375000 acres (1,517.6 km²) of land worth around $474,000. According to the Broken Trust book introduction, a 1995 Wall Street Journal article described Bishop Estate as "the nation's wealthiest charity," with an endowment estimated at $10 billion - greater than the combined endowments of Harvard and Yale universities. As of June 2008, the endowment was US$9.4 billion, but by the end of the year it was estimated down to $7.7 billion. Approximately 75% of the endowment is in financial assets, and 25% is in real estate; over 365000 acres (1,477.1 km²) remain. However, the book value
Book value
In accounting, book value or carrying value is the value of an asset according to its balance sheet account balance. For assets, the value is based on the original cost of the asset less any depreciation, amortization or Impairment costs made against the asset. Traditionally, a company's book value...
of the land for accounting purposes is probably much lower than fair market value.
When compared against the endowments
Financial endowment
A financial endowment is a transfer of money or property donated to an institution. The total value of an institution's investments is often referred to as the institution's endowment and is typically organized as a public charity, private foundation, or trust....
of major U.S. colleges and universities, only six schools (Harvard University
Harvard University
Harvard University is a private Ivy League university located in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States, established in 1636 by the Massachusetts legislature. Harvard is the oldest institution of higher learning in the United States and the first corporation chartered in the country...
, Yale University
Yale University
Yale University is a private, Ivy League university located in New Haven, Connecticut, United States. Founded in 1701 in the Colony of Connecticut, the university is the third-oldest institution of higher education in the United States...
, Stanford University
Stanford University
The Leland Stanford Junior University, commonly referred to as Stanford University or Stanford, is a private research university on an campus located near Palo Alto, California. It is situated in the northwestern Santa Clara Valley on the San Francisco Peninsula, approximately northwest of San...
, Princeton University
Princeton University
Princeton University is a private research university located in Princeton, New Jersey, United States. The school is one of the eight universities of the Ivy League, and is one of the nine Colonial Colleges founded before the American Revolution....
, University of Texas System
University of Texas System
The University of Texas System encompasses 15 educational institutions in Texas, of which nine are academic universities and six are health institutions. The system is headquartered in Austin and has a total enrollment of over 190,000 students...
, and Massachusetts Institute of Technology
Massachusetts Institute of Technology
The Massachusetts Institute of Technology is a private research university located in Cambridge, Massachusetts. MIT has five schools and one college, containing a total of 32 academic departments, with a strong emphasis on scientific and technological education and research.Founded in 1861 in...
), each with much higher enrollments, have higher endowments than Kamehameha Schools.
Admissions policy
In accordance with a century-old interpretation of the will of Bernice Pauahi Bishop, the Kamehameha Schools prefers applicants of Native Hawaiian descent "to the extent permitted by law." Orphans and indigents get special consideration. Preference applicants must submit evidence verifying that at least one of their pre-1959 ancestors is Hawaiian.Admissions policy has been a subject of controversy. Because far more applicants claim Hawaiian ancestry than the schools can admit, virtually all students have some Hawaiian blood. Non-Hawaiians have attended, but this is extremely rare. In 2002, Kamehameha admitted one non-Hawaiian student, Kalani Rosell, to its Maui campus, for the first time in 40 years. Rosell was admitted after all qualified Hawaiian applicants had been admitted. This decision sparked alumni protest.
Kamehameha's admissions policy was the focus of two federal lawsuits. They contended that preferring Native Hawaiians is a race-based exclusion that violates U.S. civil rights law. Both lawsuits have since settled.
Mohica-Cummings lawsuit
The plaintiff in one suit, filed by attorney John Goemans in August 2003, was Brayden Gay Mohica-Cummings, a seventh-grader admitted to Kapālama Heights after his mother, who had been adopted by a Hawaiian family, said he was Hawaiian. The school rescinded its offer when his mother was unable to document his ancestry. Because Kamehameha rescinded the offer only a week before the school year started, District Judge David Ezra issued a temporary restraining order requiring Kamehameha to admit Mohica-Cummings. The case was settled out-of-court in November 2003, when Kamehameha Schools agreed to let Mohica-Cummings attend, in exchange for dropping the lawsuit.John Doe v. Kamehameha
Another lawsuit, filed by Goemans in June 2003 on behalf of an unidentified non-Hawaiian student, claimed that preferring Hawaiian applicants violates a federal statute prohibiting racial discrimination in private contracts. In November, District Judge Alan Cooke KayAlan Cooke Kay
Alan Cooke Kay is an American lawyer and judge. He serves as judge on the United States District Court for the District of Hawaii.-Life:...
dismissed the lawsuit, finding that Kamehameha Schools' policy served a "legitimate, remedial purpose by improving native Hawaiians' socioeconomic and educational disadvantages".
In August 2005, however, a three-judge panel of the 9th Circuit of Appeals reversed 2–1, ruling the policy racially exclusionary. A protest march to Iolani Palace and rally on the palace grounds attracted an estimated 10–15,000 participants, including Hawaii's governor and lieutenant governor.
The Ninth Circuit agreed to rehear the appeal before a 15-judge en banc
En banc
En banc, in banc, in banco or in bank is a French term used to refer to the hearing of a legal case where all judges of a court will hear the case , rather than a panel of them. It is often used for unusually complex cases or cases considered to be of greater importance...
panel in February 2006. On December 5, 2006, by a vote of 8–7, the en banc panel reversed the earlier decision by the three-judge panel, affirming Kay's ruling.
The majority ruled that Kamehameha's policy does not run afoul of a civil rights law, citing what it said were unique factors in the history of Hawaii, the plight of Native Hawaiians and the schools' distinctively remedial mission, which Congress has repeatedly endorsed. The dissent stated that civil rights law "prohibits a private school from denying admission to prospective students because of their race", and was very skeptical of the majority interpretation, stating, "The fact that Congress has passed some measures promoting Native Hawaiian education says nothing about whether Congress intended to exempt Native Hawaiian schools from § 1981 [civil rights law]".
Following the decision, attorneys appealed to the United States Supreme Court. However, before the Supreme Court decided whether to hear the case, Doe v. Kamehameha was also settled. Both this settlement and the Ninth Circuit's decision prompted a procession at the Kapalama High School, leading to an all-school assembly. On February 8, 2008, Goemans disclosed that the amount of the settlement was $7 million USD.
On August 6, 2008, Kamehameha announced that it had sued John Doe for releasing the settlement amount. On the same day, John Doe's attorneys, Eric Grant and David Rosen, filed another lawsuit against Kamehameha on behalf of four non-Hawaiian children who wanted to attend the school.
Hawaiian studies
As the only private school to prefer Native Hawaiian students, Kamehameha emphasizes Hawaiian language and culture. The Kapālama High School offers a six-year program in Hawaiian languageHawaiian language
The Hawaiian language is a Polynesian language that takes its name from Hawaii, the largest island in the tropical North Pacific archipelago where it developed. Hawaiian, along with English, is an official language of the state of Hawaii...
and various supplementary courses in Hawaiian literature, culture, history, song composition and performance, chant, and dance
Hula
Hula is a dance form accompanied by chant or song . It was developed in the Hawaiian Islands by the Polynesians who originally settled there. The hula dramatizes or portrays the words of the oli or mele in a visual dance form....
.
Kamehameha offers a distance learning program for learning Hawaiian culture over the Internet. The program includes a series of instructional videos entitled Kulāiwi for learning the Hawaiian language that are available for free online streaming.
Kamehameha Schools operates Kamehameha Publishing, which prints and sells Hawaiian books, posters, and multimedia.
Song Contest
Kamehameha Schools Kapālama holds the annual Kamehameha Schools Song ContestKamehameha Schools Song Contest
The Kamehameha Schools Song Contest is an annual choral music competition between the grades 9-12 graduating classes of the Kamehameha Schools Kapālama Campus. The contest is televised live throughout the state of Hawaii on KGMB. It is also webcast live on the school's website and has previously...
, in which each graduating class participates as a graduation requirement by singing Hawaiian songs
Music of Hawaii
The music of Hawaii includes an array of traditional and popular styles, ranging from native Hawaiian folk music to modern rock and hip hop. Hawaii's musical contributions to the music of the United States are out of proportion to the state's small size. Styles like slack-key guitar are well-known...
. Each class sings a coed song, and students in grades 10-12 sing a men's and women's song. Five judges evaluate the musical performance and use of the Hawaiian language
Hawaiian language
The Hawaiian language is a Polynesian language that takes its name from Hawaii, the largest island in the tropical North Pacific archipelago where it developed. Hawaiian, along with English, is an official language of the state of Hawaii...
. Following the singing portion, the hōike, an exhibition of hula
Hula
Hula is a dance form accompanied by chant or song . It was developed in the Hawaiian Islands by the Polynesians who originally settled there. The hula dramatizes or portrays the words of the oli or mele in a visual dance form....
and song, takes place.
The most recent Song Contest was held on March 18, 2011 and featured songs performed by Aunty Irmgard Farden Aluli. The ninety-second Contest has yet to be announced.
Notable alumni
- Duke KahanamokuDuke KahanamokuDuke Paoa Kahinu Mokoe Hulikohola Kahanamoku was a Hawaiian swimmer, actor, lawman, early beach volleyball player and businessman credited with spreading the sport of surfing. He was a five-time Olympic medalist in swimming.-Early years:The name "Duke" is not a title, but a given name...
- Class of 1910, Olympic swimmerSwimming at the Summer OlympicsSwimming has been a sport at every modern Summer Olympics. It has been open to women since 1912. Along with track & field athletics and gymnastics it is one of the most popular spectator sports at the Games and the one with the largest number of events.... - Isabella AbbottIsabella AbbottIsabella Aiona Abbott , was an educator and ethnobotanist from Hawaii.The first native Hawaiian woman to receive a PhD in science,she became the leading expert on Pacific algae.-Early life:...
Class of 1937, authority on Central Pacific Algae and Hawaiian Plants - Daniel K. Akaka - Class of 1942, United States Senator from HawaiiHawaiiHawaii is the newest of the 50 U.S. states , and is the only U.S. state made up entirely of islands. It is the northernmost island group in Polynesia, occupying most of an archipelago in the central Pacific Ocean, southwest of the continental United States, southeast of Japan, and northeast of...
(1990- ) - Don HoDon HoDonald Tai Loy "Don" Ho was a Hawaiian and traditional pop musician, singer and entertainer.-Life and career:Ho, of Chinese, Hawaiian, Portuguese, Dutch, and German descent, was born in the small Honolulu neighborhood of Kakaako, but he grew up in Kāneohe on the windward side of the island of Oahu...
- Class of 1949, musician and entertainer - David CooperDavid CooperDavid Cooper may refer to:*Dave Cooper , Canadian cartoonist, commercial illustrator and graphic designer*Dave Cooper , 1980s English heavy-metal musician...
- Retired Brigadier GeneralBrigadier GeneralBrigadier general is a senior rank in the armed forces. It is the lowest ranking general officer in some countries, usually sitting between the ranks of colonel and major general. When appointed to a field command, a brigadier general is typically in command of a brigade consisting of around 4,000...
, President of Pacific American Foundation - Brian ChingBrian ChingBrian Ching is an American professional soccer forward currently playing for the Montreal Impact of Major League Soccer.-Youth and College:...
- Class of 1996, professional Major League SoccerMajor League SoccerMajor League Soccer is a professional soccer league based in the United States and sanctioned by the United States Soccer Federation . The league is composed of 19 teams — 16 in the U.S. and 3 in Canada...
player - Makoa FreitasMakoa FreitasRockne Makoa Freitas is an American football offensive lineman. His father is Rocky Freitas....
- Professional American footballAmerican footballAmerican football is a sport played between two teams of eleven with the objective of scoring points by advancing the ball into the opposing team's end zone. Known in the United States simply as football, it may also be referred to informally as gridiron football. The ball can be advanced by...
player for Indianapolis ColtsIndianapolis ColtsThe Indianapolis Colts are a professional American football team based in Indianapolis. They are currently members of the South Division of the American Football Conference in the National Football League .... - Blane GaisonBlane GaisonBlane Keith Gaison is a former professional American football player. He played four seasons in the National Football League, with the Atlanta Falcons . As a defensiveback he was primarily a cornerback....
- Professional American footballAmerican footballAmerican football is a sport played between two teams of eleven with the objective of scoring points by advancing the ball into the opposing team's end zone. Known in the United States simply as football, it may also be referred to informally as gridiron football. The ball can be advanced by...
player for Atlanta FalconsAtlanta FalconsThe Atlanta Falcons are a professional American football team based in Atlanta, Georgia. They are a member of the South Division of the National Football Conference in the National Football League...
(1981–1985) - Brickwood GaluteriaBrickwood GaluteriaBrickwood M. Galuteria, born in Honolulu, Hawaii in 1955, is the Hawaii State Senator representing District 12, encompassing the diverse communities of Waikiki, Ala Moana, Kaka'ako, Downtown, Chinatown, and Kalihi Palama. He was elected to office in the 2008 general election...
- Class of 1973, Hawaii State Senator - Clayton HeeClayton HeeClayton H. W. Hee is a Democratic Party member of the Hawaii Senate, representing the 23rd District since 2004. Hee serves as chairman of the state Senate's Higher Education Committee....
- Class of 1971, Hawaii State Senator - Radasha Ho'ohuliRadasha Ho'ohuliRadasha Leialoha Hoohuli is a beauty queen from Nanakuli, Hawaii who has competed in the Miss USA pageant.Hoohuli won the Miss Hawaii USA 2006 title in a state pageant held in late 2005. She is no stranger to pageants, having competed in the Miss Hawaii system for Miss America, and represented...
- Miss Hawaii USAMiss Hawaii USAThe Miss Hawaii USA competition is the pageant that selects the representative for the state of Hawaii in the Miss USA pageant.Hawaii is the most recent state to start competing at Miss USA, as it first competed in 1962. Prior to this delegates were sent to Miss Universe...
2006 - Kelly HuKelly HuKelly Ann Hu is an American actress and former fashion model. She was Miss Teen USA 1985 and Miss Hawaii USA 1993.-Early life:Hu was born in Honolulu, Hawaii, the daughter of Juanita, an engineering drafter for Honolulu, and Herbert Hu, a salesman and exotic bird breeder; the two divorced during...
- Actress - David HughesDavid Hughes (American football)David Augustus Hughes III is a former professional American football player from Kailua. He played six seasons in the National Football League, the first five with the Seattle Seahawks and the final one with the Pittsburgh Steelers...
- National Football LeagueNational Football LeagueThe National Football League is the highest level of professional American football in the United States, and is considered the top professional American football league in the world. It was formed by eleven teams in 1920 as the American Professional Football Association, with the league changing...
running backRunning backA running back is a gridiron football position, who is typically lined up in the offensive backfield. The primary roles of a running back are to receive handoffs from the quarterback for a rushing play, to catch passes from out of the backfield, and to block.There are usually one or two running...
for the Seattle SeahawksSeattle SeahawksThe Seattle Seahawks are a professional American football team based in Seattle, Washington. They are currently members of the Western Division of the National Football Conference in the National Football League . The team joined the NFL in 1976 as an expansion team...
and Pittsburgh SteelersPittsburgh SteelersThe Pittsburgh Steelers are a professional football team based in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. The team currently belongs to the North Division of the American Football Conference in the National Football League . Founded in , the Steelers are the oldest franchise in the AFC...
(1981–86) - Brook Mahealani Lee - Miss Hawaii USA 1997, Miss USAMiss USAThe Miss USA beauty contest has been held annually since 1952 to select the United States entrant in the Miss Universe pageant. The Miss Universe Organization operates both pageants, as well as Miss Teen USA...
1997 and Miss UniverseMiss UniverseMiss Universe is an annual international beauty contest that is run by the Miss Universe Organization. The pageant is the most publicized beauty contest in the world with 600 million viewers....
1997 - Dee Jay MailerDee Jay MailerDee Jay Mailer is the Chief Executive Officer of Kamehameha Schools. She was appointed on January 19, 2004, and now focuses her energies on educating children of Hawaiian ancestry...
- Class of 1970, CEO of Kamehameha Schools - Bronson SardinhaBronson SardinhaBronson Kiheimahanaomauiakeo Sardinha is a Major League Baseball outfielder.-Career:Sardinha was drafted directly out of Kamehameha High School in the 1st round of the 2001 Major League Baseball Draft...
- Professional MLB outfielder - Haunani-Kay TraskHaunani-Kay TraskHaunani-Kay Trask is a Native Hawaiian academic, activist, documentarist and writer. Trask is a professor of Hawaiian Studies with the Kamakakuokalani Center for Hawaiian Studies at the University of Hawaii at Manoa and has represented Native Hawaiians in the United Nations and various other...
- Class of 1967, Hawaiian activist - Mililani TraskMililani TraskMililani Trask is a leader of the Hawaiian sovereignty movement and a political speaker and attorney. One of Trask's contributions to the Hawaiian sovereignty movement was her founding of Na Koa Ikaika o Ka Lāhui Hawaii, a native Hawaiian non-governmental organization.Outside of Hawaii, Trask has...
- Class of 1969, Hawaiian activist
See also
- Kamehameha Schools Hawaii CampusKamehameha Schools Hawaii CampusThe Kamehameha Schools Hawaii Campus consists of an elementary, middle and high school operated by Kamehameha Schools on the island of Hawaii.- History :...
- Kamehameha Schools Song ContestKamehameha Schools Song ContestThe Kamehameha Schools Song Contest is an annual choral music competition between the grades 9-12 graduating classes of the Kamehameha Schools Kapālama Campus. The contest is televised live throughout the state of Hawaii on KGMB. It is also webcast live on the school's website and has previously...
- Waipa FoundationWaipa FoundationThe Waipa Foundation is a non-profit organization which sponsors a program called Aina Ulu , funded by Kamehameha Schools.-The program:...