Today Namahana School announced a $1 million gift from an anonymous donor couple, catapulting it into the final stretch of a major capital campaign to build middle school facilities on its 11.3-acre site in Kīlauea. With the public charter school’s first cohort of seventh and eighth graders already enrolled for the 2025-2026 academic year and campus construction slated to begin as soon as permits finalize, the seven-figure donation pushes Namahana’s fundraising progress to $7.5 million, or three-quarters of the $10 million goal needed to complete its middle school.

On April 12th 2025, Namahana hosted its very first signing day. Over 100 of the inaugural 7th and 8th graders starting school with us this August were joined by their 'ohana to receive a ti leaf lei from our School Leader Dr. Kapua Chandler and officially sign their enrollment with a koa pen.

With opening day just around the corner, Namahana School welcomed its founding families at an official “Signing Day” event on Saturday, April 12. Throughout the morning, the charter school’s future seventh and eighth graders, together with their parents and siblings, visited the temporary Kula campus where the school will open its doors in August.

Mahalo to “The Garden Island” and “Kaua’i Now News” for their recent coverage of Namahana School’s signing day. Both pieces do a great job of not only showcasing the event, but also the long road that led to the day, as well as the effort that needs to be done as we work towards welcoming Namahana’s first students in August and beginning construction on the permanent campus. 

Mahalo to Zach Arreola, the designer behind our latest logo iteration featured on the recent round of Namahana t-shirts and other gear. For the design, he expertly weaved together the Namahana mountain range and its two highest peaks with the school’s core values: aloha ʻāina, aloha kanaka, and aloha i ke ao. 

Thank you for the great work and support, Zach! 

Namahana Education Foundation welcomes Kevin Newburg to the Board. A dynamic and visionary leader, he has a talent for innovation and strategic growth, and thrives on turning ideas into impactful realities. As a Co-Founder & Managing Partner of JuneShine, Mana Companies Asset Management, and Hale Real Estate Partners, the Board is grateful for his skills and energy. 

Welcome, Kevin!

As one of the six pillars of Big Picture Learning (Namahana’s academic framework), we embrace Hānai (eating healthy) as a key component to teaching both academically successful and healthy students. With this goal in mind, Namahana leadership is engaging with Thyme Culinary Market, owned and operated by Paulina Barsotti, to kickstart Namahana’s locally-sourced lunch program.

In preparation for the upcoming school year, hiring continues at Namahana School.  Six Kumu and one Special Education Kumu have been hired. Leadership continues to actively hire for the following positions…

Mahalo nui to all the prospective students and ʻohana who joined us for this productive day. At the open house, we explored a lot of great questions, and we’ve compiled some of the more frequently asked ones on our website here. Check them out for more insight into the school, its operations, and its learning model. 

Last week Andrew Vastola, owner of Mauka View, generously donated time and resources to welcome students to his studio and do a few recordings for Namahana School…

Enrollment for the 7th and 8th grades for the 2025-2026 school year closed on Tuesday, March 25th.  All 124 students who applied and live in Hawaiʻi have been offered a seat at Namahana School!  

This month, we’re proud to welcome the newest member of the Namahana School Governing Board, André N. Lister. With a robust history in wealth management and accounting, André brings valuable experience to our Finance Committee. Welcome, André!

The next time you’re in Kīlauea, check out the new sign marking the location of the permanent Namahana School campus…

Thank you to the Zietz ʻOhana, Pinetrees Longboard Classic, and the Hawaiʻi Surf Association for allowing Namahana School to have a presence at this year’s event.

Namahana Education Foundation is proud to present our 2024 Annual Impact Report.

Walter and Marcia Kortschak have made a $250,000 gift to Namahana School, which can be renewed annually for four years for a total $1 million. Continue reading their inspiring journey, and hear why Namahana’s emphasis on relevant, real-world problem-solving that improves communities both locally and globally is important.

Enrollment for 7th and 8th grades for the 2025-2026 school year will launch this Saturday, January 25th, and will close on Tuesday, March 25th. Once enrollment is live on our website, we will share additional information and application links via an email, the news section on our site, and our Instagram. Please stay tuned for updates.  

Hiring at Namahana is in full swing, as we prepare for our first classes this August! We are actively seeking teachers for the 2025-26 school year, and are also hiring for Office Manager, Student Support Coordinator, and Educational Assistant. 

We invite prospective parents to mark their calendars for February 23rd, as we are currently planning an optional open house at the Kula site.

Support Namahana Educational Foundation on February 15 by attending the Jake Shimabukuro center at Anaina Hou’s Porter Pavilion. $2 from every ticket sold will go right to Namahana!