HAWAI'INUIAKEA
SCHOOL OF HAWAIIAN KNOWLEDGE

Administration

General Information

Centers and Programs

Advising

Undergraduate Programs

Graduate Programs

Kawaihuelani Center for Hawaiian Language

Kamakakuokalani Center for Hawaiian Studies

Ka Papa Lo‘i o Kanewai

Kamakakuokalani Center for Hawaiian Studies

Kamakakuokalani 209A
2645 Dole Street
Honolulu, HI 96822
Tel: (808) 973-0989
Fax: (808) 973-0988
Email: chsuhm@hawaii.edu
Web: manoa.hawaii.edu/hshk/

Faculty

*C. L. Andrade, PhD (Director)—traditional navigation, Malama ‘Aina: traditional resource management, indigenous geography, Hawaiian music
M. Ka‘iama, MAcc (Director, Kaulele)—Hawaiian business, nation building and economies, accounting
*I. M. Andrade, MFA (Graduate Chair)—Native Hawaiian visual culture, customary practices and contemporary arts, museum studies
A. Drexel, MFA—Native Hawaiian visual culture, customary practices and contemporary arts, history, mythology, land tenure
A. Freitas, MURP—Innovative educational initiatives that support Kamakakûokalani in the areas of student support services, program development and strategic planning, grant writing, faculty/staff development, assessment and evaluation
R. P. H. Ka‘aloa, MEd—educational technology, distance education, Indigenous education
*L. Kame‘eleihiwa, PhD—Hawaiian mythology, history, land tenure, literature, traditional navigation
P. Kauila, MA—Hawaiian history and information resources, traditional Hawaiian talk story education, performing artist
L. O. M. A. Keawe, PhD—comparative politics, indigenous studies; political “myths”, rhetorical tropes-and “imaging”, body politics of Kanaka Maoli identity and culture; educational administration, leadership, and mentoring
M. Naukana-Gilding, MLS—Hawaiian genealogies, Hawaiian information resources
L. Ohai, MA—La‘au Lapa‘au: Hawaiian medicinal herbs, horticulture
*J. Osorio, PhD—politics of identity in the Hawaiian kingdom, colonization in the Pacific
*W. K. Perry, JD—comparative politics, Hawaiian law
H. Trask, PhD—native political movements in Hawai‘i and the Pacific, literature and politics of Pacific island women, Hawaiian history and politics, third world and indigenous history and politics

Degree Offered: BA in Hawaiian studies, MA in Hawaiian studies

The Academic Program

Kamakakuokalani Center for Hawaiian Studies (HWST) recognizes its kuleana to nurture and educate community leaders, teachers, and scholars who will lead Hawai‘i into the future. Kamakakuokalani offers bachelor’s and master’s degrees that reflect the breadth and interdisciplinary nature of Hawaiian knowledge. In the past, our BA graduates have gone on to earn advanced degrees in anthropology, art, botany, business, communications, counseling, education, engineering, English, geography, law, linguistics, medicine, music, ocean science, Pacific Islands studies, political science, psychology, social work, theater, and urban and regional planning.

In Fall 2005, we inaugurated our master of arts program, allowing students to pursue their interests while deepening their scholarly abilities. The master of arts degree builds on the BA program concentrations. It addresses crucial issues such as sustainable economic development, training students in land and resource management that is consistent with the geography and history of Hawai‘i, indigenous pedagogy and epistemology, and creating the political, economic, and governmental infrastructure for a Hawaiian nation. The MA also provides professionals in government, law, criminal justice, education, social work, and various health fields, the specialized knowledge in Hawaiian history and culture needed to adequately serve the community.

Our BA and MA programs consist of five areas of concentration:

1. Halau o Laka: Native Hawaiian Visual Culture
2. Kukulu Aupuni: Envisioning the Nation
3. Kumu Kahiki: Comparative Polynesian and Indigenous Studies
4. Malama ‘Aina: Hawaiian Perspectives on Resource Management
5. Mo‘olelo ‘Oiwi: Native History and Literature

Undergraduate Study

Bachelor’s Degree

Students design their program around a selected area of concentration. Third-year fluency in Hawaiian language is required, as well as familiarity with Hawaiian literature, culture, politics, and economics. The Native Hawaiian view is emphasized in the major.

Major Requirements

Completion of 124 credit hours, including the General Education Requirements (see “Manoa General Education Core and Graduation Requirements” section for more information) and the following program requirements:

• GPA of 2.0 in all UH Manoa registered credit hours.
• A GPA of 3.0 in all courses for the major.
• Total of 35 credit hours
• 23 credit hours in the following required courses:
  • HAW 301 and 302
  • HWST 207 or 281 or 285 or 351
  • HWST 270, 341, and 342
  • HWST 343 or 390 or 490
  • HWST 478 or MUS 312 or MUS 412 or MUS 478
• 12 credit hours of approved courses in one of these concentrations:
  • Halau o Laka: Native Hawaiian Visual Culture
  • Kûkulu Aupuni: Envisioning the Nation
  • Kumu Kahiki: Comparative Polynesian and Indigenous Studies
  • Malama ‘Aina: Hawaiian Perspectives on Resource Management
  • Mo‘olelo ‘Oiwi: Native History and Literature
• Third-year fluency in Hawaiian

Before beginning work on the major, students should have completed HAW 101, 102, 201, and 202; HWST 107; and BOT 105. Specific programs should be determined through consultation with program advisors. Majors should be interviewed by the advisor by the end of the sophomore year.

Students admitted to the BA program prior to 2007 should consult an advisor to review changes that may affect their programs.

Graduate Study

Master’s Degree

The MA in Hawaiian Studies features an interdisciplinary curriculum that draws from faculty strengths in indigenous traditions as well as western academic fields. Examples of faculty expertise in native customary practices are oli, music, fiber arts, voyaging, and navigation. Our faculty members’ expertise also covers a wide spectrum of western academic fields that include poetry, history, geography, Hawaiian visual culture, education, and natural sciences.

The graduate chair offers continuous administrative assistance and academic advising as needed. Academic benchmarks include but are not limited to: development of critical thinking and analytical skills; theoretical foundations for interdisciplinary studies; grounding in and application of native practices particular to individual interest.

Prerequisites

The following are prerequisite courses for applicants who are not BA degree recipients of Kamakakuokalani Center for Hawaiian Studies. Students taking these prerequisites may enroll concurrently in graduate level Hawaiian studies courses with consent of instructor. Significant contexts for analysis and critical thinking are based in the measurable teaching objectives and learning outcomes of these courses. They represent the educational foundations of our field:

• HWST 107 Hawai‘i: Center of the Pacific
• HWST 270 Hawaiian Mythology
• HWST 341 Hawaiian Genealogies
• HWST 342 Chiefs of Post-Contact Hawai‘i

And one of the following to complete the 15 credits of course prerequisites:

• HWST 343 Myths of Hawaiian History
• HWST 390 Issues in Modern Hawai‘i
• HWST 490 Senior Seminar in Hawaiian Studies

Applicants to the MA program also must have completed HAW 302 or equivalent at the time of entry. All MA students will have completed up to the fourth level (HAW 402) of Hawaiian language by the time they graduate.

Core Classes

There are four core classes that all MA students are required to take. They form the foundation of the MA program:

• HWST 601 Indigenous Research Methodologies
• HWST 602 Advanced Archival Research
• HWST 603 Review of Hawaiian Literature
• HWST 604 Writing a Hawaiian Thesis

Areas of Concentration

Hawaiian studies MA candidates will choose two of the five areas of concentration to focus their research on. Candidates will be required to integrate the two areas of concentration in a single thesis (Plan A) or non-thesis project (Plan B). Areas of concentration are:

• Halau o Laka: Native Hawaiian Visual Culture
• Kukulu Aupuni: Envisioning the Nation
• Kumu Kahiki: Comparative Polynesian and Indigenous Studies
• Malama ‘Aina: Hawaiian Perspectives on Resource Management
• Mo‘olelo ‘Oiwi: Native History and Literature

Admission Requirements

1. Satisfactory completion of HAW 302 or equivalent.
2. Online application to UH Manoa Graduate Division at www.hawaii.edu/graduate.
3. Complete Hawaiian studies Graduate Education Application Information Form available at the Kamakakuokalani Center for Hawaiian Studies office in Room 209A.
4. Three letters of recommendation. Two from applicant’s former professors and one from a Hawaiian studies faculty member with whom the applicant has consulted during preadmission advising.
5. Writing sample: a five to ten page research paper done for a class (any course, any topic) which you received a grade and credit as an undergraduate. In lieu of such a document, applicants may write an original essay five to ten pages in length as an overview that conveys the nature of the applicant’s major field of study.
6. A two page statement of intent describing the applicant’s proposed thesis topic and its basic relationship to the interdisciplinary field of Hawaiian studies.
7. Submit the above mentioned documents as enclosures with a cover letter from you to the Graduate Chair at Kamakakuokalani Center for Hawaiian Studies, 2645 Dole Street, Honolulu, HI 96822.

HAW Courses
HWST Courses