August 1, 2003 was my first day on the job as Executive Director of the Harold K.L. Castle Foundation. I wanted to start by properly grounding myself in this place, so on my lunch hour I went to the area just below Ulupō Heiau in Kailua, just behind the Windward YMCA, looking for Doc Burrows. […]
Windward Community College Enrollment
Nestled at the base of the Ko’olau mountain range lies the emerald campus of Windward Community College. Celebrating its 50th birthday, this institution serves as the gateway to higher education for residents of Ko’olauloa and Ko’olaupoko. Early in the pandemic, though, troublingly low student enrollment rates plummeted even further. We sought to meet the challenge […]
Aloha Ko’olau: Fostering Pilina in Windward O’ahu Communities
While we look ahead to the relaunch of the Pilina Fund Grant to build community resiliency in Windward Oʻahu, it seems an appropriate time to look back and celebrate the good work achieved by committed groups throughout the region during the first-year pilot of the fund. The Castle Foundation, like many other similar organizations, grappled […]
Koʻolau Pilina Fund Now Accepting Applications
The Harold K.L. Castle Foundation is excited to announce that the Ko‘olau Pilina Fund has reopened for applications. Now in itʻs second year, the fund prioritizes projects specifically tailored to Ko‘olau communities on Oʻahu from Kahuku to Makapuʻu. The purpose of the Koʻolau Pilina Fund (the fund) is to build community resilience in the Koʻolau […]
Strengthening the Koʻolau Hawaiian-focused Charter School ʻĀina Hui
(Guest commentary by Alice J. Kawakami and Chelsea N. K. Keehne) Since 2018, Koʻolaupoko Hawaiian-focused Charter Schools (HFCS) and ʻāina partners have cultivated pilina between students and ʻāina, with support from the Harold K.L. Castle Foundation and Kamehameha Schools. Our schools (Ke Kula o Samuel M. Kamakau, Malama Honua PCS, and Hakipuʻu Academy) and ʻāina […]