The Hanahauʻoli School Professional Development Center (PDC), in partnership with the UH Mānoa College of Education (UHM COE), launched an eight-year joint initiative to advance social justice education in Hawai‘i in 2018. Aimed at growing local educators’ capacity for teaching children to be active participants in a diverse democracy, the Social Justice Education in Hawai‘i project is made possible by the generosity and forward thinking of Hanahau‘oli School Trustee and alumni parent, Jana Wolff, together with her husband Howard.
Ger Thao–a Hanahau‘oli Scholar in Residence, UHM COE Graduate Assistant, Social Justice Education in Hawai‘i Program Manager, and published childrens literature author–reads to children from her bilingual book The Hmong Journey at a Hanahau‘oli assembly
Under the direction of UHM COE professors Dr. Amber Strong Makaiau and Dr. Patricia Halagao, the Social Justice Education in Hawai‘i project offers PDC coursework and workshops to both public and private school educators from across the state, and carries out the college’s mission of preparing educators and professionals at all levels to contribute to a just, diverse, and democratic society while developing a sense of purpose and sense of place. Using diverse materials including the Southern Poverty Law Center’s Learning for Justice resources, participating teachers explore the theory and research around social justice teaching practices, make connections to local organizations, and apply their learning to create social justice curricula that utilize local resources and reflect Hawaii’s diverse population.
Click on the images below to learn more about some of the project’s programming to date, and visit the PDC Events Calendar to register for an upcoming workshop. We also invite you to read more about the intersection of social justice and progressive education in Dr. Makaiau’s August 2021 blog post, Connecting Modern-Day Social Justice Education Initiatives with the Century-Old Progressive Education Movement.
