The top reported proficiency rate is 47% in Math. The lowest is 25% in Science.
Original Research by School Decision on Hookena Elementary School
Hookena Elementary School sits along Mamalahoa Highway in Captain Cook, a small rural community on the Kona Coast of Hawaii Island. The school serves pre-kindergarten through fifth grade as a regular public school within the Hawaii Department of Education, the statewide district that governs public education across the islands. Captain Cook is a coffee-farming community stretched along Hawaii Route 11, with roadside commercial strips and scattered residential properties rather than a concentrated town center. Publicly reported descriptions characterize it as a laid-back settlement with a few small shops, a gas station, and a grocery store, serving as the last sizable community before smaller villages to the south. The area sits at an elevation well suited to Kona coffee cultivation, and local economic life is shaped by agriculture and tourism tied to nearby Kealakekua Bay.
The school is small for its grade band. Its enrollment fills a handful of classrooms, and the student body reflects the community it draws from. The largest share of students identify as Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander, followed by a substantial Hispanic contingent, with smaller groups identifying as white, of two or more races, or Asian. A majority of students qualify for free or reduced-price lunch. Data on students with individualized education programs and English learners was not available, so the picture of special populations is incomplete.
State assessment results from the most recent year show a clear pattern. In both math and English language arts, proficiency is strongest in third grade and declines as students move up through the grades. Third graders posted the school's highest results, with a clear majority reaching proficiency in math and a smaller but solid share in reading. By fourth grade, proficiency drops to a middling level in both subjects. Fifth grade shows the weakest results, with fewer than half of tested students proficient in either subject, and science proficiency among fifth graders was lower still. Participation was full in most grades. Because the data covers only a single year, there is no trend to observe, and with small tested groups in each grade, year-to-year results can swing with the composition of a given class. A parent looking at the upper grades may want to ask the school how it supports students as content becomes more demanding and what interventions are in place for those falling behind.
The school does not serve high school grades, so there is no graduation rate to report. No data was available on program offerings, staffing ratios, discipline, attendance, or course access. Civil-rights data was also not provided. These gaps mean a parent would need to go directly to the school or the Hawaii Department of Education for details on teacher experience, extracurricular activities, and student support services.
Captain Cook's housing market is less expensive than the statewide benchmark but well above the national figure. Recent values have softened modestly. The price-to-income ratio is elevated, and mortgage costs at current rates are steep relative to typical incomes, which shapes who can buy into the area. No rent data was available. The community has seen a slight population decline, and no major new housing developments were identified. The area lies within Lava Flow Hazard Zone 2, a designation that may constrain future growth. No public library branch or formal transit system was identified in Captain Cook itself, and nearby Kailua-Kona likely fills some of those needs.
What Hookena offers is a small, rural elementary school rooted in a close-knit coffee-country community. Its youngest students are performing well, but the slide in the upper grades is a pattern worth understanding before enrolling. Families drawn to the Kona Coast's rural character and cultural setting may find the school a natural fit, particularly for the early grades, and should plan to engage directly with the school about academic support as children advance.
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