The top reported proficiency rate is 45% in English language arts. The lowest is 32% in Science.
Original Research by School Decision on Kaunakakai Elementary School
Kaunakakai Elementary School sits in the largest town on Moloka'i, an island where the pace of life and the built environment have changed little over the past century. Ala Malama Avenue, the main commercial strip, has no traffic lights and is lined with family-owned markets, a bakery, eateries, and general stores. The town functions as the island's civic and commercial hub, with its harbor, a Saturday outdoor market, and Church Row's missionary-era churches serving as gathering points. Publicly reported sources describe the community as a paniolo, or Hawaiian cowboy, town, and the economy runs on small locally owned businesses and harbor activity rather than large employers. Population has been essentially flat for years, and no major housing developments or commercial construction projects have been noted. The setting is rural, quiet, and tight-knit.
The school serves pre-kindergarten through sixth grade as a regular public school within the Hawaii Department of Education, the statewide district that administers all of Hawaii's public schools. Enrollment is modest for an elementary campus spanning those grades. The student body is predominantly Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander, with smaller groups identifying as two or more races, Hispanic, and Asian. A very large share of students qualify for free or reduced-price lunch, reflecting the limited economic base of the surrounding community. Data on English learners and students with individualized education programs was not reported, so those population sizes are unknown.
On the most recent Smarter Balanced assessments, proficiency varied considerably from grade to grade. English language arts was the relative bright spot, with fourth and fifth graders showing a majority of tested students reaching proficiency. Third and sixth graders performed below that level in the same subject. Mathematics was more uneven, with fourth grade the strongest cohort and fifth grade the weakest. Science, tested only in fifth grade under the Hawaii Science Assessment aligned to NGSS, showed a smaller portion of students proficient. Participation was full or near-full across every tested grade. Only a single year of results is available, so there is no trend to characterize, and average scale scores were not reported.
The school does not have a graduation rate, AP courses, dual-credit pathways, or career and technical programs, which is expected for an elementary campus serving no high school grades. No data on course access, staffing ratios, attendance, or discipline was provided. Title I status was not reported. The Hawaii Department of Education's district brief returned no recent policy, curriculum, or funding changes of lasting impact, so there is little to relay on that front.
Housing in the Kaunakakai zip code sits below the statewide benchmark but above the national one, and values have declined over the past year. The estimated monthly cost of ownership, based on prevailing mortgage rates, runs well above what renting would cost, suggesting that for families considering a move here, renting may be the more accessible option. No rental index figure was available for the immediate area, so a precise read on local rents is missing. The price-to-income ratio is elevated relative to national norms, which aligns with what one might expect on a remote island where incomes are modest and goods arrive by barge.
For a parent weighing this school, the picture is one of a small island community campus serving a predominantly Native Hawaiian student body in a rural town where commercial life centers on a single street and a harbor. Academic results are mixed, with real strength in upper-elementary English language arts and softer outcomes in math and science. The variation between grades is wide enough that a parent may want to ask the school how it supports continuity as children move from one grade to the next. The community itself offers a rooted, slow-paced environment, but the housing market and limited local economy are part of the trade-off that comes with living on Moloka'i.
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