Kanu O Ka Aina - New Century Pcs, Kamuela HI

Original Research by School Decision on Kanu O Ka Aina - New Century Pcs

Kanu o ka Aina is a public charter school serving kindergarten through twelfth grade in Kamuela, the post office name for Waimea on the Big Island's north side. It operates under the Hawaii Department of Education but functions as its own charter entity, giving it more curricular autonomy than a typical state public school. The school's name translates to "grains of the land," and its identity is deeply tied to Hawaiian language and culture. Enrollment is moderate for a charter school spanning all thirteen grades, and the student body is predominantly Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander, with a substantial White population and smaller shares of Asian, multiracial, American Indian or Alaska Native, and Black students. Nearly half the students qualify for free or reduced-price lunch. Data on special education and English learner populations was not available.

Academically, the most recent state assessment results show a clear split between English language arts and mathematics. In ELA, proficiency rates across the tested elementary and middle school grades are fairly consistent and sit in a moderate band, with the highest grade reaching the midpoint of the scale. This is a relative strength, and the consistency from grade to grade suggests the school is building literacy skills steadily through the upper elementary and middle years. Math tells a different story. Proficiency varies widely by grade, with the strongest grade approaching the same moderate level as ELA but the weakest falling well below. The overall math proficiency is low. Science results, available for two grades, land in between the two, at a moderate level. A parent weighing this school for a child who tends to do better with language and culture-based learning may find encouragement in the ELA pattern. For math, a parent may want to look into what support structures the school has in place and how the charter's project-based or culturally grounded approach translates to quantitative skills.

Participation rates in the state assessments vary by grade and are below full participation in every tested grade, sometimes substantially so. This can affect the reliability of proficiency rates, especially in grades where fewer students sat for the test, and is worth keeping in mind when reading the results.

No multi-year trend data was available, so it is not possible to say whether these proficiency levels are improving, declining, or holding steady. The school does not appear in any comparison fact-set among county districts, so positioning against neighboring schools is not available from the data provided. Program offerings, course access, staffing ratios, discipline data, and attendance figures were all absent from the payload, so we left those out rather than guess. Civil rights data was not provided either.

Waimea itself is an unusual Big Island community. Publicly reported sources describe it as a residential town, ranching center, and professional hub rolled into one. Parker Ranch, the largest privately owned cattle ranch in the United States, anchors the area's paniolo heritage. The town also serves as headquarters for two major astronomical observatories on Mauna Kea, the W. M. Keck Observatory and the Canada-France-Hawaii Telescope, giving it a scientific identity that few rural communities can claim. Hawaii Preparatory Academy and Parker School, two well-regarded independent schools, also call Waimea home, so families here have a range of educational options. The commercial core along Highway 19 is modest, and the community spreads across a large land area with a rural-to-suburban texture. There is no rail or meaningful public transit, so daily life depends on a car. The upland climate is cooler than the coast, which draws residents looking for relief from the tropical heat.

Housing in this zip code is expensive even by Hawaii standards. Typical home values sit well above the state benchmark and far above the national one, and rents are correspondingly high. The ratio of home prices to income is steep, and rent consumes a large share of a typical household's earnings. For families considering a move to the area for this school, housing costs will be a major factor in the decision.

The district brief for the Hawaii Department of Education returned little of lasting relevance, so we have no recent policy or curriculum changes to report.

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Academic performance

State test results and graduation outcomes.

Graduation rate (ACGR)

60-79%Cohort of 18 students · Class of 2021

The federal source publishes a banded range instead of an exact rate when the graduating cohort is small enough that an exact number could risk identifying individual students.

How this school compares to all schools in this state

Each dot is one school’s SY 2020-21 graduation rate, binned by integer rate. Taller columns mean more schools at that rate. This school is highlighted.

59 schools plotted. 4 additional schools' rates are federally suppressed and not shown. Data: EDFacts SY 2020-21.

Math

Grade 343%

School 43% · District 53% · ▼ 10 pts below district

▼ 11 pts below state median · ▲ 4 pts above county median

Grade 432%

School 32% · District 51% · ▼ 19 pts below district

▼ 18 pts below state median · ▼ 6 pts below county median

Grade 519%

School 19% · District 45% · ▼ 27 pts below district

▼ 25 pts below state median · ▼ 9 pts below county median

Grade 634%

School 34% · District 41% · ▼ 7 pts below district

▼ 5 pts below state median · ▲ 9 pts above county median

Grade 731%

School 31% · District 38% · ▼ 8 pts below district

▼ 2 pts below state median · even with county median

Grade 824%

School 24% · District 36% · ▼ 12 pts below district

▼ 8 pts below state median · ▼ 10 pts below county median

English language arts

Grade 342%

School 42% · District 50% · ▼ 8 pts below district

▼ 9 pts below state median · ▲ 4 pts above county median

Grade 439%

School 39% · District 52% · ▼ 13 pts below district

▼ 14 pts below state median · ▼ 2 pts below county median

Grade 542%

School 42% · District 56% · ▼ 15 pts below district

▼ 16 pts below state median · ▼ 2 pts below county median

Grade 644%

School 44% · District 54% · ▼ 10 pts below district

▼ 10 pts below state median · ▲ 1 pts above county median

Grade 750%

School 50% · District 54% · ▼ 4 pts below district

▼ 2 pts below state median · ▲ 3 pts above county median

Grade 846%

School 46% · District 54% · ▼ 8 pts below district

▼ 5 pts below state median · ▼ 3 pts below county median

Science

Grade 545%

School 45% · District 49% · ▼ 4 pts below district

▼ 3 pts below state median · ▲ 4 pts above county median

Grade 837%

School 37% · District 43% · ▼ 6 pts below district

▼ 4 pts below state median · ▼ 4 pts below county median

This schoolHawaii Department of Education, same grade

Graduation rate (ACGR) reflects the federally published Adjusted Cohort Graduation Rate for the most recent year available. We refresh this data annually at the close of each academic year in June. The federal source publishes a banded rate (for example, "90-94%") instead of an exact number for cohorts small enough to risk identifying individual students. The state distribution chart, where shown, plots every school in the state with a published rate or band; schools whose rate is federally suppressed are excluded. Where the federal source publishes a band rather than an exact rate, the school is placed within its band using a stable, ID-derived offset, so its position is consistent across visits.

Proficiency by household income

English language arts

Grade 3Lower-income38%Higher-income47%9 pp gap

Grade 4Lower-income42%Higher-income36%6 pp gap

Grade 5Lower-income27%Higher-income67%40 pp gap

Grade 6Lower-income46%Higher-income41%5 pp gap

Grade 7Lower-income50%Higher-income50%0 pp gap

Grade 8Lower-income38%Higher-income57%19 pp gap

Mathematics

Grade 3Lower-income45%Higher-income40%5 pp gap

Grade 4Lower-income25%Higher-income43%18 pp gap

Grade 5Lower-income3%Higher-income44%41 pp gap

Grade 6Lower-income29%Higher-income41%12 pp gap

Grade 7Lower-income32%Higher-income29%2 pp gap

Grade 8Lower-income15%Higher-income38%23 pp gap