Le Jardin Academy
Koʻolaupoko Impact Collective
SUMMARY
The Koʻolaupoko Impact Collective (KIC) is a network of schools, businesses, and community organizations that work together to create and facilitate opportunities for young people to engage in meaningful, sustained community work.
Through ongoing investment and youth involvement in these curated community projects, we aim to both maximize growth and healing for young people in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic, and help ensure that critically needed work is completed in our community. Any student, teacher, administrator, mentor, local business or community based organization located in Windward Oʻahu can join KIC. As a member, they will receive information about upcoming community work events, be invited to help develop and determine the direction of future projects, and become a collaborator in a community-wide effort to care for one another and our shared resources.
PROJECT LEAD : Christina Hoe
CONTACT :
christina.hoe@lejardinacademy.org
(808) 265-7763
OUTCOME :
In year one, considering pandemic constraints, we focused our efforts outdoors in our shared backyard: Kawainui Marsh, a RAMSAR Wetland of International Importance.
KIC projects directly resulted in:
Reintroduction of 525 individual native plants, spanning 25 species.
Clearing over 900 square meters of invasive vegetation.
Continued development of infrastructure, including an outdoor amphitheater and trail network connecting different Kawainui sites.
3 community work days, with significant representation across age, economic and ethnic/racial demographics
Over 500 students from Koʻolaupoko schools were involved in these projects, collaborating regularly with conservation professionals. These students reported:
A significant increase in knowledge and interest in Hawaiian ecology, environmental resources management, and agroforestry.
Experience leading place-based Hawaiian cultural protocols.
A deepened sense of responsibility for the future care and conservation of Koʻolaupoko.
60 of these dedicated students will become recognized as Kawainui Stewards through our forthcoming certification program, empowering them further to act as leaders within the larger community.
All of our projects represent progress towards our goal of cultivating a more interconnected Koʻolaupoko community. In addition to our work at Kawainui:
Two dozen KIC students are supporting Hui Mahiʻai Aina in Waimānalo by working directly with residents to create a sustainable farming plan.
10 KIC students are working to support healthcare workers at Castle Hospital.
15 KIC students are working to create pop-up “swap shops” to reduce consumer waste and increase support for local businesses.
Secondary Impacts: Academic Benefits
Schools involved in KIC projects also reported significant academic and behavioral improvements in their students. Despite broader trends in education of decreased performance through the pandemic, KIC partners noticed a marked uptick in quantitative metrics across the board. For example, KIC member, Le Jardin Academy, saw a record-high diploma pass rate in its rigorous IB program for the class of 2022. Over 75% of this class was consistently involved in KIC projects, and end-of-year feedback from students linked improved morale to a sense of purpose in contributing to critical community work.
LESSONS LEARNED :
Challenge: Communication
Lesson: Focus on established mentors.
Our initial vision for KIC’s communication platform was a smartphone app students could use to join community work projects. It seemed like an innovative addition to the Google Maps suite—a map of community work projects! The assumption was that students were already excitedly scrolling their phones, looking for community work. Instead, we found the majority of students are motivated by relationships. To reach them, go through established mentors and teachers; the mentor/teacher audience prefers a web-based platform.
Challenge: Limited Institutional Agility
Lesson: It’s valuable to have a host institution during phase one.
Our goal is a shared governance structure for KIC, with each member helping to lead the effort. Unfortunately, DOE schools have more constraints than independent schools, so quickly adapting to a changing pandemic landscape was difficult for public school partners. Furthermore, each school has a different schedule, and different rules and means for transportation. Between pandemic fatigue, scheduling conflicts, and transportation difficulties, LJA had to accept a larger role in starting KIC. We allocated more of our staffing and transportation resources than anticipated. We also shifted to recruit more organizations that could help with transportation for DOE students. Asking our DOE partners to help develop and lead the Collective was unrealistic. With the support of families and school leadership, LJA has adopted the role of KIC’s host institution for its first phase until traction can be built and logistical kinks can be ironed out.
Challenge: Prejudice and Change Aversion
Lesson: Time and tenacity will prevail.
KIC is ultimately a social architecture endeavor. We believe shared, meaningful community work is foundational to personal and community health. If we bring different demographics together, we can restructure our larger community over time. Many of our current systems divide our community, creating layers of implicit bias. We have found the only way to overcome prejudice and fear of change is sustained, positive engagement. Clearly, this is a long-term project. One year of funding got the fire started; we will need to find continued support because we are in this for the long haul.
