The Native Hawaiian Place of Learning Advancement Office at UH Mānoa focuses on implementing recommendations from Native Hawaiian reports authored over the last 30 years that guide UH Mānoa in becoming a Native Hawaiian place of learning; a place that is responsive to kanaka (Native Hawaiian) communities and reflective of Native Hawai‘i for ALL people to learn, connect, grow, and heal from:

• Native Hawaiian Student Success
• Native Hawaiian Staff and Faculty Development
• Native Hawaiian Environment 
• Native Hawaiian Community Engagement

We cannot do this work alone. It is our mission to foster the potential within each of you to positively contribute to our collective kuleana to make UH Mānoa a Native Hawaiian place of learning. These monthly newsletters are meant to keep you connected, highlight your work and continue to inspire you.

GOALS:

• Native Hawaiian students are holistically supported from recruitment through post-graduation.
• Best practices are gleaned from efforts to support Native Hawaiian students and are applied to student success strategies for all students across the campus.

Native Hawaiian Student Affairs Conference

by Nick Childs

The first day of the E Ola Koa Conference featured a keynote presentation that you can watch online.

The theme of the 2024 Native Hawaiian Student Affairs conference was E Ola Koa. This message was made clear with the first panel of Native Hawaiian student affairs leaders who grounded us with tools that use our unique kuleana and pilina to one another as roots that connect our united forest of student engagement specialists. From deep discussions on community engagement and institutional change, to bingo games that captivated even the most introverted of us, the two day conference inspired me to show up for ʻike, as ʻike shows up for us every day. One piece of ʻike that I am holding came through a moʻolelo shared by kumu Ekela Kanaiaupio-Crozier: “If babies cannot come to class, how can we expect our mākua? Be the kumu that holds that baby while your haumāna work.” This message is a lasting lesson on inclusion, care, and equity, reminding us of the significance intergenerational support plays in the growth and support of our kaiāulu.

Hoʻolana Publishing and Online Journal

by hope matsumoto

The first kumu and haumāna pairing of poetry featured in the online journal Hoʻolana. Check out their website to read the poems!

Hoʻomaikaʻi to the many hands and hearts that have gone into the first few editions of the Hoʻolana Journal! This new and exciting online publication venture features a kumu and haumāna (teacher and student) pairing of poets and creative writers with each new publication. In the inaugural edition, kuʻualoha hoʻomanawanui and Auliʻi Pearl were the two poets featured. “Kakaʻako Dreams” by kumu kuʻualoha is my reading suggestion! Hoʻolana was established with the mission to uplift Hawaiʻi’s many artists whose works and writings will inspire future generations.

Piʻo Summit 2024

by Kamakani Albano

Dr. Lyla June Johnston during her keynote presentation entitled “Architects of Abundance: Indigenous Regenerative Systems and the Excavation of Hidden History.”

The 2024 Piʻo Summit, titled “Hulihia: Fire and Rain (Community Leadership Through Crisis),” was an experience of great, intentional reflection. I am holding onto many important words spoken by the panelists and speakers that encourage us to think about how our communities come together in times of hulihia, from Hāʻena, Kauaʻi to Lāhainā, Maui, and how generative life emerges out of crises, loss, and radical transformation. Particularly, I am thinking about Dr. Lyla June Johnston, the summit’s keynote, who said “Mother Earth has always needed us.” Looking towards what she described as “kin-centric relationships,” I think about what it means to gift “love letters to creation.” How does recognizing our kin-centric relationships allow us to remember pilina to our bodies, one another, and ʻāina in interconnected and interdependent ways? May coming together in our communities mean that we mālama and forge pilina to hold one another during crises and changes, remembering that Mother Earth always needs us.

Lā Kūʻokoʻa 2024

by Punihei Lipe

Young people engaging in hana noʻeau to celebrate Lā Kūʻokoʻa 2024.

Earlier this semester a friend from Kinai ‘Eha reached out to ask for some support with an event she was organizing to celebrate and introduce Lā Kū‘oko‘a to young people, especially young people who have been involved in the justice system and/or social services. I was so grateful to Allyson Franco from Native Hawaiian Student Services who agreed to bring her Lā Kū‘oko‘a shirt printing process to the event. That was one of many hana no‘eau that the youth could participate in while learning about Lā Kū‘oko‘a. I had so much fun. My script went something like this: “Hi! What’s your name? Tell me one thing you learned about Lā Kū‘okoʻa today because when you wear the shirt and people ask you about it, you gotta be able to tell them!” Some of the fun facts the young people shared with me included:

• Lā Kū‘oko‘a represents the first time Hawai‘i was recognized as an independent nation
• Timoteo Ha‘alilio and William Richards were the diplomats who traveled to Europe to secure this process
• The first Lā Kū‘oko‘a was celebrated on Nov. 28, 1843
• France and Britain were the first two nations to recognize Hawai‘i’s independence
• 16 more countries eventually recognized Hawai‘i’s independence as well, including Japan, Italy, and the United States

NĀ LAMAKŪ O KE ALOHA ʻĀINA

Nā Lamakū o ke Aloha ʻĀina is our office’s monthly feature that illuminates the light within each person’s contributions to positively shape our UH Mānoa campus as a Native Hawaiian place of learning committed to mālamalama. We feature an individual who exemplifies and demonstrates aloha ʻāina through their actions and involvements on our campus, particularly as leading lights in their own respective communities and disciplines of engagement. Through this interview, we aim to honor the ways in which the featured lamakū’s time at UH Mānoa has shaped and ignited the flame for/within their practices.

ʻĀnela Purcell, this month's lamakū

Alyssa Nicole ʻĀnela Purcell



Birthplace/Hometown:

Waiau, Pearl City, Oʻahu

High School:

Kamehameha Schools Kapālama

UHM Degrees: 

BA in Hawaiian Studies (2018)

MLIS in Library and Information Science (2021)

Currently pursuing PhD in Indigenous Politics

Current Occupation:

Graduate Research Assistant at the Native Hawaiian Place of Learning Advancement Office and Hawaiʻinuiākea School of Hawaiian Knowledge;

Part-Time Instructor for Social Sciences of Oceans Degree

What inspired the path for your academic major? 

Gist: ʻIke kūpuna (ancestral knowledge)! 

My academic path is deeply rooted in my ancestral ties across Oceania (Hawaiʻi, Aotearoa, Samoa) and Asia (China, Korea), which instill in me a profound kuleana to steward and amplify Indigenous knowledge systems. My work in Hawaiian librarianship and politics has been guided by moʻokūʻauhau consciousness—a recognition of intergenerational responsibility and a commitment to reclaiming knowledge systems (shout out to the scholarship of Dr. Noenoe Silva).

My previous experiences as an archivist at the Hawaiʻi State Archives and as the project leader of the Moʻopono - Hawaiian Ancestry Project (under the direction of Dr. Lilikalā Kameʻeleihiwa) exemplify this commitment. Engaging with more than 9,000 pages of Hawaiian archival materials, I’ve sought to make ʻike kūpuna accessible, enabling communities to reclaim narratives long marginalized by colonial frameworks. These experiences inspired me to pursue a PhD in Indigenous Politics, where I focus on transforming academic and information spaces into dynamic ʻāina that empower cultural and political sovereignty.

What are your future goals in your work?

Short version: Normalize ʻike kūpuna

My vision is to embody Haumea in academia—cultivating fertile ground for Indigenous knowledge and relationality to thrive. I aspire to create academic and community spaces and frameworks where moʻokūʻauhau and ʻāina are foundational to teaching, research, and praxis. By activating Hawaiian studies, librarianship, and politics, I will birth a model that supports Indigenous self-determination globally while uplifting Kānaka voices and stories. Through my future work, I envision establishing decolonized knowledge institutions that embody aloha ʻāina as a framework, transforming them into spaces of cultural resurgence and resilience. My ultimate goal is to empower future generations to navigate both academic and cultural landscapes with a sense of sovereignty and aloha.

How do you see your time at UH shaping the way you aloha ʻāina?

The ʻōlelo noʻeau, Nana i waele mua i ke ala, mahope aku mākou, na pōki‘i—“They first cleared the path and then we younger ones followed”—captures my understanding of the genealogies of aloha ʻāina within the UH system. These genealogies, rooted in ʻōiwi voices and resilience, are documented in countless institutional reports, testimonies, and data, and they have paved the way for students like me to thrive in spaces of learning and advocacy. My kuleana as a Kanaka ʻŌiwi student is to connect with, honor, and transform this legacy to address today’s challenges.

My academic journey, from earning a B.A. in Hawaiian Studies, a MLIS in Library and Information Science, and now a PhD in Indigenous Politics, has been rooted in ʻike kūpuna, moʻokūʻauhau, and mālama ʻāina. This foundation has taught me that aloha ʻāina is not just an ancestral value but a transformative force that informs teaching, research, and systemic change.

Through my roles as an instructor and researcher, I guide others in navigating and transforming research landscapes. At the Native Hawaiian Place of Learning Advancement Office, I strive to embed aloha ʻāina into academic and community practices, furthering its legacy as a framework for justice and regeneration. Overall, here at UH Mānoa, I engage aloha ʻāina as a dynamic, collective effort to empower future generations while honoring those who cleared the path before us.

What does UHM as a Hawaiian place of learning mean to you?

To me, UH Mānoa as a Hawaiian place of learning represents the convergence of ancestral wisdom and contemporary innovation, cultivating an educated, connected, and grounded community of leaders. It is a space where ʻŌiwi knowledge systems are not only preserved but celebrated and integrated, creating pathways for practices like moʻolelo and moʻokūʻauhau to inform modern methodologies. In holding this vision, I see UH Mānoa as a lamakū—a guiding light—where ʻōlelo Hawaiʻi and cultural protocols are living, evolving practices that permeate academic and community life. It is a place where technology becomes a tool to enhance accessibility and engagement while respecting cultural values, and where institutional growth reflects the needs of our lāhui and the depth of Hawaiian knowledge. This commitment to being a Hawaiian place of learning calls for more than representation; it demands systemic change that centers ʻāina as both source and guide. As both an active learner and teacher within this system, I strive to contribute to this vision, ensuring that UH Mānoa remains a dynamic site of aloha ʻāina that fosters resilience, justice, and regeneration for future generations.