A simplistic refrain we hear far too often is: “the keiki are our future”. Duh… Who else could be?! Yet surveys and statistics would indicate that adults- at many levels- need to do a better job to help ensure that those keiki have opportunities to thrive- not simply survive- in school, to propel them as they invariably enter the local work force as adults.
A UH West O`ahu survey just offered significant insight into how UH college kids (throughout the entire UH system) have food, housing, and clothing insecurities that exceed national norms for college students. 60% of those queried here “…suffer from at least one type of severe food insecurity”. 20% stated they have “…no safe place to stay or sleep”. And 25% indicated clothing insecurity.
That equals layers of constant mental consternation. How can students possibly perform at peak levels when their very basic needs are not being met? There are obviously myriad reasons for these issues (not to mention students’ additional concerns about health, hygiene, safety and transportation), but more nuanced work needs to be done to help alleviate these very real world concerns.
Good news- 80% of UH students surveyed felt “…respected by peers” while 75% “…have a high sense of belonging”. UH’s campus communities seem relatively strong, and UH does offer student basic needs services. Some students won’t seek help or aren’t aware where to go for it. But advice and recommendations are available.
And we know about food insecurity concerns at our public, pre-college schools. While schools cannot make up for home issues beyond their control, efforts are underway to provide more nutrition- a school meal is often the best meal a kid gets daily. Apparently, renewed efforts are under way to retrofit and update local classrooms lack of quality air. Hard to believe breathable air still remains a major issue… after 40 years.
Recent Department of Education’s numbers indicate that chronic absenteeism hovers at 24% in public schools in 2024/25, triple the chronic absentee rate (8%) back in 2019/20. Hard to teach kids who continually skip school (again, the reasons vary).
We now have over 90 public, pre-K schools statewide, with at least 50 more set to open by mid-2026. That’s phenomenal! Incremental gains to help mitigate on-going issues would surely add to the belief that concrete efforts are constantly being made if “the keiki are our future”. They must be.
Think about it…