Renata Birkenbuel
ICT
When 8th grader Kilolani Smith dug in deep into her chosen Native Hawaiian history project, she unexpectedly kept advancing to the next round of state competition.
Eventually, she and seven other Native Hawaiian students gleefully landed in Washington, D.C., in early June, when they proudly showcased their hard-won projects in the Smithsonian National Museum of the American Indian.
“That was my first time competing and it was my first time being in Washington, so it was pretty cool,” said Smith, a well-spoken student who attends public charter school Ka ʻŪmeke Kāʻeo in Kaha Hilo on the island of Hawaii.
The National History Day organization hosted a special “In Language There Is Life: I ka ‘olelo no ke ola” showcase featuring five projects from eight middle school and high school students from Hawai’i. All advanced after qualifying at the Hawai’i affiliate competition.
The big difference between the state and national exhibitions? A national audience, which helped shine a spotlight on students who absorbed their local Indigenous history – and most likely earned an “A” from their teachers at their respective schools.
But the event consisted of more than a visual showcase, as the Hawaiian students actively engaged in a pre-show ceremony reflecting their Native Hawaiian culture and a post-show question and answer period.
“Yeah, so the opening, that’s my favorite part of big events,” Smith told ICT. “We got to dance, too. So we did an opening ceremony, we did a song or a chant to the sun, even though it was already up. And then we did an opening chant to the people just to open the space. And then we did a few dances, Hawaiian dances, just with a ukulele and stuff. And then we did a closing chat after that.”
Sponsored by the Hawai’i Council on the Humanities, the event highlights perspectives and understanding vital to their culture and supports larger community efforts that give life to indigenous languages.
The visiting group’s projects exhibited on June 10 at the Stamp Student Union on the University of Maryland, College Park campus. Then it moved on to the National Museum of the American Indian.
Earlier incarnations at the Hawaii state level were actual competitions. Smith won in Hilo, then clinched first place at the state level held in Oahu. Prizes included medals for first, second and third, local books on Hawaiian rains and water, Hawaiian card decks and miscellaneous environmental tokens.
Trip chaperone Rob Chang, deputy director of the Hawai’i Council for the Humanities in Honolulu, said the stellar projects reflected Hawaiian history with Hawaiian language.
“I feel moved, seeing how the Hawaiian-language students inspire our English-language students,” said Chang. “To me, that shows that the work of Hawaiian-language restoration is not just valuable to Hawaiians, but our entire community and the world.
“They show us a model of leadership grounded in culture, connection, and responsibility. You can see all our youth gravitate to that, learning and growing from being in relationship with these kids.”
The interdisciplinary approach of the program ties in perfectly with the study of Indigenous languages, as well.
“It is fun. It’s educational,” added Chang. “We are getting support from the National History Day to sort of grow and we want to do it here. The Indigenous language category, it’s something that started here in Hawaii. So we are very proud of the students and the teachers who participate this way. And we are hoping to be a good example for other affiliates, other people participating in National History Day to take a look at doing projects in Indigenous languages.”
Student Kilolani Smith epitomizes a young natural community leader, articulate and grounded in her beloved culture.
She researched quite earnestly her project on the history of the Hikiau Heiau, a sacred Hawaiian temple located in Kealakekua Bay State Historical Park on the Hawai’i Island.
Smith elected to create a film, which she describes:
“So this year I did a documentary on a Hawaiian temple in Kai that’s on the west side of the island … it’s located in the bay, south corner. And my project was about mainly the destruction of the heiau when it was demolished and then when it was rebuilt and how that affected the community and its surroundings, and how the community lost that leadership and the guidance from the hail. So that was a big time for that community.”
History and language naturally tie into such a culturally relevant project, to the delight of the sponsors and educators.
“And then I also talk about some of its history. So when it was constructed way back when a Hawaiian goddess or God came and constructed the heiau, and then when Captain James Cook visited the heiau and he was one of the first foreigners to set foot on it. And that was a pretty big turning point and big time for the heiau. And then it was demolished and rebuilt.”
A heiau is a Hawaiian temple that ancient Hawaiians and King Kalani’opu’u created thousands of years ago. One website characterizes the natural stone temple as “a luakini (human sacrifice) heiau.”
“It’s where it’s kind of like a church, like a Hawaiian church or where Hawaiians would go and praise their gods where they would give offerings and do ceremonies there,” added Smith.
“Some of them look different, but it’s usually a platform made of rocks. And then there’s different other structures built on top of that. So there would be a place where priests would go and pray and stuff, and then there would be a place where there’d just be different individual structures on top of that big rock one.”
Seemingly, only select high-ranking officials historically accessed a heiau, but now it’s open to communities and visitors.
“My purpose was to just show everyone the turning point that it held and the importance of the place because it is very important and some people forget,” Smith said. “So it’s kind of just a reminder sometimes or it was and yeah, just to show off.
Aiko Yamashiro, Hawai’i Council for the Humanities executive director, said 2022 was the first year the nonprofit partnered with the Smithsonian National Museum of the American Indian and National History Day to create a virtual showcase of Hawaiian-language students and their research projects
“In 2023, the events returned to in-person gatherings, and we had our first group of Olelo Hawaii students and teachers attend in person, to share songs, dance, chant, and their research, with an audience that included the Chair of the National Endowment for the Humanities,” added Yamashiro.
At any rate, the competition-turned-national showcase remains a popular, long-standing educational tradition in Hawaii.
“We have been doing Hawaiʻi History Day since 1990,” said Chang. “Supporting teachers in both public and private schools across the state, it is our longest-running council conducted program.”
As for Kilolani Smith, she portrays unusual foresight for someone so young. Top of her mind is the success of her community and its rich, natural environment.
“If I had to decide today, I really want to do something that would give back to my community because that’s where it’s all from,” Smith said. “It would definitely be something that I would give back somehow to my land and my ocean.”
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