Pacific Islander Charter School Opens in Utah

I'd planned on following last week's post (on the 2004 study which showed that most underrepresented minority scholarships and fellowships don't recognize that Pacific Islanders are underrepresented) with an entry on the 2012 research we've done on the same topic.  All of us at the Pacific Islander Access project are excited to share that with you, but we saw a story in the news that we had to blog about.

The story? It's about how a small group of Pacific Islander Americans in Salt Lake City have founded a charter school focused on a steeped in the values of the Pacific Islander community.  I believe that they are the first to do this in the Continental U.S., but I'd bet that they found some inspiration in the Native Hawaiian charter school movement that is alive and thriving in Hawaii.

Congrats to the founders of the Pacific Heritage Academy!  We wish them and their scholars the best of luck. While they're focusing on providing an effective and culturally relevant education for the next generation of Pacific Islander Americans, the P.I.A. project will be doing our part to increase their graduates' access to scholarships and fellowships for underrepresented minorities.

Kawika

-- To read the story, click here: LINK
-- To learn more about the Pacific Heritage Academy, click here: LINK