The Thousand Solutions Blog

Ka Hale Hoaka is Bringing Indigenous Language Back to Hawaiian Society

Sep 1, 2022

Maile Naehu, and Kalani Ho-Nikaido embark on the quest to help bring Hawaii's dialect --- Olelo Hawai'i to the modern world.

They're doing so through their venture, Ka Hale Hoaka. Through teaching the timeless Hawaiian wisdom and traditions to kids, parents, educators, and businesses through online courses, together they're helping to remove the impediments of 'Olelo Hawaii's use in daily life.

According to Naehu the integration of indigenous languages to the present is crucial if we want to be better stewards, community members as well as people generally. "I believe that connecting with your roots and the culture of your home - no matter the place you live or from where your roots are - needs to be done," she says. "I often say that you have to be creative while remaining grounded in the past; we have to be able to see that the future's solutions have already been laid out in front of our consideration. ."

Their goal: have 'Olelo Hawai'i spoken throughout every Hawaiian house. "When we're at the point that we can have it on the radio in the banks, in the grocery store, and on the beach, we'll know we've made an impact," says Ho-Nikaido.

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Find out more about HTML0: Hear the interview with Kumu Maile Naehu on Radio Kingston!

The necessity to bring back Hawaiian language

In order to understand why it is necessary to reintegrate "Olelo Hawai'i" back in the modern Hawaiian life, it's helpful to study the area's history.

When that the Hawaiian kingdom was sacked in 1893, a law was approved in 1896 to declare that English to be the main language spoken in Hawaii. It wasn't until the Hawaiian Renaissance in the latter half of 1960 and into the early 1970s that Hawaii's community saw an influx of Hawaiian cultural traditions, initially inspired by artists who were determined to revive the traditional Hawaiian art, music and dance.

At this point it was estimated that there were only as few as 2 000 Hawaiians who spoke the native tongue easily. "For 80 years, people were completely deprived of the person they were, their story, and their identity," Naehu explains .

Today, the quantity of native Hawaiian natives is about 9,000, and 24 of the schools that are public in Hawaii teach exclusively in Hawaiian. Plus, there's a major initiative to integrate Hawaiian cultural and language in the classroom in all classes.

But Naehu hopes to see these numbers grow by even more. Language, she believes, is what helps reconnect Hawaiian individuals back to their roots and feeling of belonging and identity. In addition, since it is an oral tradition, much wisdom has been passed on through the telling of stories in Hawaiian.

"These stories become meaningless after they've been translated to English. If you're familiar with the 'Olelo' Hawai'i, you can understand the many deep metaphorical layers in our language. It's mind-blowing. I'm able to see things entirely differently since I think, dream and speak within my own language- and in the world that this language came from ."

The phone called that changed everything

Ho-Nikaido had an overwhelming urge to incorporate Olelo Hawai'i within her family home. She and her husband -- who died just four years ago wanted to connect their children with the Hawaiian culture and language Hawaii so that they grew to be a part of a strong feeling of belonging.

When the schools shut down due to the 2020 covid-19 lockdown, she decided that it was the perfect opportunity to learn. She was able to contact Naehu, who she'd encountered during her senior year at high school on the island of Maui. Ho-Nikaido and her friend had collaborated in a Hawaiian Luau before the beginning of their careers. Naehu performing as an entertainer while Ho-Nikaido was the manager.

Over the course of the past 20 years the two of them parted ways, when their lives took them to different paths; Naehu was a performer and educator, whereas Ho-Nikaido focused on developing business by leveraging her administrative and finance skills. "The initial person I spoke to was Maile," shares Ho-Nikaido in her account of her response to the lockdown. "I declared, 'you're awe-inspiring! and I'm in need of someone who can teach us our languages to my kids and I. Do you please do it?'"

The phone call however led to more  the tutoring of 'Olelo Hawai'i for Ho-N family. As she hung her phone, she was thinking about the many parents that needed help integrating the language within their own homes as well.

The two decided to combine their different - but complementary - skill sets to launch the course for free on Facebook. Naehu will teach the classes, and Ho-Nikaido would help set up the classes behind-the-scenes on Zoom. "Marrying the skills of both of us has made us able to break out of the gate, because I know how to create businesses, and Maile has the ability to instruct and create curriculums," Ho-Nikaido adds.

How a free class led to a business launch

Each of them posted about the class for free via their individual Facebook pages and announced that the class would take place in the next two weeks.

They described throwing out the class without needing it to be glamorous or perfect. Although they had no idea whether anyone was at all interested, they had 400 sign-ups to sign up. Surprised by the turnout the organizers realized they were providing something that was wanted by people and needed.

"The greatest entrepreneur stories involve going into and serving when everybody's running away," adds Ho-Nikaido. "That was the essence of our business; we thought, let's go in and serve the community, and become shining beacons of connection and hope since parents are flinching out right now ."

A couple of weeks after launching their first course -- and upon realizing the market's demand for the services they had to offer They officially started Ka Hale Hoaka. Ka Hale Hoaka business. Naehu was the visionary and curriculum designer, and Ho-Nikaido became the CFO and system integrator. "Most people think there's a huge amount of capital required in order to establish a business" Ho-Nikaido says. "For us, it was just two mothers who answered the phone, used computers and became working. We're bootstrapping this ."

The lessons: leaning on ancestral wisdom

The word 'hoaka' can be translated to mean the waxing crescent moon's ability to cast shadows during the second moon phase that is part of the Hawaiian lunar calendar. It can also mean 'spirit' or 'to shine brilliantly,' and the Ka Hale Hoaka teachings are built on the notion that the the wisdom that our forefathers had is the answer to modern-day issues.

The journey to connect with the ancient wisdom of the past started early for Naehu even though she was a child attending the school of native Hawaiian students in the Island of Oahu however, the school she attended was not yet westernized. "I was very aware of the fact that I was Hawaiian however, I did not be aware of the significance of being able living in a way that was Hawaiian," she says. "I always wanted to learn more about the culture. ."

The devastation of Hawaiian cultural traditions in the late nineteenth century has a lasting impact.

"If you visit Hawaii, you'll realize that there are really only tiny areas of what Hawaii actually is." Naehu adds. "A majority of Hawaii is developed and colonized. We grew up descendants of that ."

Since growing up during that time of the Hawaiian Renaissance, she says she was lucky enough to have the ability to look for answers and discover the truth about who she was. This journey resulted in her obtaining the degree of tradition Hawaiian Society at the University of Hawaii at Manoa, majoring in Hawaiian studies and language.

For Naehu how she imparts her knowledge is in her life; residing on an off-grid land on the island of Molokai along with her husband, and her three children, she's uncovered answers that her forefathers left behind by being a farmer and teaching traditional Hawaiian philosophy. "We are always looking for new answers through the use of technology and science," she says. "But the answers are in the present. When we put aside our fumbling with nature and begin to listen to what has been left as a gift, old wisdom could guide us into the future ."

Generations to come

After launching their first free course, they built their database and made the decision to launch paid courses The first was a success, selling eight seats. In the years since have grown their student base to approximately 800 paid students. "Ka Hale Hoaka is one of those overnight successes that really took an entire 25 years of development," says Ho-Nikaido. "Both of us went on our own ways, working and developing our own skill sets and professional careers."

While Ka Hale Hoaka has courses for educators, parents as well as adult learners and businesses, their primary target audience is kids. "The foundation of our business is centered around helping the next generation grow up," says Ho-Nikaido.

While the courses are targeted at young children, Naehu and Ho-Nikaido started to observe that the entire family started learning together. They now have products to service different people all the way from newborns until those aged 90.

"Our students love the interactive manner in which we conduct our classes and appreciate the fact that it's simple, easy and simple we make it. There are more elders joining our adult classes, or taking our kids' classes because it's easier -to understand the language. To me, this was an unexpected delight. Now they have the opportunity to study the language that was taken away from them."

Sales are scaling up

When they realized that selling their courses to individuals was a slow process, they added the corporate model for faster returns. They started to draw the interest of schools and began offering a curriculum product. "Now we have the ability to pick an account for schools and offer 270 seats to just one customer," Ho-Nikaido explains.

They also focus on tourism firms. "The tourism industry has to join in and become the catalyst to make 'Olelo Hawaii's voice heard across the globe," Ho-Nikaido continues. "As stewards and people that have a huge financial benefit, they have a responsibility to be honoring the Hawaiian cultural traditions in a genuine way. ."

They advertise across multiple platforms, including Facebook, Instagram, YouTube They have just announced their LinkedIn initiative, as well as Google advertisements for several items.

Technology evolves along with them

When they first launched Ka Hale Hoaka, they employed ClickFunnels for their first method of operation. But when they began scaling the business, they realized they would require an alternative backend system. On October 20, 2021, the school changed their course to its user-friendly backend system and the ability to report.

They decided that instead being terrified by the technological advances, they'd adopt an 'doing is better than perfect' attitude. This helped them avoid overwhelming their own efforts to do all things right on the first go. Actually, when they review the first few videos, they refer to them as 'comical.' "In the first couple of videos, I was filming myself in my room, with no lighting," says Naehu. "Now, they're much more professional, and we've a studio with proper equipment ."

"Just get going and begin producing stuff the best way you know how," Naehu advises. "It can grow when you've got an effective support system ."

Some of their courses are already in their third edition, as they're committed to continuous improvement. "Because the format is soft, you can always revisit and create new videos," continues Naehu. "Students will be tolerant of your learning curve because they want to get all the knowledge they can from you. Do not be stifled by the technical skills you have. You could outsource it and make use of the resources. If you've got an idea to share or some information you want to share you, begin today and don't worry about the tech part later ."

Bundling evergreen courses

The first year of business, they were mainly concentrated on course development. The problem was that this continuous production led Naehu to put herself over thin. Eventually, they realized that they had created enough content they could make evergreen bundles in order to prevent burnout and creative stress, repurpose their existing content as well as continuously generate the cash flow.

Now, Ka Hale Hoaka has 15 classes, including the main course, additional coursesand workshops they create and save within their library. "Maile sings, creates art and chants in the course, so we've spliced those and made an educational library that includes extra courses that are along with the core courses," says Ho-Nikaido.

Bundling their courses is one of the things they love most about . "Bundles have allowed me to be a bit more creative when I market and package things," says Ho-Nikaido "For example, I just put together one of our live crash courses and our self-paced one, and then renamed it. In the future, I'll convert that into another funnel with a perpetual ."

The structure of their Course content

In terms of structuring every course, they let students to gain access to every course's content after purchasing rather than using 's drip schedule. "We noticed with our courses especially with our course curriculum that teachers really like the flexibility of seeing the whole thing," says Ho-Nikaido.

Ho-Nikaido claims that there are still features that they aren't yet tapping into. They do however have essential systems. "I'm always thinking about the workflow, and ways to simplify our backend to ensure that we have less to manage," she adds.

Engaging students throughout the course

The interaction with students is a key part of the Ka Hale Hoaka online course teaching; students provide their email addresses after each video so that students can communicate with them. Additionally, individual answers to every question are provided by Naehu.

"I tell students, If you're a part of this group, then you're part within our extended family. We're here to help our students if they need help in navigating the content ."

They also host live tutoring, and Naehu hosts a monthly 30-minute Q&A session to stay connected with students. Then, once students go through the class they receive a set of emails that contain discount coupons that they can use to take advantage of future courses to keep them engaged.

The Ka Hale Hoaka team also regularly sends out weekly newsletters to their entire student database that include information on important events, time-sensitive offers that are happening, women's kops, as well as possibilities. "We're constantly improving our email database," says Ho-Nikaido.

Find out more about HTML0: Hear the interview with Kumu Maile Naehu on Radio Kingston!

A team is hired

With the firm belief that hiring teams with diverse skill sets is the key to growth,

Naehu and Ho-Nikaido started with hiring two free interns that helped them with their first paid course launch. Then, they hired part-time college students who eventually became full-time employees in the beginning of January 2022. "We were extremely excited to know by the fact that we'd come up with something unique enough to convince them to choose us for their first out-of-college job," says Ho-Nikaido.

Alongside their two full-time employees In addition, they have three members of their team that assist in the creation of the curriculum. "I have a strong curriculum team and it's because I created everything on my own since the beginning" says Naehu. "There's an enormous improvement in terms of the worksheet, film as well as slide design after hiring a team that I was able to create all by myself, without an additional set of eyes ."

Hiring a team has allowed Naehu to be more secure in the creation of course material; she and her three fellow curriculum assistants have monthly gatherings where they work together to develop ideas, relying upon their Hawaiian college majors in the field of language to aid.

for creators who do not yet have the resources to build their team Ho-Nikaido offers some tips.

"If you're solopreneur Join an online mastermind group to are accountable to others who is also creating courses. The weekly routine of accountability will aid you in your to progress over a ."

A guide to online course creators

In addition to educating 800 students, this Ka Hale Hoaka team is making a considerable impression in Hawaiian society. " People in the academic and political worlds who did not discuss this issue in the past two years are emailing me asking for more details," says Naehu. "I am now able to see the impact we're making because these are those who make big decisions for large institutional and student populations. ."

Based on Naehu and Ho-Nikaido as long as you -- the online course creator -- have skills and experience behind you, you have the necessary ingredients for creating the most successful online courses. And, if you're looking to expand your course online Ho-Nikaido recommends you start with the final objective in mind. "We decided in the first couple of weeks that we were going to make a big change," she says. "From the beginning we started looking into software which would let us increase our ."

"If you have a vision of where you want to be, you must begin with the best method. Although you may be apprehensive about the price, it will enable you to reach your goals in a quicker ."

Naehu and Ho-Nikaido are great models of individuals who utilized their talents and know-how to make an impact through . If you're looking to achieve the same, don't wait. Begin today.