Walking Alongside Students, Celebrating Their Successes

The ‘Iolani School KA‘I Programs

For KA‘I students, the journey to college begins long before an acceptance letter—and the support continues well beyond high school graduation. The KA‘I Postsecondary Program provides individualized advising, counseling, and tuition-gap scholarships to help first-generation students navigate college applications, financial aid, course planning, and the many challenges that can come with pursuing a degree. By staying alongside students throughout their postsecondary journeys, KA‘I helps make higher education more accessible and supports students in persisting toward graduation with as little debt as possible.

That long-term commitment comes to life in the stories of KA‘I families. At a recent family gathering, one mother reflected on how different the future once felt for her family before her son entered the program. College had never seemed like something they could realistically consider; now, years later, he is a senior at UH Mānoa preparing to graduate debt-free. Hearing her share that journey in a room filled with younger KA‘I students and their families was a powerful reminder that one student’s path can help another family begin to imagine what may be possible for their own child.

With support from the Takitani Foundation, KA‘I is helping students and families see new possibilities for their futures. For younger students and their parents, seeing graduates reach these milestones offers something equally meaningful: the knowledge that college can be within reach, and that they will have a community walking alongside them from their earliest years in the program through postsecondary education and beyond.