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  • Home
    • Upcoming Events
    • About hakalauhome
    • Contact Us!
  • Yesterday
    • Timeline
    • Camps
    • People >
      • The Ross Families of Hakalau
      • Satoru Kurisu
      • Toraichi Morikawa
      • Waichi Ouye
      • Aigoro Uyeno
    • Schools >
      • Hakalau School
      • John M. Ross School
      • Hakalau Japanese Language School
    • Churches & Cemeteries >
      • Churches >
        • Hakalau Jodo Mission
        • Honohina Hongwanji
      • Cemeteries >
        • Honohina Cemetery
    • The Voice of Hakalau
    • Sugar Production >
      • Hakalau Mill & Other Buildings
      • Wailea Milling Company
    • Transportation >
      • Ships
      • 19th Century Hamakua Roads
      • Bridges >
        • Highway Bridges, 1950-1953
      • The Railroad
  • Today
    • Hakalau Farmers Market
    • Hakalau Jodo Mission Today >
      • Community Commitments >
        • Obon Festival
        • Memorial Day
        • Presentations >
          • American Gatha
          • Building World Peace, Local Style
          • Stronger Than a Tsunami
          • The End of Sugar
          • Ready, Set, Obon!
        • Newsletters
    • Honohina Hongwanji Today
    • Wailea/Hakalau Kumiai
    • Hakalau Reunions
    • Wailea Village Historic Preservation Community >
      • Cemetery Stewardship
      • Reviving Hakalau School
      • Senior Luncheons
  • Then and Now
    • UP & DOWN CAMPS: THEN AND NOW
    • Memorial Day: Then and Now
  • Tomorrow
    • Arsenic Remediation
    • Cliff Failures
    • Hāmākua CDP & the CDP Action Committee

Schools

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Hakalau School, 1940. Photo courtesy of Emi Uemura.

English Language Schools under the Department of Education

Hakalau School

The country school which grew from a small one-room house to an educational plant of considerable size was an important entity in the plantation community. Hakalau School, in addition to its function of teaching the three R's, also became the district's center for many social and athletic activities until it was closed and consolidated with Kalanianaole School in Papaikou in 1972.
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Hakalau School Teachers, May 1929: Mrs. Machado, Miss Douse, Miss Okazaki, A.K.Akita, Mrs. Capellas, Mr. Capellas, Mrs. Maneki, Mrs.F. Cyliskus, Chun Koon, MacNicoll, Miss Ignacio, Parker, Takeyama, Morimoto. Photo from the Waichi Ouye Collection, courtesy of his family.

John M. Ross School

The Ninole School was originally called Pohakupuka School and the first principal was a Mrs. Bridgewater prior to 1904. In 1932 Ninole School closed after a long and colorful history and the buildings were moved to a new 7.58 acre parcel next to Nanue stream​​ and the new Ninole School, now called John M. Ross School, was open to students.  The school consisted of one large structure which had 6 classrooms, a principal’s office, a dispensary and a library.  There were 2 additional buildings, one for the principal and his family and the other for teachers that needed housing.
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Photo courtesy of John M. Ross.

Japanese Language Schools

A good overview and history of Japanese language schools is provided in the Densho Encyclopedia. 
​​The role of the Japanese language schools in Hawaii changed over time and is described in Kodomo no tame ni: For the sake of the children: ​
One of the first language schools had been founded in 1896...Soon the idea of teaching the Japanese language to Nisei became extremely popular, especially since the schools facilitated communication and cultural transmission within the Issei family and provided a child-care center for working parents.  With the proliferation of Buddhist institutions, the Japanese language schools came under the control of a more "Japanesey" leadership. Besides instruction in the language, reverence for the emperor and a strong attachment to things Japanese dominated the curriculum of the Buddhist-operated language schools. Many young Nisei would therefore attend not only public school, learning American culture and language, but would study the ways of Japan at the language schools. (Source: Dennis M. Ogawa, Kodomo no tame ni: For the sake of the children, The University of Hawaii Press, 1978,  p. 141)

Hakalau

The Hakalau Jodo Mission began in July 1904 when Soma Senri, its first minister, rented one room in a bakery in Down Camp (Hakalau Lower Camp) to start teaching Japanese language. This bakery, the site of the initial Japanese language school, was owned by Shotaro Shimizu. 

A member of Sei Ren Ji temple in Yashiro Mura, Oshima Gun, Yamaguchi-prefecture, named Hakalau Upper Camp resident, Yokoyama Kikujiro, and others to help him establish a school with $600. The school opening ceremony was held on November 3rd, 1904, the auspicious day of Japanese Emperor’s birthday. There were 50 students at the time. Members asked Minister Soma to find a wife in order to expand the mission of teaching and education.
 
With the budget of $2,000, Minister Soma quickly embarked on construction of a church and school building.  The Hakalau Plantation provided one-acre land with no rent or time limit. The two-story church of 30 feet by 20 feet was built on the site of the current Hakalau Jodo Mission. The church was located on the top floor and the school on the lower floor. On February 19, 1905, Minister Soma performed the ceremony to receive the sacred Buddha statue into the temple as well as a mourning ceremony for soldiers killed in Russo-Japanese War.

On July 8, 1905, Minister Soma’s wife joined him. At this point, the the Hakalau Plantation Manager offered a small monthly stipend for the church. The wife’s arrival advanced the educational effort. The number of students staying at the dormitory quickly grew to over a dozen and some of the applicants had to be declined due to lack of space. 

The Hakalau Japanese Language School continued to grow.
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1920 Alumni of the Hakalau Jodo Mission's Japanese Language School. Photo on display at the Hakalau Jodo Mission.
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Wailea 

Another Japanese Language School was on the Wailea side, near the Hakalau School, as shown is the aerial photo of Hakalau School  as well as the hand-drawn map produced by one of the participants in the Hakalau School and Reunion. At this point, November 2019, very little history about this school has been compiled for this website. We are interested in historical detail and pictures. If you have information about this Japanese Language School, please contact us! ​
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Former Japanese School, Built 1930, House #327
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Honohina

There was also a Japanese Language School next to the Honohina Hongwanji. As of November 2019, very little information about this school has been compiled for this website. We are interested in historical detail and pictures. If you have information about this Japanese Language School, please contact us! 
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The building on the left is building # 51, the Japanese School, and the Honohina Hongwanji, on the right, is building #52 in the map. The newly planted tree is a Shower Tree, similar to the one at Waikaumalo Park today. Photo courtesy of Robert Nishimoto.
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Ninole Japanese School, known as Ninole Dokuritsu Gakko

Nearby was the Ninole Japanese School, properly known as Ninole Dokuritsu Gakko, which consisted of a residence and a 3-classroom building.  ​In 1932, the Japanese school split into two and moved next to the John M. Ross School site.  The Ninole Dokuritsu Gakko site was located on the Hilo side of Waiehu stream. The new Honohina Hongwanji Gakuen was built on the Hamakua side of Waiehu stream. As of November 2019, very little information about this school has been compiled for this website. We are interested in historical detail and pictures. If you have information about this Japanese Language School, please contact us! 
Picture
Mr. and Mrs. M. Shigaki, date unknown. Mr. Shigaki was the Principal of the Japanese Language School in Ninole. Photo from the Waichi Ouye Collection, courtesy of his family.
For the Hakalau Kuleana, our responsibility is to care for the land, the people, and the culture. We are guided by cultural values of YESTERDAY: Engage in collective effort. Look out for each other. Honor hard work. Show respect for those who came before us. Aloha and Mālama `Aina. In 2021, Akiko Masuda added two more values to the list: Consistently show up. Whatever has to be done, jump in and do it!