THE SENATE
S.R. NO.
50
THIRTY-THIRD LEGISLATURE, 2026
STATE OF HAWAII
SENATE RESOLUTION
requesting the department of education to require one year of hawaiian language instruction as a graduation requirement in public schools.
WHEREAS, ʻŌlelo Hawaiʻi, the Hawaiian language, is the native language of the Native Hawaiian people; and
WHEREAS, Hawaiian was a prevalent language throughout the Kingdom of Hawaiʻi, becoming the language of government and the general public; and
WHEREAS, after the overthrow of the Kingdom of Hawaiʻi and annexation of the Hawaiian Islands, English became the official language for government operations and society; and
WHEREAS, in 1896, the republican government banned the teaching of Hawaiian language and required English language instruction in Hawaii schools; and
WHEREAS, the number of fluent speakers of ʻŌlelo Hawaiʻi significantly declined following the ban on the Hawaiian language; and
WHEREAS, the Hawaiian language was considered to be nearly extinct by the 1980s, when there were fewer than fifty fluent speakers under the age of eighteen; and
WHEREAS, in 1978, to recognize the importance of the Hawaiian language, the Hawaii State Constitution was amended to include the Hawaiian language as one of the two official languages of the State; and
WHEREAS, Hawaiʻi is the only state in the United States that has designated a native language as one of its two official state languages; and
WHEREAS, in 1990, the United States Congress passed the Native American Languages Act, recognizing the preservation, use, and support of Native American languages, including Hawaiian; and
WHEREAS, educational initiatives such as ʻAha Pūnana Leo's Hawaiian language immersion preschools, the Department of Education's Hawaiian language immersion program, and Hawaiian language programs at University of Hawaiʻi System schools have been instrumental in saving and revitalizing the Hawaiian language; and
WHEREAS, article X, section 4, of the Hawaii State Constitution, requires the State to "provide for a Hawaiian education program consisting of language, culture and history in public schools."; and
WHEREAS, the Department of Education's Hawaiian Studies Program and Ka Papahana Kaiapuni Hawaiʻi, the Hawaiian Language Immersion Program, were established in 1980 to promote the study of Hawaiian culture, language, and history for students in grades kindergarten through twelve; and
WHEREAS, as of June 2025, there are twenty-two Department of Education schools and seven charter schools that offer Hawaiian language immersion education to students in grades kindergarten through twelve; and
WHEREAS, while the Kaiapuni educational program is recognized globally as a successful language revitalization program, study of the Hawaiian language remains optional for students at public schools; and
WHEREAS, requiring the Department of Education to make ʻŌlelo Hawaiʻi a required course for graduation will promote a basic understanding of the Hawaiian language and further ensure the longevity and prosperity of the Hawaiian language; now, therefore,
BE IT RESOLVED by the Senate of the Thirty-third Legislature of the State of Hawaii, Regular Session of 2026, that the Department of Education is requested to require one year of Hawaiian language instruction as a graduation requirement in public schools; and
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that certified copies of this Resolution be transmitted to the Chairperson of the Board of Education and Superintendent of Education.
OFFERED BY:
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Report Title:
DOE; Hawaiian Language; Graduation Requirement