Fewer Native Hawaiian Men Are Going To College. The Repercussions May Last Generations 3 The benefits of a college degree go far beyond increased wages. But a growing number of men are missing out on those benefits in Hawaii.
Miki Cook never really saw college as a path for himself growing up in Hana. Neither of his parents had a college degree, and there wasn’t much of a cultural connection to higher education among his peers and mentors.
It wasn’t until he enrolled in a Hawaiian wood carving class at Windward Community College in his 30s, that Cook finally saw a place for himself in academia. Wood carving led to questions about the Hawaiian language. Then a Hawaiian language class. Then another. For the first time in his life, most of his teachers were Native Hawaiian men.
Today, Cook is pursuing a Ph.D. in education at the University of Hawaii Manoa, while also teaching high school students enrolled in Windward’s early college program, an effort that he hopes helps address a real challenge in Hawaii: The declining number of Native Hawaiian men enrolled in the state’s university system.
