Contributed by Ben Balberdi
If you’d like to attend a professional development conference or invite a renowned speaker to Hawai‘i to inspire and educate KS kumu, but it’s beyond your budget, the Pauahi Foundation has funds that might be able to help.
The Charles and Beatrice Parrent Fellowship and Distinguished Scholar Fund is managed by the Pauahi Foundation for the sole purpose of helping Kamehameha Schools faculty (teachers, counselors and librarians) foster excellence in teaching and curriculum. Specifically, the scholars portion of the fund provides grants to bring in artists, speakers and presenters to campus for activities like group lectures, workshops, seminars and training. While the fellowship provides financial assistance to attend offsite workshops and conferences locally and abroad.
The fund was created by husband and wife educators Charles and Beatrice Parrent who moved to Hawai‘i from California in 1925. Charles started off as a teacher at the Kamehameha School for Boys and would eventually serve as acting principal-in-charge towards the end of his 20-year tenure (1926-1946). Beatrice taught kindergarten at Mother Rice School in Kaka‘ako. They lived out their days in Hawai‘i with Charles passing in 1979 and Beatrice in 1984.
Their legacy of dedicating their lives to educating our keiki lives on through the Charles and Beatrice Parrent Fellowship and Distinguished Scholar Fund, which was established in 1985 when the Parrent’s estate bequeathed $1 million to Kamehameha Schools. The gift is the largest by any single donor other than Charles Reed Bishop.
“The Parrent fund gave me the opportunity to present at the 2017 He Manawa Whenua (Indigenous Research) Conference in Waikato, Aotearoa, New Zealand,” said Kehau Glassco, a high school social studies teacher at Kapālama. “This conference showcased the awesome work indigenous researchers are doing to bring awareness to indigenous issues from an indigenous perspective. The conference inspired me and reaffirmed my desire to teach our students to become great researchers by teaching them to use a variety of primary and secondary resources as well as looking at the multiple perspectives on issues.”
So far, over $55,000 in support has been disbursed to KS faculty this fiscal year. Applications are accepted throughout the year and are available by contacting Special Assistant to the Po‘okula Nalani Naluai (KS Kapālama), Administrative Coordinator Kacey Pilayo (KS Hawai‘i), Senior Administrative Assistant Kim Thomas (KS Maui), Program Suport Services Branch Directoer Edwin Yonamine (Preschools) and Project Analyst Marie Kubo (Kealapono). Once submitted, the application is reviewed by a committee for approval.
“The Parrent Fund is meant to supplement a department’s budget for unexpected activities that are a one-time occurrence,” said Mavis Shiraishi-Nagao, KS scholarship services manager. “Any recurring activities or events should be budgeted through the regular KS budgeting system.”
For questions on the Charles and Beatrice Parrent Fellowship and Distinguished Scholar Fund, please email Shiraishi-Nagao at mashirai@ksbe.edu.
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