Aloha mai kākou,

As we launch Strategic Plan 2030 (SP2030), I am excited to share how we will carry forward Ke Aliʻi Pauahi’s vision.

Through her Will, Princess Pauahi entrusted to us not only the financial support needed for her schools but also the ʻāina to sustain generations. She understood that ʻāina is more than land — it is a foundation, a source of sustenance and a reflection of identity. Through ʻāina, her schools would endure, her people would thrive and her Kingdom would be strengthened.

For more than a century, trustees, leaders and staff have carried this kuleana, repositioning ʻāina to meet the challenges and opportunities of their times. While we may not agree with each decision made over the years, those before us ensured that we now stand with resources, partnerships and possibilities to continue Ke Ali‘i Pauahi’s legacy and join with ʻŌiwi leaders in restoring a thriving, self-determined lāhui.

Today, competition is global and intense. To endure, we must excel at financial management. Yet financial strength alone is not enough. True success comes when stewardship and strategy work together, when we mālama ʻāina to educate keiki, care for ecosystems, create homes and jobs, grow food, restore culture and strengthen identity. These are the deeper returns — waiwai — Ke Ali‘i Pauahi envisioned. Goal 3 of SP2030 outlines how we will achieve this.

Through E Ola!, we will generate competitive financial returns while cultivating prosperous ʻohana and communities.

E Ola! is Kamehameha Schools’ vision for thriving learners and communities. On our campuses, E Ola! guides student outcomes — in identity, well-being, academics and cultural confidence. In ʻĀina Pauahi, it sets the same standard: to manage lands in ways that are financially sound, culturally grounded and community-strengthening. E Ola! reminds us that success comes not despite culture but through it.

Through Pauahi’s foresight, these lands have provided for her trust for nearly 140 years, offering places of learning, healing, productivity and hope for Native Hawaiians. Her portfolio has always been dynamic — evolving to meet the needs of the trust and the lāhui it serves.

In recent years, this has meant adding lands that expand Pauahi’s legacy and increase our ability to serve the community. A few weeks ago, we purchased 3,885 acres of ʻāina neighboring our parcels in Paunau and Kuʻia, which we hope to transform to contribute to the return of abundance to Lahaina. This acquisition will help contribute to our community-led vision of rebuilding a thriving Lahaina, from ma uka to ma kai. Other recent acquisitions to our portfolio include:

• 656 acres at Kahuku Ranch in Kaʻū, Hawaiʻi Island (2022);
• 5,576 acres of ranch and agricultural lands in Kaupō and Hāmākualoa, Maui (2023); and
• 944 acres of ʻiliahi forest in South Kona, Hawaiʻi Island (2025).

Together, these acquisitions total approximately 11,000 acres and will help advance local food systems, cultural practice, education, and community resilience and empowerment.

At times, our stewardship approach has also meant making the strategic decision to part with ʻāina so its value can continue to serve Pauahi’s mission in new ways. Recent dispositions include:

• Partnering with the Department of Hawaiian Home Lands (DHHL) to help Native Hawaiian families achieve homeownership in their own kulāiwi, including the 2020 sale of three parcels in Mōʻiliʻili. We are continuing discussions with DHHL on the potential sale of a 2.88-acre parcel along the marina in Maunalua.
• KS continues to sell its fee simple interest as part of the conversion of residential leaseholds first executed a generation ago. We continue to transition out of this model that has helped build local communities across the state and greatly strengthened the trust’s ability to support our mission.
• In 2022, we sold Block I to the Kobayashi Group for the development of Ālia, a mixed-use project featuring 477 units along with commercial and community spaces. The project is part of Kamehameha Schools’ Kaiāulu ‘o Kaka‘ako master-planned community.
• Earlier this year, we sold the Four Seasons Resort Hualālai, whose revenues have helped educate thousands of keiki over more than three decades.

We are also considering other similar acquisitions, sales or restorations. Please know that each decision is considered within our overarching strategic framework and in relation to other decisions, reflecting our commitments to cultural stewardship, strategic positioning and maintaining a strong land base for Hawaiʻi’s future. Today, we steward 373,000 acres that generate returns to educate keiki and uplift both ʻāina and community.

We look forward to sharing more and listening with you in the months ahead as we move together with aloha, guided by Pauahi’s vision and the enduring spirit of E Ola!

Ke aloha nō,
Jack

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