Purple Maiʻa Foundation Celebrates 10th Anniversary Next Month

Purple Maiʻa Foundation is celebrating its 10 year anniversary on May 25, 2024 at Hui Mālama O Ke Kai Foundation in Waimānalo.  A local education and innovation nonprofit, Purple Maiʻa has been serving Hawaiʻi communities with programming in youth STEAM education, technology workforce development and entrepreneurship & innovation programs since its founding in late 2013.

“Hū aʻe la koʻu haʻaheo a me ka hauʻoli i piha ka makahiki ʻumi o Purple Maiʻa,” i ōlelo ʻia ʻo Donavan Kealoha, co-founder and co-CEO of Purple Maiʻa Foundation.  He continued, “When we first got started, we had no idea how far and wide our services and programming would reach.  It’s humbling to think of all organizations, individuals and staff who have put their energy, resources and time into the organization.” 

Throughout the years Purple Maiʻa has grown from just one after school class at Jarrett Middle School, to serving over 3,000 youth on 6 islands with culture-based STEAM and computer science education. Branching into teacher professional development, PMF has also served 350 Hawaiʻi teachers to date. Through their Lau Maiʻa Scholarships, PMF has awarded $18,000 to Hawaiʻi students pursuing a degree in technology or business. 

With aspirations to inspire the youth they serve, PMF began growing Hawaiʻi’s innovation economy, starting in 2016 with the first Purple Prize indigenous innovation competition and continuing until today with programs like Mālama Design Studio (improves the digital readiness of Native Hawaiian owned businesses), Ka Maka ʻĪnana (teaches Hawaiian-centered design thinking), Digital Creators (digital marketing and content creation training program), and Mālama Venture Studio (incubates promising Hawaiʻi-based tech businesses).

Knowing that innovation and economic sovereignty required training our community to feel confident walking into this world of technology, PMF broke into technology workforce development in 2021 with their Hiapo program. Hiapo has supported over 120 Hawaiʻi residents in earning their Salesforce Administrator certifications and pursuing high-paying jobs in technology while staying home in Hawaiʻi. The average salary of Hiapo graduates is $79k, which is 52% higher than Hawaiʻi’s average salary.

They didnʻt stop there. In 2022 PMF launched the first accelerator program for Native Hawaiian, Asian American, and Pacific Islander (NHAAPI) women entrepreneurs, Hawaiʻi FoundHer. The program has invested $340,000 in 17 women-owned businesses in Hawaiʻi, in addition to providing dependent care stipends as part of cohort participation. With over 1,000 applications for their latest cohort, the Hawaiʻi FoundHer program responded to the community kāhea (call) for more opportunities by creating the Hulilau Market, a new pop-up venue for women-owned businesses and the Pouhana Networking Series, events for local women entrepreneurs to connect with one another and create a community of support here in Hawaiʻi. 

PMFʻs latest journey began last year In 2023, in partnership with Windward Community College and Kailua High School, they started the state’s first “middle college.” Halau Hekili is a new kind of kula for high school aged students located on a college campus that encourages students to see their community as their school, and serves as a bridge to higher education. 

To mark the 10 year milestone and celebrate the many accomplishments, Purple Maiʻa is hosting its annual “Fun-raiser” event with an elevated backyard pāʻina on Saturday, May 25, 2024.  The theme of the event is Anchors & Currents.  We’ll revisit the many currents we’ve ridden and what’s kept us grounded on our mission of educating and empowering the next generation of technology makers and problem solvers.

“In our ten years, we've witnessed the ripple effects of empowerment as we have served thousands of keiki and mākua and they have gone on to reflect back aloha to our community as culturally grounded problem solvers. Join us as we set sail towards a horizon of endless possibilities for thousands more,” said co-founder Olin Lagon.

Get your tickets to this epic pāʻina at https://secure.givelively.org/event/purple-maia-foundation/anchors-currents-2024-purple-mai-a-annual-fun-raiser.
 

 

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