LIHU‘E — A program aimed at helping at-risk youth and their families on Kaua‘i has received a $20,000 grant from a fund sponsored by Dr. Priscilla Chan and her husband Mark Zuckerberg.
Hale Kipa, a Hawai‘i nonprofit youth-services organization, has received a $20,000 grant from the Chan Zuckerberg Kaua‘i Community Fund of the Hawai‘i Community Foundation.
“Mark and I are proud to support Hale Kipa’s work to ensure Kaua‘i’s young people enter adulthood with the confidence, skills and knowledge to succeed. We look forward to continuing to contribute to this community that means so much to us,” said Chan.
The grant will support Hale Kipa’s services for at-risk youth and their families on Kaua‘i through its locations in Lihu‘e, Kapa‘a and Waimea.
This includes the School Success Program, which assists youth and young adults up to age 22 with GED, credit-recovery and skills-based education; the School Attendance Support Services program, which serves Waimea Canyon Middle School, Waimea High School and Kapa‘a High School students with academic support, case management, referrals, transportation and other support services; the Ka‘i Like and Aftercare Monitoring Programs, serving youth on probation and parole; and the Intensive In-Home Program, providing therapeutic services to youth and families.
“We are pleased to receive support from Dr. Priscilla Chan and Mark Zuckerberg,” said Melinda Montgomery, director of innovation and replication at Hale Kipa. “This generous grant will fund high-impact services and programs to assist Kaua‘i’s at-risk youth in achieving their educational goals.”
Hale Kipa, or “House of Friendliness,” is a multi-service, fully accredited 501(c)(3) nonprofit agency that specializes in working with at-risk youth and their families who often have nowhere else to turn.
Hale Kipa has served more than 45,000 youth throughout Hawai‘i since its beginning in 1970 as a single shelter on O‘ahu.
This includes working in partnership with public agencies and private organizations to provide residential, outreach and foster-care services at no cost.
With programs that are flexible and responsive to changing needs, Hale Kipa supports youth involved in juvenile justice, behavioral health, education and child welfare.
Program goals include stabilizing young people in crisis and helping youth and families build resiliency to experience success in their lives.