Family and Community Engagement in Hawai‘i Through a Decolonial Lens

Abstract

Using an Indigenous research and multi-case study design, this study examined the family and community engagement experiences and practices at three Hawaiʻi public schools. Because of the limitations and consequences associated with conventional engagement models with diverse families and communities, Culturally Sustaining Indigenous Family Engagement and Equitable Community-School Collaborations frameworks were employed to bring a decolonial lens to family engagement practices in diverse, Indigenous places. Data collection included interviews with 33 principals, teachers, other school staff, parents, and community members, and relevant family engagement documents including the State’s School Quality Survey data, school academic plans, and family engagement assessment reports. Findings suggest that schools did their best to engage families and communities, especially during the COVID pandemic. Schools addressed similar barriers to engagement such as time, technology, and communication, but had difficulty engaging multilingual families. Engagement strategies and practices mostly aligned with conventional family engagement models, but individual practices and ideas began to approach aspects of Indigenous engagement and Equitable Community-School Collaborations. Results suggest that schools shifting from structural, school-based approaches and activities to relationship building could benefit multilingual families and others that do not regularly engage on school campuses. Building upon individual-level awareness and actions aligned with equitable engagement to develop systemic planning and practice can facilitate this shift. Centering the needs and cultural perspectives of nondominant families in family engagement practice could also help schools increase their decolonial potential along a continuum moving towards anti-oppressive systems.