A Milestone Achievement 

The Accreditation+ designation represents the highest level of quality recognition in early childhood education, awarded only to programs that demonstrate exceptional standards in teaching practices, curriculum, family engagement, and administrative policies. Ka Paʻalana’s Hope Preschool Site, which serves as a model for all their preschool sites, joins an elite group of early childhood education programs nationwide to receive this honor. 

“This achievement reflects our unwavering commitment to providing high-quality educational experiences for children and families experiencing homelessness and other challenging circumstances,” said Kasey Popken, Project Director of Ka Paʻalana. “We are honored to be recognized by NAEYC for our dedication to excellence in early childhood education.” 

About NAEYC Accreditation+ 

The NAEYC Accreditation+ system sets professional standards for early learning programs and helps families identify high-quality programs for their children. The re-envisioned NAEYC accreditation process is based on the commitment to continuous quality improvement, lessons learned from the COVID-19 pandemic, and feedback from the field. 

To earn NAEYC Accreditation+, Ka Paʻalana went through an extensive self-study and quality-improvement process, followed by on-site visits by NAEYC assessors to verify program quality. The program was evaluated on ten program standards and dozens of corresponding individual criteria to determine its level of excellence. 

Impact on Families and Communities 

Ka Paʻalana’s focus on serving homeless, at-risk, and ALICE (Asset-Limited, Income Constrained, Employed) families makes this continued achievement particularly significant. The program provides comprehensive services including preschool education, parent education, and family support services through its innovative mobile preschool and Family-Child Interaction Learning (FCIL) model. 

“Achieving Accreditation+ status validates our approach to serving Hawaiʻi’s most vulnerable keiki and their families,” said Terry Nakamura, Vice President of Operations of Partners in Development Foundation. “It demonstrates that high-quality early education can and should be accessible to all children, regardless of their living situation or economic circumstances.” 

Moving Forward 

With this recognition, Ka Paʻalana reaffirms its commitment to providing high-quality education and family support to communities in Leeward Oʻahu, West Hawaiʻi Island, and Maui. Project Director, Kasey Popken shared that, “All sites will continue to incorporate culturally responsive practices and innovative approaches to address the unique needs of homeless and at-risk families in Hawaiʻi.”

For more information about Ka Paʻalana, please visit pidf.org/kapaalana/

(KAPOLEI, HI) – Partners In Development Foundation’s (PIDF) Ka Paʻalana Homeless Family Education Program located in Kapolei has once again earned accreditation from the National Association for the Education of Young Children (NAEYC)—the world’s largest organization working on behalf of young children.

NAEYC Accreditation is a rigorous and transformative quality-improvement system that uses a set of 10 research-based standards to collaborate with early education programs to recognize and drive quality-improvement in high-quality early learning environments. “We are so honored that our program has been recognized by the NAEYC as one that delivers an educational experience for our keiki that is of the highest quality. It is what every child deserves,” said Kathleen Fong, Ka Pa‘alana Curriculum and Program Administrator.

To fulfill PIDF’s mission of inspiring and equipping families and communities for success and service, Ka Pa‘alana provides comprehensive family education programming for homeless/at-risk families with young children on the Leeward Coast and Kakaʻako on O‘ahu, and East Hawai‘i Island. Annually, the program serves about 500 children ages birth to five and their caregivers by preparing children for school, equipping caregivers to be their child’s first and most important teacher, and empowering adults to not only move toward self-sufficiency but to give back to their community.

To earn NAEYC Accreditation, Ka Paʻalana’s HOPE Shelter site went through an extensive self-study and quality-improvement process, followed by an on-site visit by NAEYC Assessors to verify and ensure that the program met each of the ten program standards, and hundreds of corresponding individual criteria. NAEYC-accredited programs are always prepared for unannounced quality-assurance visits during their accreditation term, which lasts for five years.

In the 30 years since NAEYC Accreditation was established, it has become a widely recognized sign of high-quality early childhood education. More than 7,000 programs are currently accredited by NAEYC—less than 10 percent of all child care centers, preschools, and kindergartens nationally achieve this recognition.

“NAEYC-Accredited programs bring our definitions of excellence for early childhood education to life each day,” said Kristen Johnson, senior director of Early Learning Program Accreditation at NAEYC. “Earning NAEYC Accreditation makes Ka Paʻalana an exemplar of good practice for families and the entire community.”

For more information about NAEYC Accreditation, visit the NAEYC website.

In a congratulatory statement made by Kathy Murphy, Executive Director of the NAEYC Hawai’i affiliate, the Hawaii Association for the Education of Young Children, she recognized our program as not just the ONLY accredited homeless preschool in the Nation, but the only one in the WORLD!!!

What wonderful testimony to the staff and families that work to make this a truly miraculous program. Congratulations All!!!