Fellows mentioned in this story:
Shawn Kana‘iaupuni
Yunji de Nies

From Hawai‘i News Now:

Native Hawaiian education organizations say they’re relieved after Sen. Brian Schatz announced $46 million in funding was restored, but remain concerned about what comes next.

In an interview, Partners in Development Foundation (PIDF) president and CEO Shawn Kanaiaupuni described months of uncertainty as groups waited to learn whether funds would be released.

She said the restored money is expected to provide a one-year bridge for current grantees, giving programs time to plan, keep services running, and continue advocating.

“We haven’t been waiting around — we’ve been active — with consultants helping on business development and advocacy," Kana‘iaupuni said. “Funders here are amazing, but there will never be enough philanthropic dollars alone, so we’ve talked about a ‘potluck approach’ — a little bit from everyone so we can keep doing really good work.”

Watch at hawaiinewsnow.com.