Build a Bridge

Build a Bridge is an after--school program that will propel students from two middle schools to tackle community issues through collaboration and innovation. Students will pinpoint key challenges affecting their surroundings and work together to solve them. We foresee that this cross-cultural exchange will elevate the importance of diversity and create a realm for students to develop 21st-century skills that will prepare them for college and career readiness.

We read Hawaii’s 2030 Promise Plan, and we responded. According to the HĀ Framework, our proposed program interdependently strengthens all six pillars of Sense of Belonging, Responsibility, Excellence, Aloha, Total Well Being, and Hawaii. Just as the Promise Plan describes, the program intends to “provide space for new innovations through collaborative learning practices” that will engage students to be “active participants in their education” and “empower them to use their learning to reach their aspirations while contributing to our local and global communities” (Hawai‘i State Department of Education, n.d.).