Kalihi Waena Elementary School

Kalihi Waena Elementary School is a PK–5 school serving 432 students at 1240 Gulick Ave in Honolulu's Kalihi neighborhood, part of the Hawaii Department of Education. On the 2025–2026 statewide ranking it places 157th of 203 elementary schools — the 23rd percentile, 1 star, in the bottom quarter of the state — with 41% of students proficient in English language arts, 31% in math, and 35% in science. About 65.3% of students are economically disadvantaged, the student–teacher ratio is 14.1:1, and per-student spending is $17,807 (2018–2019).

Compared with nearby schools, Kalihi Waena trails the peer median in every subject: roughly 46–47% in ELA, 44% in math, and 45–46% in science. What stands out is that several neighbors serve higher-poverty populations yet post stronger results — Lanakila Elementary School (67.3% economically disadvantaged) reaches 64% ELA and 68% math, and Kalihi Uka Elementary School (69.1%) reaches 57% in both, while Puuhale Elementary School (84.5%) matches it in ELA and far exceeds it in science at 73%. That contrast suggests poverty alone does not explain the gap. Kalihi Waena also has the widest ELA-over-math spread in the group (10 points), chronic absenteeism of 28.0% that rose from 26.4%, and the group's second-highest student–teacher ratio. (For context, Major General William R Shafter Elementary School tops the area at 67% ELA, but with far lower poverty at 25.8%.)

Recent trends are mixed. ELA has climbed from 35% to 41% over four years and science from 29.63% to 35%, but math peaked at 36.86% in 2023–2024, fell to 29%, and has recovered only to 31%. English language learner students now rank in the 9th percentile statewide, down from 33rd, while special education students have improved for three straight years to the 45th percentile. For families, attendance and math support look like the most direct levers.