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UH to award honorary degrees to legendary kumu hula

University of Hawaiʻi
Legendary Kumu Hula Edith Kekuhikuhipu’uoneonaali’iokohala Kenao Kanaka’ole, Frank Kawaikapuokalani Hewett and Jerald Kimo Alama Keaulana will be awarded honorary degrees by UH for their significant contributions to society.

The Merrie Monarch Hula Festival may be over, but hula is still very much on the minds of Hawaiʻi residents.

The University of Hawai’i Board of Regents voted unanimously last week to award honorary degrees to three legendary kumu hula.

Legendary Kumu Hula Edith Kekuhikuhipu’uoneonaali’iokohala Kenao Kanaka’ole, Frank Kawaikapuokalani Hewett and Jerald Kimo Alama Keaulana will be awarded honorary degrees by UH for their significant contributions to society.

Kanaka’ole, who passed away in 1979, was a composer, chanter and dancer. Her commitment to Hawaiian culture and language made her a prominent figure in the Hawaiian Renaissance.

The Hilo native also spent eight years teaching at UH Hilo and Hawai’i Community College.

Hewett, 69, is an award-winning composer, singer and kumu hula of Kuhai Halau O Kawaikapuokalani Pa Olapa Kahiko. The He’eia native was instrumental in creating the Hawaiian Studies program at Windward Community College, where he continues to serve as a lecturer.

Keaulana, 67, comes from seven generations of chanters, dancers and composers. The Honolulu native has spent decades teaching hula and mele at various UH campuses.

He also helped archive more than 1,000 mele in a collection at the Bishop Museum that bears his name.

All three kumu hula will be awarded honorary degrees at the UH commencement ceremony this spring.

Kuʻuwehi Hiraishi is a general assignment reporter at Hawaiʻi Public Radio. Her commitment to her Native Hawaiian community and her fluency in ʻōlelo Hawaiʻi has led her to build a de facto ʻōiwi beat at the news station. Send your story ideas to her at khiraishi@hawaiipublicradio.org.
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