Ka Wai Ola - Office of Hawaiian Affairs, Volume 28, Number 1, 1 January 2011 — Aloha mai kākou, [ARTICLE+ILLUSTRATION]

Aloha mai kākou,

n many ways, Hawaiians do well to follow in the footsteps of our ancestors. As a Hawaiian-serving agency, the Office of Hawaiian Affairs is no different. Like our ancestors before us who traveled to Washington, D.C., on diplomatic missions to forge partnerships and build upon existing ones, we here at OHA continue that practice as a vital tool to bring awareness to the needs of our native, indigenous people and the important work of the Office of Hawaiian Affairs. In December, I traveled to the nation's capital to meet with federal officials, including Education Secretary Arne Duncan, White House Initiative on Asian Americans and Paeihe Islanders Executive Director Kiran Ahuja, John Berry, Secretary of the Office of Personnel Management, as well as officials from the Department of Justice, Department of Interior, U.S. Census Bureau

and the Office of Management and Budget. The overall purpose of OHA's trip to D.C. was to strengthen our relationships with the White House and federal agencies and identify opportunities to work together to increase Native Hawaiian access to education and other federal programs to achieve OHA's mission and Strategic Priorities. Throughout the years, administrations have changed; eeonomie situations have fluctuated, as well as policies and attitudes. While change is constant, our purpose is also constant. As we begin the New Year, we will eontinue to reconnect with partners we have worked with in the past while seeking new partnerships as we build toward the future. Our priorities for the coming year include legislation at the state and federal levels. Chief among them will be the Native Hawaiian Government Reorganization Act. While we have every

MESSAGE FR0M THECEO >- faith that the bill will one day heeome law, the matter is too important for us to wait to take action. The Hawaiian community ean and should take the early steps now, and we will be encouraging Hawaiians to enroll to have a voice in shaping a new governing entity.

Me ka 'oia'i'o, ( eo.

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Clyde W. Nāmu'o Chief Executive Officer