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My dissertation research investigates linguistic ideologies and language attitudes surrounding ʻōlelo Hawaiʻi. Particularly, I am interested in unpacking the negative notions and emotional reactions we as Hawaiians or non-Hawaiian allies carry toward our heritage language. The main research question I endeavor to bring light to is the role of intergenerational and historical trauma in the movement to revitalize, reclaim, and normalize ʻōlelo Hawaiʻi.
My methods involve a mixed approach, combining sociolinguistic interviews and questionnaire data to inform a pilot program in which I will host a series of guided community outreach workshop sessions to address the above research topic. Before, during, and after, survey data will test for a correlation between participation in the workshop sessions and a positive, cathartic effect on the participants’ attitudes toward ʻōlelo Hawaiʻi.
Hawaiʻi Tourism Authority, Hawaiʻi Community Foundation
March 2022 - Present
Awarded to the Kealakai Center for Pacific Strings to launch the Pūmanamana Project, a multidimensional index for mele Hawaiʻi to become a public heritage resource that catalogs the history, lyricism, instrumentation, culture, and legacy of Hawaiian music.
National Science Foundation
July 2021-February 2023
Awarded for the International Conference on Language Documentation and Conservation (co-principal investigator with Shelece Easterday & Andrea-Berez-Kroeker)
National Science Foundation
July 2019-February 2021
Awarded for the International Conference on Language Documentation and Conservation (co-principal investigator with Bradley McDonnell & Andrea-Berez-Kroeker)
Open Educational Resources, University of Hawaiʻi
May 2019-December 2019
Awarded for the e-textbook E Walaʻau Kanaka Kākou (principal investigator and lead author with Dannii Yarbrough)
2022 Drechsel-Hubbard Endowed Fellowship for Indigenous Language-Culture Research
Inaugural Recipient
2018 Ford Fellowship (pre-dissertation block)
3rd Place Honorable Mention
