186 
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES             H.C.R. NO.            
TWENTIETH LEGISLATURE, 2000                                
STATE OF HAWAII                                            
                                                             
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                     HOUSE CONCURRENT
                        RESOLUTION
URGING THE DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION TO ALLOW WATER AND OCEAN-BASED
   SPORTS IN HAWAII'S SCHOOLS AND TO ESTABLISH OUTRIGGER CANOE
   PADDLING AS A SANCTIONED SCHOOL SPORT STATEWIDE. 


 1       WHEREAS, water sports, particularly outrigger canoe
 2   paddling (paddling), are a vitally important part of Hawaii's
 3   past and present; and
 4   
 5       WHEREAS, paddling promotes and instills a sensitivity to
 6   Hawaiian history and culture; and
 7   
 8       WHEREAS, this traditional Hawaiian sport encourages
 9   teamwork, and fosters relationships and interpersonal skills
10   among those who participate in the sport; and 
11   
12       WHEREAS, incorporating paddling into the public schools'
13   athletic programs would promote this longstanding traditional
14   sport, while instilling students with important physical and
15   mental skills; and 
16   
17       WHEREAS, in 1998, the Department of Education (DOE)
18   established a two-year paddling pilot program (program) with
19   the full support of the Na Opio Canoe Racing Association
20   (NOCRA), a private, community-based organization that lent its
21   resources to the program, and the invaluable experience and
22   expertise of Sam "Steamboat" Mokuahi, without cost to the DOE
23   or the Oahu Interscholastic Association (OIA); and
24   
25       WHEREAS, the program has achieved an impressive record:
26   
27       (1)  In its second year, 20 of 22 OIA schools (including
28            Anuenue School) participated in the sport; and
29   
30       (2)  During the two-year period, 1,470 students paddled in
31            the program;
32   
33   and

 
 
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 1       WHEREAS, the participating students are required to
 2   complete a water safety program, ensuring that they are
 3   proficient swimmers, and capable of handling the canoe if it
 4   were to capsize; and 
 5   
 6       WHEREAS, program participants received liability coverage
 7   through the Hawaiian Canoe Racing Association; and
 8   
 9       WHEREAS, the OIA and NOCRA are prepared to submit a
10   complete plan to address funding and an equipment and canoe
11   building project for a permanent, sanctioned OIA paddling
12   program; and
13   
14       WHEREAS, NOCRA is prepared to support the program until
15   such time that the OIA is able to run the permanent program
16   independently; and
17   
18       WHEREAS, the canoe building project could expand into an
19   educational trade opportunity for students to learn the craft
20   of building canoes and working with fiberglass; and
21   
22       WHEREAS, there is also significant interest in paddling on
23   the Neighbor Islands, as is evidenced by an annual invitational
24   event hosted by NOCRA that draws many paddlers from the islands
25   of Hawaii, Maui, and Kauai; now, therefore,
26   
27       BE IT RESOLVED by the House of Representatives of the
28   Twentieth Legislature of the State of Hawaii, Regular Session
29   of 2000, the Senate concurring, that the DOE is requested to
30   allow water and ocean-based sports, including outrigger canoe
31   paddling, in Hawaii's schools; and 
32   
33       BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the DOE is encouraged to
34   establish outrigger canoe paddling as a sanctioned school sport
35   statewide; and 
36   
37       BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that certified copies of this
38   Concurrent Resolution be transmitted to the Chair of the BOE,
39   the Superintendent of Education, the President of NOCRA, the
40   Executive Director of the OIA, and Sam Mokuahi.
41 
42 
43 
44                         OFFERED BY:  ____________________________