Voices of Pacific Island Nations
Developing Stronger Relationships between Students, Teachers, Families, and the Community
Programs and results
What we aim to solve
Pacific Islander (PI) students have been overlooked in educational research. Their educational inequity in Washington State public schools is evident as far back as 1970. According to data published by various organizations, PI students are frequently at a disadvantage. They are more likely to come from families who are below the poverty level. A substantial number of students are not meeting the academic standards based on the Smarter Balanced Assessment (SBA) state test. Their disciplinary rates are disproportionately high, relative to their total student enrollment. They have one of the highest chronic absenteeism rates and one of the highest dropout rates among students of color. The problem has plagued the Pacific Islander communities for decades and left unchecked, is likely to grow, potentially having a negative social and economic impact on our state and its affected communities.
Our programs
What are the organization's current programs, how do they measure success, and who do the programs serve?
Youth and Young Adults Leadership
The future of our Pacific Islander communities is in the hands of our younger generation. Preparing our youth and young adults for the challenges and the uncertainty of the future is fundamentally vital for our Pacific Islander communities' future and preserving our history and heritage. Developing and teaching confident and respectable young leaders our morals and values will establish a just society for all.
Arts and Culture
Our Arts and Culture programs are designed as a comprehensive approach to increasing students' engagement in school via cultural identity. It is also a way for our elders to engage and share their knowledge with our younger generation. It is a safe space of inclusion for our children, adults, and elders to interact with one another about the importance of our values and culture. Understanding one's heritage and history can expand an individual's knowledge of the world we live in.
Family Orientation
"Family" is central to the fabric of Pacific Islander communities. The natural description of a family unit has evolved with time and circumstances. A single parent or a teenager with a child is a family unit. Imagine a teenager with a child or with children, with a host of stressors, trying to navigate the multiple systems to obtain services for her family.
Although there are limited data on PI teen pregnancy, it is undeniable that PI teenage pregnancy within the PI community continue to rise. The most difficult for a teenage mother is raising her child in an already overcrowded household with multiple family members and relatives. Family hardship within the PI community is another indicator or factor contributing to our students' lack of academic achievement. Providing the necessary adequate and culturally responsive services for our students and their families is VOPIN'S commitment to close the academic and opportunity disparity gaps.
Where we work
Videos
Our results
How does this organization measure their results? It's a hard question but an important one.
Number of snacks served for students participating in programs
This metric is no longer tracked.Totals By Year
Related Program
Youth and Young Adults Leadership
Type of Metric
Output - describing our activities and reach
Direction of Success
Increasing
Number of participants engaged in programs
This metric is no longer tracked.Totals By Year
Related Program
Youth and Young Adults Leadership
Type of Metric
Output - describing our activities and reach
Direction of Success
Holding steady
Context Notes
Total number of students participating in the Navigating Education program
Our Sustainable Development Goals
Learn more about Sustainable Development Goals.
Goals & Strategy
Reports and documents
Download strategic planLearn about the organization's key goals, strategies, capabilities, and progress.
Charting impact
Four powerful questions that require reflection about what really matters - results.
What is the organization aiming to accomplish?
The "Voices of Pacific Island Nations (VOPIN)" is committed to narrow the academic and opportunity disparities gaps for Pacific Islander students and their families by providing high quality and culturally responsive academic services and resources, and serve as a bridge to develop stronger relationships between schools, students, parents and community.
What are the organization's key strategies for making this happen?
1. Parent and community engagement
2. Youth leadership development
3. Native arts and crafts programs
4. Learning through native language and culture
What are the organization's capabilities for doing this?
Parents and community involvement would be the key of achieving our goals. Pacific Islander students are proud of their cultural identity. When students understands their identity, it makes them feel proud of themselves which builds self-esteem. When students feel self confident, it increases their abilities to do well academically and they become better citizens.
Involving the parents and community would increase the connection between our PI students and their cultural identity. Most of our PI parents are first generation and are capable of teaching and sharing with our children the importance between culture and education.
What have they accomplished so far and what's next?
The "Voices of Pacific Island Nations (VOPIN)" is an arts and crafts program that teaches and connect Pacific Islander (PI) students with the heritage and history. The VOPIN program allow PI students and have hands-on and lesson learning of their heritage and history. It gives PI students the opportunity to research the present and past history the Pacific societies.
The VOPIN program is on its second year of exhibition and demonstration of Pacific Nations arts and crafts with the public. The VOPIN program is an annual event during the Asian American and Pacific Islander Heritage Month.
How we listen
Seeking feedback from people served makes programs more responsive and effective. Here’s how this organization is listening.
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How is your organization using feedback from the people you serve?
To make fundamental changes to our programs and/or operations, To inform the development of new programs/projects, To strengthen relationships with the people we serve, To understand people's needs and how we can help them achieve their goals
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Which of the following feedback practices does your organization routinely carry out?
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What challenges does the organization face when collecting feedback?
Financials
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Operations
The people, governance practices, and partners that make the organization tick.
Connect with nonprofit leaders
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- Analyze a variety of pre-calculated financial metrics
- Access beautifully interactive analysis and comparison tools
- Compare nonprofit financials to similar organizations
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Connect with nonprofit leaders
SubscribeBuild relationships with key people who manage and lead nonprofit organizations with GuideStar Pro. Try a low commitment monthly plan today.
- Analyze a variety of pre-calculated financial metrics
- Access beautifully interactive analysis and comparison tools
- Compare nonprofit financials to similar organizations
Want to see how you can enhance your nonprofit research and unlock more insights? Learn More about GuideStar Pro.
Voices of Pacific Island Nations
Board of directorsas of 05/15/2024
Dr. Joy Lile
Washington State Department of Children Youth & Families
Term: 2022 - 2024
Joy Lile
WA State Office of Superintendent of Public Instructions
Jill Brenner
Kitsap Community Resources
Eliza Evans
E2 Consultant
Ana Dominique Nakagomi
University of Washington
Patricia Beuke
Olympic Educational Services District 114
Patrick Woo-Ching
Voices of Pacific Island Nations
Board leadership practices
GuideStar worked with BoardSource, the national leader in nonprofit board leadership and governance, to create this section.
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Board orientation and education
Does the board conduct a formal orientation for new board members and require all board members to sign a written agreement regarding their roles, responsibilities, and expectations? Yes -
CEO oversight
Has the board conducted a formal, written assessment of the chief executive within the past year ? Not applicable -
Ethics and transparency
Have the board and senior staff reviewed the conflict-of-interest policy and completed and signed disclosure statements in the past year? Yes -
Board composition
Does the board ensure an inclusive board member recruitment process that results in diversity of thought and leadership? Yes -
Board performance
Has the board conducted a formal, written self-assessment of its performance within the past three years? Yes
Organizational demographics
Who works and leads organizations that serve our diverse communities? Candid partnered with CHANGE Philanthropy on this demographic section.
Leadership
The organization's leader identifies as:
Race & ethnicity
Gender identity
Transgender Identity
Sexual orientation
No data
Disability
We do not display disability information for organizations with fewer than 15 staff.
Equity strategies
Last updated: 02/23/2023GuideStar partnered with Equity in the Center - an organization that works to shift mindsets, practices, and systems to increase racial equity - to create this section. Learn more
- We analyze disaggregated data and root causes of race disparities that impact the organization's programs, portfolios, and the populations served.
- We disaggregate data to adjust programming goals to keep pace with changing needs of the communities we support.
- We employ non-traditional ways of gathering feedback on programs and trainings, which may include interviews, roundtables, and external reviews with/by community stakeholders.
- We have long-term strategic plans and measurable goals for creating a culture such that one’s race identity has no influence on how they fare within the organization.
- We seek individuals from various race backgrounds for board and executive director/CEO positions within our organization.
- We engage everyone, from the board to staff levels of the organization, in race equity work and ensure that individuals understand their roles in creating culture such that one’s race identity has no influence on how they fare within the organization.