Twice a year, teachers at Kaunakakai Elementary School on Moloka'i make house calls, visiting with parents and talking to them about what their children are learning in the classroom.

"We're a family oriented school," said principal Janice Espiritu. "Schools have always done open houses, inviting parents to the school. But we've never really extended ourselves to the home. With this extension, we show parents that we are partners in their child's education."

The home visits are a part of the school's Families And Classroom Teachers program, also known as FACT, which is funded with money from a Native Hawaiian Education Act grant. The FACT program also incorporates evening workshops that help parents understand concepts their children are learning in the classroom so they can help their children at home.

The Native Hawaiian Education Act grant, which is worth about $1 million for three years, also helps the school fund afterschool programs, tutoring, family activities, and even a computer resource center that is open to the community.

The grant also pays for students to take educational trips to the other islands and the Mainland. Last year, fifth-graders took a trip to another island, and sixth-graders went to the Mainland, stopping in Washington, D.C., New York and Philadelphia.

"Our children on Moloka'i, they don't get to experience a lot. Some of them have never ever left the island," Espiritu said. "We've been really fortunate to have this grant."

Espiritu said Kaunakakai Elementary is planning another trip for sixth-graders to New York next May.

Espiritu is also candid about the school's challenges.

With deep budget cuts anticipated under the state's weighted student formula, Espiritu said she is concerned the school may have to cut back on support staff that have been essential to student learning. Espiritu anticipates a 15 percent decrease in her budget next year, which could mean the loss of counselors, math and reading coaches or behavioral health specialists.

"We have all these wonderful people in place to support our children. (Fifteen percent) is not just a number. You're dealing with people's lives," she said.

With only 224 students, Kaunakakai is a small school, which generally would not get as large a budget as larger schools.

"I understand some of the bigger schools need more support, but us small schools suffer," she said.

But Espiritu remains positive, saying teachers continue to do the best they can.

"Our community is so nurturing. We all work together for our children," she said.