An innovative new after­-school program to educate parents and families of LGBTQ students about the Hawaiian concept of “mahu,” or a third gender, is being developed at the public charter school DreamHouse ‘Ewa Beach.

Starting this fall, the Kapolei school will hold special sessions to teach about the revered role that mahu — people who embrace both masculine and feminine traits — traditionally receive in Native Hawaiian culture, said Ryan Mandado, chief academic officer at DreamHouse.

The program will train students to become knowledgeable about LGBTQ issues and the concept of mahu so they can teach their families, Mandado said. Parents will be invited to seminars, and the plan is to hold them off campus in culturally meaningful locations, such as at a taro patch.

“That way, we can take the parents out, do some community service, but do some learning along the way,” he said.

The Kapolei charter school won a $10,000 grant for the program from the “50 States. 50 Grants. 5,000 Voices.” initiative by the nonprofit organization It Gets Better Project. The DreamHouse program is one of 40 across the U.S. to receive a grant under the initiative, which has a goal of empowering LGBTQ youth “to feel safe, supported and valued in expressing their identities, especially in school environments.”

The grants are funded by American Eagle Outfitters Inc. through customer donations via its Real Rewards loyalty program, as well as an in-store pin-pad promotion during Pride Month 2021.

Student feedback was the impetus for seeking the grant, said Mandado, who is also the adviser for the school’s Rainbow Leaders club for LGBTQ students.

“Some students said … they feel like other students at school are very inclusive to their identity, but it was the parents at home that needed a little bit more development in talking about LGBTQ issues,” he said.

Jaylen Rabago, a ninth-grader who has acted as an informal leader of the club, said educating parents is crucial to the health and well-being of LGBTQ youth. Rabago said she has been fortunate to have wholly supportive parents but knows other students who are “so scared of being themselves around their parents … because they are scared of being forcefully kicked out of their house, scared of their parents not accepting them. I believe it’s the fear of knowing someone you love personally not accepting that part of you that is so difficult.”

Mandado, who wrote the grant proposal together with Rainbow Leaders club members, said the program will feature the Hawaii-based documentary “A Place in the Middle” and include elements from its learning guide to “provide LGBTQ parent training through an indigenous lens.”

The documentary tells the story of Ho‘onani Kamai, a sixth-grade girl who is “in the middle” and wants to lead a boys hula troupe. She is mentored by Hinaleimoana Wong-Kalu, a kumu and cultural expert who transitioned from male to mahu years earlier.

In the documentary, Wong-Kalu, who is referred to as Kumu Hina, explains that historically in Native Hawaiian culture, mahu were valued and respected as caretakers, healers and teachers of cultural knowledge and ancient traditions.

“A Place in the Middle” and its learning materials, subtitled, “A Strength-Based Approach to Gender Diversity and Inclusion,” can be viewed online at 808ne.ws/3ApA6hQ.

While 60% of DreamHouse’s students are at least part Native Hawaiian, the school believes learning about mahu could benefit families of all ethnicities.

“By centering Native Hawaiian knowledge and education around mahu identity (third gender identity), this project will bridge conversations related to cultural practices and Western LGBTQ+ topics and language,” said a statement from the It Gets Better Project.

The program comes at a time when LGBTQ issues and people are more visible globally that ever but still are often the targets of violence, harassment, bias and misunderstanding.

Mandado recalled his own early trials with his parents, who didn’t understand at first what it meant for him to be gay but have since evolved to accept him. He feels for his young charges. “We do have students who are not ‘out’ yet to their family members. They struggle with, ‘When is it the right time to tell my family?’

“Sometimes the pushback (from parents) is not because of hatred, but because they’re just not aware of these concepts. They just don’t have the language or understanding of that,” Mandado said. “We want the school to be proactive in educating family members so when the time is ready, they have the language to support their kids.”