Hale Kipa is a multi-service, fully accredited 501(c)(3) nonprofit agency that specializes in working with youth and their families who often have nowhere else to turn. Hale Kipa has served more than 71,000 youth throughout Hawai‘i since its beginning in 1970 as a single shelter on O‘ahu. This includes working in partnership with public agencies and private organizations to provide residential, outreach, and foster care services at no cost. With programs that are flexible and responsive to changing needs, Hale Kipa supports youth involved in juvenile justice, behavioral health, education and child welfare. Program goals include stabilizing young people in crisis and helping youth and families build resiliency to experience success in their lives.

There are approximately 173 full-time and part-time employees at Hale Kipa. Each Hale Kipa program has licensing, contractual and accreditation standards that must be met. Employees go through an initial orientation, and some have been through much more extensive training. All receive regular and routine supervision.

To work in a Hale Kipa program that accepts placements from the State’s Child and Adolescent Mental Health Division, all individuals must go through an extensive credentialing process that includes a review of their educational background, verification of employment, a review of reference letters, criminal backgrounds and the child abuse and neglect screenings to assure that the staff working in our programs are not a risk to the youth and/or young adults that they supervise.

Unique characteristics of Hale Kipa which makes us especially qualified to perform our work include our long-standing expertise in the areas of outreach family counseling, emergency shelter, residential treatment, foster care and independent living, flexibility to individualize placement and services, strong and effective working partnerships and collaborations with other community agencies. Hale Kipa’s history speaks to a commitment to youth, willingness to partner, being a strong voice in the community, and leadership in the areas of youth. We are currently licensed as a child-placing agency by the Department of Human Services.