The Hālawa Correctional Facility is the largest prison in the State of Hawaiʻi, housing approximately 900 incarcerated individuals. A portion of this population is transferred to the Saguaro Correctional Center in Arizona—a multi-level security facility that is contracted to house inmates from the Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation (DCR). The correctional population of Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander communities continue to be disproportionately represented throughout Hawaiʻi’s criminal justice and correctional systems. In response, various task forces have called for a new, culturally grounded approach to corrections—one that embraces traditional Hawaiian practices and supports the reintegration of individuals with their families, communities, and the ʻāina, or land.

In alignment with this vision, UHCDC partners with Bowers + Kubota Consulting to co-develop a Strategic Sustainability Master Plan for correctional facilities across the state. As part of this effort, the HCF Proof of Concept Study applies the findings from planning, research, and engagement to reimage three underutilized spaces within the prison as pilots for healing-center facility improvements.

Client: State of Hawaiʻi Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation
Principal Investigators: Cathi Ho Schar FAIA
Project Staff: Creesha Layaoen, Dean Matsumura, Jonathan Stanich
Student Project team: Kiana Dai, Kaylen Daquioag, Thanh Nguyen, Haixin Ruan, Kaimana Tuazon, Hannah Angelika Valencia
Partner: Bowers + Kubota Consulting