HCF has identified the wellbeing and development of our children under age five as a critical community issue at the heart of strengthening Hawaii’s communities. Early childhood development is a smart investment.

Promising Minds Initiative

When the brain is developing at its most rapid rate and babies are forming important social connections, it is easier to lay the foundations for a lifetime of positive behavioral health and wellbeing. The Promising Minds Initiative exists to increase the healthy development of vulnerable children ages 0-5 and build resilience in those who have already experienced the negative effects of trauma in their short lives. Through the Promising Minds Initiative, we hope to set the foundations for positive early childhood behavioral health resulting in long-term benefits to individual children and families, as well as more children on-track for Kindergarten with social, emotional and academic readiness.

The Promising Minds Initiative is funded by Samuel and Mary Castle Foundation, Harold K. Caste Foundation, Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, Stupski Foundation, the Gwenfread Elaine Allen Fund, the Kōaniani Fund, and the Omidiyar Ohana Fund of the Hawai‘i Community Foundation.