Kapalama Elementary School

Kapalama Elementary School is one of the medium-sized primary schools in Honolulu, Hawaii, operated by Hawaii Department of Education, with 476 students on its rolls from grades pre-K through 5.

Hawaii Department of Education comprises 296 schools with combined enrollment of 167,071 students; Kapalama Elementary School is among them.

On the student-mix side, Kapalama Elementary School lists that 61% of the student body identifies as Asian. Other groups include 16% multiracial, 12% Hispanic, 11% Pacific Islander. By comparison, Honolulu County as a whole is about 42% Asian, so the school skews noticeably more Asian than its surroundings.

Looking at the economic backdrop, Staff filings list 37 full-time-equivalent teachers, which works out to roughly 12.9:1 students per teacher. The state averages around 13.8:1, so this campus is tighter than the state norm typical. Roughly 56% of students at Kapalama Elementary School qualify for free or reduced-price lunch, often used as a Title I proxy. Set against Honolulu County (around 42%), the school's rate is meaningfully above typical.

Around the school, community-level numbers for Honolulu County indicate median household earnings sit near $106,195, roughly 39% of adults have completed at least a four-year degree, and roughly 6% of residents live below the federal poverty line. Kapalama Elementary School is one of 187 public schools in Honolulu County (combined enrollment of about 111,011 students).

Governor Wallace Rider Farrington High School is the nearest neighboring public school, about 0.4 miles from this campus. 8 of the 8 nearest public schools sit inside a five-mile radius.

Geographically, the school is in a high-density area.

Five-year trend. Looking back 7 years, enrollment at Kapalama Elementary School has ticked down 16%, going from 566 students in 2018 to 476 in 2025. Hispanic enrollment moved from 8% to 12% across the same window. The student-to-teacher ratio fell from 15.9:1 in 2018 to 12.9:1 today.

Inside the community feed, posts here usually surface around science fair prep, picture-day reminders, and bus-route questions. Contributors range from current parents to recent graduates and teachers.