As a proud graduate of the Kamehameha Schools-Kapalama campus, I am extremely disappointed and disgusted in what has been the schools’ response to the sexual allegations against Dr. Robert Browne.

To date, over 30 former patients of Browne, many of whom attended Kamehameha between the 1950s and early 1980s, have sued the school, Browne’s estate and St. Francis Medical Center, where Browne was a psychiatrist, for “negligence and other alleged wrongdoing” in failing to fulfill their obligation to protect students from Browne’s sexual molestation.

In sworn depositions from school officials from the 1990s, it was acknowledged that no thorough investigation was conducted, despite known allegations.

Following the suicide of Browne in 1991, many former students came forward to allege that they had been sexually abused and molested by him while they were at Kamehameha. The school failed to report any of the allegations to law enforcement and did not reach out to former students who were treated by Browne to investigate or provide assistance.

For many, including myself, Kamehameha serves as a beacon of light for Native Hawaiians, a legacy of Bernice Pauahi’s vision to create a school for Native Hawaiians that would produce good and industrious men and women. Yet, for many of the students apparently repeatedly abused by Browne, Kamehameha was no such place. These students lived in silence for decades.

Take responsibility: E ho‘okanaka!

Former president and headmaster, Dr. Michael J. Chun, knew of the accusations against Browne and admitted that he did not report it to officials.

As someone who greatly admired Dr. Chun during my tenure at Kamehameha, I am dismayed and abhored by his lack of proper actions to address this matter. When he was questioned why he did not do something in the years following to provide assistance to Browne’s victims, he responded, “Doing nothing is doing something, right?”

No, Dr. Chun, doing nothing is not doing something! The lives of young Native Hawaiians, many of whom possessed immense pride for gaining admittance into our prestigious school, were ruined by the schools’ action of “doing nothing.” What if your grandchild was molested and the school that you entrusted him/her to attend failed to protect them?

Now, more than 25 years after the first allegations were brought to light, the school is involved in a lawsuit that questions how much responsibility Kamehameha should bear for the sexual assaults and years of suffering. Have the 34 former students not suffered enough by the institution’s inability to act?

E ho‘okanaka!

Kamehameha needs to own up to its action (of doing nothing) and take responsibility.

The mental, physical and emotional well-being of these one-time students were forever impacted by the traumatizing experiences endured while in school. Many suffered for decades in silence, often wondering if they were the only ones who were abused. E ho‘okanaka!

Is this how we care for our keiki and haumana? Is this how Pauahi would have wanted us to care for our keiki? Is the public image of the school more important than the wellbeing of its students?

I am openly critical of the school for its actions because of the everlasting aloha that I have for Kamehameha.

As beneficiaries of the school, we must hold Kamehameha to the highest standard because we have a responsibility to ensure that Pauahi’s vision endures in perpetuity.

My message to CEO Jack Wong, the board of trustees and the rest of the Kamehameha leadership is this: E ho‘okanaka! As a Hawaiian institution, you need to hold yourself to a higher standard. You have a responsibility to pale or protect and act in the best interests of the students that you serve and are obligated to protect.

Take responsibility for past actions (or lack thereof) and seek justice and reparation for those individuals who were violated decades ago. If you are truly remorseful for the institution’s inability to act, end the legal battles, right the wrongs that were committed and begin the process of healing for all involved. E ho‘okanaka!

Jacob Bryan K. Aki, a graduate of the Kamehameha Schools, is pursuing his M.A. in political management at George Washington University.