The Hawai\u02bbi State Department of Education (HIDOE) is partnering with GoKid, the leading school carpooling company, to launch a carpooling option to help families get students to and from school while easing the impact of bus driver shortages and reducing traffic around campuses. Beginning this summer, families at 14 schools will gain access to GoKid\u2019s carpooling platform as part of a pilot program for the 2025\u201326 school year.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Between July 27 and 30, families with children attending schools in O\u02bbahu\u2019s Mililani Complex and Maui\u2019s Kekaulike Complex received an invitation to join GoKid\u2019s secure, school-specific platform. The system enables families to connect with other school families who live nearby and coordinate carpools through GoKid\u2019s web and mobile apps.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
This initiative provides families with a practical, community-based solution to reduce their daily transportation burden while helping address limited bus routes. Already operating in 10 states and Canada, GoKid\u2019s expansion to Hawai\u02bbi offers a unique opportunity to assess the impact of a carpooling platform implemented across school complexes (a high school and its feeder elementary and middle schools). Traditional school bus services will continue to operate as normal, with GoKid offered as a supplement to existing transportation options.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cWith attendance being a top priority for our schools, this pilot gives families a simple, flexible way to work together on getting students to school,\u201d Superintendent Keith Hayashi said. \u201cBy partnering with GoKid, we\u2019re supporting families without access to bus service and helping ease traffic and congestion around our campuses.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The program recognizes that parents often make multiple daily trips to accommodate drop-offs, pick-ups, and after-school activities. GoKid makes it easier for families to share that responsibility, saving time and strengthening neighborhood connections. By tracking CO\u2082 reductions and miles saved, the initiative also supports Hawai\u02bbi\u2019s statewide sustainability goals.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Key Features and Benefits:<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cWe\u2019re impressed with the leadership at HIDOE for their vision to bring innovative solutions like ours to families,\u201d said Stefanie Lemcke, GoKid Founder & CEO. \u201cWe\u2019ve seen how communities thrive when families are empowered to work together on school transportation, and we\u2019re excited to help families in Hawai\u02bbi reclaim time while building stronger connections.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Participating schools will communicate more information to families.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Founded in 2016, GoKid is a secure carpooling platform built to make parent carpooling easier, with over 1.5 million carpool trips scheduled. GoKid Connect is a school carpooling platform built specifically for school communities and operating in 11 states and Canada.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
<\/p>\n<\/details>\n\n\n\n The HIDOE is partnering with GoKid to launch a pilot carpooling program at 14 public schools during the 2025\u201326 school year. The program helps families connect with nearby school families to share rides, easing the burden of daily transportation, reducing traffic, and addressing bus driver shortages.<\/p>\n<\/details>\n\n\n\n The pilot program includes 14 schools across two complexes: Mililani Complex and Kekaulike Complex.<\/p>\n<\/details>\n\n\n\n GoKid invitations were sent to families at participating schools between July 28-30, depending on the school.<\/p>\n<\/details>\n\n\n\n Recognizing that the nationwide school bus driver shortage would continue to impact some HIDOE families, the Department began exploring GoKid\u2019s school carpooling platform in early 2024 as a potential resource for families with limited or unavailable bus service. The pilot follows a careful vetting and implementation process.<\/p>\n<\/details>\n\n\n\n Families at participating schools received an Invitation Email from GoKid with easy, step-by-step instructions to opt-in and start connecting with other school families who live near them and who have opted in. These families can also sign up from the GoKid website at www.gokid.mobi.<\/p>\n<\/details>\n\n\n\n No, participation is completely voluntary. In fact, families need to first register and opt in before they can participate.<\/p>\n<\/details>\n\n\n\n Families can opt out of the program at any time. Participation is completely voluntary.<\/p>\n<\/details>\n\n\n\n GoKid allows families to see other opted-in families from their school who live nearby. You can message others, send or receive carpool invites, and schedule rides through GoKid\u2019s web and mobile apps.<\/p>\n<\/details>\n\n\n\n No, GoKid is not a rideshare app. It is a secure, parent-to-parent platform that enables families to connect and organize traditional carpools\u2014just as they would normally, but with GoKid giving them a broader view of school families who live nearby.<\/p>\n<\/details>\n\n\n\n GoKid is a private, school-specific platform. Only families from the school who have opted in can participate. Each carpool is arranged by parents directly, one-on-one. Safety features include live trip monitoring.<\/p>\n<\/details>\n\n\n\n No. GoKid does not assign or match families. Just like with traditional carpooling, parents are in full control. You decide who to carpool with and coordinate all details directly with those families.<\/p>\n<\/details>\n\n\n\n No. GoKid is not a rideshare service. It helps parents arrange carpools among families within your school community\u2014not with anonymous or assigned drivers. Parents can message other families, arrange to meet, and build trust before deciding whether to form a carpool. You should only carpool with families you know and feel comfortable with.<\/p>\n<\/details>\n\n\n\n Only other families at your child\u2019s school who have opted in can view your name and your student\u2019s name and grade. Emails, phone numbers, and addresses are not shared unless both families choose to carpool together and they create a carpool on the GoKid app.<\/p>\n<\/details>\n\n\n\n No. GoKid does not replace school buses. It\u2019s an optional solution for families who need transportation support where buses are not available or prefer to share the drive.<\/p>\n<\/details>\n\n\n\n This pilot includes 14 public schools. HIDOE will evaluate the results and consider expansion based on outcomes.<\/p>\n<\/details>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" The Hawai\u02bbi State Department of Education (HIDOE) is partnering with GoKid, the leading school carpooling company, to launch a carpooling option to help families get students to and from school while easing the impact of bus driver shortages and reducing traffic around campuses. Beginning this summer, families at 14 schools will gain access to GoKid\u2019s […]<\/p>","protected":false},"author":14,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_relevanssi_hide_post":"","_relevanssi_hide_content":"","_relevanssi_pin_for_all":"","_relevanssi_pin_keywords":"","_relevanssi_unpin_keywords":"","_relevanssi_related_keywords":"","_relevanssi_related_include_ids":"","_relevanssi_related_exclude_ids":"","_relevanssi_related_no_append":"","_relevanssi_related_not_related":"","_relevanssi_related_posts":"1619,10914,10921,14108,16467,16234","_relevanssi_noindex_reason":"","_sitemap_exclude":false,"_sitemap_priority":"","_sitemap_frequency":"","_kad_blocks_custom_css":"","_kad_blocks_head_custom_js":"","_kad_blocks_body_custom_js":"","_kad_blocks_footer_custom_js":"","wp_popup_display_lightbox":0,"wp_popup_suppress":"","wp_popup_trigger":"","wp_popup_trigger_amount":0,"wp_popup_disable_on_mobile":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[21],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-14249","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-news"],"pp_statuses_selecting_workflow":false,"pp_workflow_action":"current","pp_status_selection":"publish","taxonomy_info":{"category":[{"value":21,"label":"News"}]},"featured_image_src_large":false,"author_info":{"display_name":"Nanea Ching","author_link":"https:\/\/hawaiipublicschools.org\/tl\/author\/nanea-chingk12-hi-us\/"},"comment_info":0,"category_info":[{"term_id":21,"name":"News","slug":"news","term_group":0,"term_taxonomy_id":21,"taxonomy":"category","description":"","parent":0,"count":306,"filter":"raw","cat_ID":21,"category_count":306,"category_description":"","cat_name":"News","category_nicename":"news","category_parent":0}],"tag_info":false,"publishpress_future_action":{"enabled":false,"date":"2026-04-14 21:00:36","action":"change-status","newStatus":"draft","terms":[],"taxonomy":"post_status","extraData":[]},"publishpress_future_workflow_manual_trigger":{"enabledWorkflows":[]},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/hawaiipublicschools.org\/tl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/14249","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/hawaiipublicschools.org\/tl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/hawaiipublicschools.org\/tl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/hawaiipublicschools.org\/tl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/14"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/hawaiipublicschools.org\/tl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=14249"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/hawaiipublicschools.org\/tl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/14249\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/hawaiipublicschools.org\/tl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=14249"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/hawaiipublicschools.org\/tl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=14249"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/hawaiipublicschools.org\/tl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=14249"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}What is HIDOE\u2019s GoKid pilot program?<\/summary>\n
Which schools are participating in the pilot?<\/summary>\n
When does the program start?<\/summary>\n
How did the program come about?<\/summary>\n
How do parents join the program?<\/summary>\n
Is participation required?<\/summary>\n
What if a family joins and wants to opt out later?<\/summary>\n
How does GoKid help me find other families?<\/summary>\n
Is GoKid a rideshare app?<\/summary>\n
Is GoKid safe?<\/summary>\n
Will I be matched with other families?<\/summary>\n
Will my child be driving with strangers?<\/summary>\n
Who can see my information?<\/summary>\n
Does this replace school bus service?<\/summary>\n
Will the program expand to other schools?<\/summary>\n