The American Lung Association in Hawaii has received a $2,500 grant from Alexander & Baldwin to help conduct its Open Airways for Schools + Parents program.

The money will be used to purchase a laptop computer and projector for presentations to help asthmatic students manage their condition.

Asthma is the most prevalent chronic health problem among Hawaii children and a leading cause of hospitalization, emergency room and doctor visits and school absenteeism, ALA in Hawaii said.

Hawaiian and Japanese children have disproportionately higher asthma rates compared with state and national averages, it said. The rate for Hawaiian and part-Hawaiian children is nearly twice the national rate.

ALA in Hawaii Executive Director Jean Evans said A&B's support will improve transmission of information to students, parents and school personnel so they can identify warning signs of an asthma attack and eliminate asthma “;triggers”; in the children's environments.