This study investigates how students' participation in a place-based science curriculum may influence their place attachment (dependence and identity). Participants attend an urban high school in Hawai'i and are members of different cultural institutions within the school. Students are either enrolled in an environmental science class within the Hawaiian Academy or in a general biology, non-academy affiliated science class. Interview transcripts, field notes, and student documents suggest place-based science had different impacts on student place attachment depending on cultural affiliation within the school. Namely, students in the Hawaiian Academy show greater depth of understanding of science concepts and content, while non-Hawaiian Academy students show interest in the affective aspects of the class. Members from both groups show an increase in the incorporation of the natural environment as an aspect of their place attachments. Results suggest a need for learning opportunities that promote cultures, identities, and literacies not typically recognized in school for all students.