HAWAII'S SCHOOLS
COURTESY OF HAWAII PREPARATORY ACADEMY
Hawaii Preparatory Academy students took part in activities related to Hawaiian culture during the school's Ho'olaulea on Feb. 23.
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Cultural celebration
Big Island students learn about traditional Hawaiian life
By Will Sims
Hawaii Preparatory Academy
Students got a taste of ancient Hawaiian life during Hawaii Preparatory Academy's first Ho'olaulea celebration Feb. 23. Students participated in a variety of activities relating to Hawaiian culture, including lau hala and coconut frond weaving, building an imu, Hawaiian quilting and studying the canoe and way-finding methods practiced by the ancient Polynesians.
Hawaii Preparatory Academy
Faculty adviser
Jo Piltz
Editor
Will Sims
Address
65-1692 Kohala Mountain Road
Kamuela, HI 96743
Phone number
(808) 885-7321
Headmaster
Olaf Jorgenson
Nickname
Ka Makani ("The Wind")
Founded
1949
Enrollment
331 (grades 9-12)
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Several groups left campus to visit historically significant places around the Big Island, such as Kaloko-Honokohau National Historic Park, Puu Wa'awa'a cone at Pu'uanahulu and sections of the Ala Loa Trail. At Kaloko-Honokohau, the students learned about ancient Hawaiian fish farming techniques, as well as modern fisheries' conservation methods. At the Puu Wa'awa'a cone, students got a rare glimpse inside a pristine conservation area. Another group traversed parts of the Ala Loa Trail, a path that was used in ancient times to connect different parts of the island.
Two other groups traveled to the ocean to go fishing. One group went shore fishing, while the other group boarded a boat and went deep-sea fishing with English teacher Kimo Higgins. The highlight came with the shore group, when senior Spencer Schutte caught a 40-pound ulua.
Ho'olaulea is the Hawaiian word for "festival" or "celebration," which was the spirit event organizer Mary-Alice Nogues was trying to capture.
"We wanted people to have fun while learning about an element of Hawaiian culture," she said.
Wilson Inman, a sophomore who participated in building the imu, said Ho'olaulea "was pretty fun."
"I had never built an imu before, so it was really cool to see how it's done," he said.
On Feb. 24 the students and families attended the Ho'ike, or sharing, presentation in the HPA gymnasium. Representatives from each group discussed what they had done and showed pictures taken during the activities. Students regaled the audience with singing, hula and ukulele music, which they had learned in their groups the previous day. After the presentations, there was a dinner of kalua pig, poi, lomi salmon and haupia, prepared by students, faculty and staff.
Ho'olaulea was created to replace the traditional Hawaiian song contest that HPA held in years past.
"Song contest took a lot of time and was not as strong a cultural experience," Nogues said. The school administration decided to try more of an activity-based culture day, and the decision was met with favorable response.
Many hope Ho'olaulea will become an HPA tradition for many years to come.
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Now museum, now you don't: HPA does art!
The school offers two galleries, and students get to visit exhibits in Honolulu
By Hyunwha Choi and Eunhee Park
Hawaii Preparatory Academy
Although Hawaii Preparatory Academy is located in the tiny town of Waimea on the Big Island, the school offers a diverse art program and actually owns many famous pieces of art. Many people have donated these paintings and statues to the school, and now they are housed in Isaac's Art Gallery on the HPA Village Campus in town.
Most students are familiar with the Gerry Clark Art Center on the upper campus. This facility was built in 1996 by Henry Clark in memory of his late wife. In ceramic labs, the darkroom and the large central studio, students work on glazed ceramics, photography projects and other two- and three-dimensional projects, which are then displayed in the school dining room.
Students can also take art history courses, in which they learn more about the styles of art around the world and through the ages. There are even advanced placement courses in which students can earn college credit.
The art history students expanded the classroom further when they made a trip to Honolulu to view different art styles, both ancient and modern, at the Honolulu Academy of Arts and the Contemporary Art Museum. The students particularly enjoyed seeing drawings by Geoffrey Chadsey during the trip.
The Honolulu trip earlier this month also enabled art students to enjoy the art and music of the Honolulu Opera Company production of "Madama Butterfly" during the same weekend. Students were impressed with the stage design and surprised at how modern the costumes were.
HPA is a small school in a small town, but thanks to dedicated art teachers, students can hone their talents and enrich their art experiences on both campuses and in Honolulu. Best of all, these experiences are shared with faculty who care deeply about both students and art.
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YOU ASKED
"What are the advantages and disadvantages of boarding at HPA versus just attending during the day?"
Sierra Davies
Freshman day student
"My hours at home are freer, but sometimes I wish I could spend more time with all my boarding friends."
Justin Truong
Freshman boarder
"I prefer the organized life as a boarder. I can get my work done better, and my friends in the dorm are like family. No one has to drive me to spend time with them. We are really close."
Pear Khli-in
Junior boarder
"My teachers are like friends in the dorm, and I can always get help with my assignments."
Jony Chute
Freshman day student
"It's really expensive to board, but it is a good learning experience for a college preparatory school. You learn to live on your own even though there is less free time."
Auli'i Fujimoto
Sophomore boarder
"Sometimes it's a lot of trouble to get the sign-out paper work done for weekends at home, but I always get my homework done more consistently because there is study hall time set aside every night in the dorm."
Taro Iwatani
Junior boarder
"It's hard living so far from my family in Japan, but coming here was my decision and it will help me to get into a good college."
Sean Preston
Freshman day student
"I have more freedom at home, even though taking the bus back and forth from Waikoloa is harder. It will be easier when I can drive myself."
Keone Colson
Freshman day student
"Sometimes I wish I were in the dorm because I could always find a computer and printer on campus."