"I believe I am a unique and precious human being, my own best friend and my own worst enemy, a loveable and loving person capable of realizing my potential, self-respecting, responsible for my behavior, learning from my mistakes, creating a joyful life — an important part of the universe," the students announce.

Connections has operated for about 10 years — five as a school-within-a-school on the Mountain View School campus in Upper Puna, and almost five years as a stand-alone campus.

The impetus for founding Connections was the size of Mountain View, which at the time had more than 1,000 students in kindergarten through sixth grade.

Children were bused to Mountain View from a wide swath of the surrounding Puna countryside, and "a lot of these rural kids were getting lost. We started our school to address that problem of the alienation, of not just the kids but the families, too," Thatcher said.

Although Connections is in downtown Hilo today, about half of its students come from outside, Thatcher said. About 65 percent of Connections students receive free- and reduced-price lunches. The school now has students in kindergarten through ninth grade, with plans to add a new high school grade each year.

Thatcher said Connections' small size is one of its major strengths. Another is its partnership with the University of Hawai'i at Manoa's Curriculum Research Development Group, which has provided assistance with curriculum. Connections and the University of Hawai'i Laboratory School are now working with CRDG to test a math curriculum developed in Russia and translated into English, Thatcher said.

Connections rents 40,000 square feet on three floors of the Kress Building, sharing space with movie theaters and an ice cream parlor. It has become a comfortable fit.

"We had the school in here, and it just perked up the whole downtown," said Robert "Steamy" Chow, the on-site manager of the Kress Building.

• What are you most proud of? We are most proud of the fact that we are celebrating our 10th anniversary as a school/program, said Thatcher.

• Best-kept secret: Charter schools are public schools. We don't charge tuition.

• Everybody at our school knows: Mr. Bob "Steamy" Chow.

• Our biggest challenge: We receive no money to pay for our facilities. Charter schools must pay for their facilities and staff out of operating funds.

• What we need: Equity with other public schools.

• Special events: Equinox, Solstice, Chinese New Year, Fun Fair, Enrichment Days.