Posted on: Thursday, January 6, 2005
OUR SCHOOLS | PEARL CITY HIGH SCHOOL
Music program is student magnet
By Treena Shapiro
Advertiser Education Writer
With a celebrated band and performing arts program, and French courses rarely found in Hawai'i's public schools, Pearl City High School attracts more than 400 students from outside the district each year.
Gregory Yamamoto • The Honolulu Advertiser Band director Mike Nakasone is one of just a few high school band directors invited to join the prestigious American Bandmasters Association.
The band is so successful that its participants have been able to raise $9 million over the past 15 years to subsidize their travel to such events at the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade in New York City, the Tournament of Roses Parade in Pasadena, Calif., and other prestigious events in Chicago and Canada.
• What are you most proud of? "Several things," Suyama said, listing the athletic and band programs, strong academic and special-education programs and a spacious cafeteria and library among them.
• Best-kept secret: About a quarter of the teaching staff graduated from Pearl City High School and chose to come back to teach, Suyama said. The school also has strong drug treatment and smoking cessation programs for students. • Our biggest challenge: "I think drugs have always been a challenge," Suyama said. "Smoking is very tough to deal with." In addition, the principal noted the "unrealistic" challenge under the federal No Child Left Behind Act, which is to have every child successful both academically and socially.
• What we need: "I need more teachers," said Suyama. Ten extra teachers would allow him to reduce class size to the point where teachers could really start helping more students meet the standards, he said. • Special events: Mayfair, the May Day program and the Uta Matsuri song festival.
Reach Treena Shapiro at tshapiro@honoluluadvertiser.com or 525-8014.
The music program is a particular draw. The marching band is frequently seen at University of Hawai'i athletic events and in parades here and on the Mainland. In addition, principal Gerald Suyama notes, "Our concert band may be the best in the nation," with a wind ensemble earning standing ovations at international events.
Built in 1971, Pearl City High School occupies a hilly campus that accommodates 2,000 students, including 400 from outside the district. About one-fourth of the teaching staff graduated from Pearl City High and chose to come back to join the faculty team.
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| At a glance
Where: 2100 Ho'oki'eki'e St., Pearl City Phone: 453-6500 Principal: Gerald Suyama, 18 years School nickname: Chargers School colors: Purple and white Web address: http://165.248.121.104/ How Pearl City High students fared on the most recent standardized tests: Stanford Achievement Test. Listed is the combined percentage of students scoring average and above average, compared with the national combined average of 77 percent: 10th-grade reading, 66 percent; math, 74 percent. Hawai'i Content and Performance Standards tests. Listed is the combined percentage of students meeting or exceeding state standards, and a comparison with the state average: 10th-grade reading, 45 percent, compared with 40.2 percent; math, 32 percent, compared with 19.4 percent. History: The school was built in 1971 and had its first graduating class in 1974. Initial plans called for both a middle and high school to share the site, so the high school has an oversize cafeteria and library even though the middle school ended up being located elsewhere. Over the past two years the state has been working on $10 million in improvements to make the hilly campus compliant with the federal Americans With Disabilities Act. Enrollment: 2,000 students, in school built for 2,000. Computers: More than 200, with at least one in every classroom and two computer labs. |
