Posted on: Thursday, July 21, 2005
our schools | helemano elementary
Strong relationships remain foundation
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Three-year-old Keahi Kalilikane was among 44 graduates of this year\'s "pre-K" program at Helemano Elementary. The program, which began 12 years ago, prepares incoming kindergarten students for school.
Jeff Widener | The Honolulu Advertiser
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AT A GLANCE
Where: 1001 Ihi Ihi Ave., Whitmore Village, Wahiawa
Phone: 622-6336
Web address: www.helemano .k12.hi.us
Principal: Dennis Kato, 19th year at Helemano, 33rd year with DOE
School nickname: Hornets
School colors: Green/yellow
Enrollment: 575
Notable alumni: Ron Amemiya, the state's attorney general 1974-78; University of Hawai'i regent Andres Albano Jr.; and Roy Ogasawara, an insurance executive and former Green Beret who served three tours in Vietnam, are among the notable alumni of old Helemano School. Amemiya's nieces, Hale Kula Elementary principal Jan Iwase and her sister, state Court of Appeals Judge Corinne Watanabe, and Albano's younger brother, James, who is principal of 'Iliahi Elementary, are graduates of Helemano Elementary at Whitmore Village.
Testing: Here's how Helemano Elementary pupils fared on the most recent standardized tests:
Stanford Achievement Test: Listed is the combined percentage of pupils scoring average and above average, compared with the national combined average of 77 percent. Third-grade reading, 81 percent; math, 90 percent. Fifth-grade reading, 67 percent; math, 71 percent.
Hawai'i Content and Performance Standards tests: Listed is the combined percentage of pupils meeting or exceeding state standards, and a comparison with the state average. Third-grade reading, 40 percent, compared with state average of 46.7 percent; math, 29 percent, compared with 26.7 percent. Fifth-grade reading, 28 percent, compared with state average of 49.9 percent; math, 11 percent, compared with 22.5 percent.
History: Grades K-6 school at current site opened in 1956; old Helemano School, grades 1-8, opened in 1920 and was near current Dole pineapple stand on Kamehameha Highway.
Special programs/classes: Pen Pal activity with 125th Signal Battalion headquartered at Helemano Military Reservation; Project Self-Esteem; Plato classes on computer.
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AT A GLANCE
Where: 1001 Ihi Ihi Ave., Whitmore Village, Wahiawa
Phone: 622-6336
Web address: www.helemano .k12.hi.us
Principal: Dennis Kato, 19th year at Helemano, 33rd year with DOE
School nickname: Hornets
School colors: Green/yellow
Enrollment: 575
Notable alumni: Ron Amemiya, the state's attorney general 1974-78; University of Hawai'i regent Andres Albano Jr.; and Roy Ogasawara, an insurance executive and former Green Beret who served three tours in Vietnam, are among the notable alumni of old Helemano School. Amemiya's nieces, Hale Kula Elementary principal Jan Iwase and her sister, state Court of Appeals Judge Corinne Watanabe, and Albano's younger brother, James, who is principal of 'Iliahi Elementary, are graduates of Helemano Elementary at Whitmore Village.
Testing: Here's how Helemano Elementary pupils fared on the most recent standardized tests:
Stanford Achievement Test: Listed is the combined percentage of pupils scoring average and above average, compared with the national combined average of 77 percent. Third-grade reading, 81 percent; math, 90 percent. Fifth-grade reading, 67 percent; math, 71 percent.
Hawai'i Content and Performance Standards tests: Listed is the combined percentage of pupils meeting or exceeding state standards, and a comparison with the state average. Third-grade reading, 40 percent, compared with state average of 46.7 percent; math, 29 percent, compared with 26.7 percent. Fifth-grade reading, 28 percent, compared with state average of 49.9 percent; math, 11 percent, compared with 22.5 percent.
History: Grades K-6 school at current site opened in 1956; old Helemano School, grades 1-8, opened in 1920 and was near current Dole pineapple stand on Kamehameha Highway.
Special programs/classes: Pen Pal activity with 125th Signal Battalion headquartered at Helemano Military Reservation; Project Self-Esteem; Plato classes on computer.
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By Rod Ohira
Advertiser Central O'ahu Writer
WAHIAWA — There were 380 students in kindergarten through sixth grade, and 20 teachers at Helemano Elementary when principal Dennis Kato arrived at the school 19 years ago.
"When a staff is that small," Kato said, "teachers have to wear many different hats. The school got bigger but the attitude of helping each other out carries on."
Enrollment today is 575 and the teaching staff has grown to 45, but Helemano's students, teachers and parents remain a close-knit group.
In 2006, Helemano will celebrate 50 years at Whitmore Village. From 1920 to 1955, Helemano School was off Kamehameha Highway near the site of the existing Dole pineapple stand, and had classes for grades one through eight.
Kato said assimilation is a challenge because students reflect a cross-culture of military life and family values of the old plantation camps handed down through generations. Thirty percent of the students are from Army and Navy families, and they typically rotate out after three years.
Kato started a three-week summer program called "pre-K" 12 years ago to prepare incoming kindergarten students for school. Forty-four children in this year's "pre-K" class graduated from the program on July 8.
Tomorrow marks the start of the new school year at Helemano.
What are you most proud of? "The professional attitude, dedication and commitment of our staff to address the diverse needs of our school population ... (and) our students who come with a very positive attitude about school and a strong desire to learn," said vice principal Lorraine Tamashiro.
Best-kept secret: The school's location. "We're in the middle of a once-thriving pineapple field," Tamashiro said. "Many people confuse us with Helemano Plantation."
Everybody at our school knows: Health aide Donna Hatzenbuhler, who tends to more than students' health needs. When a child's slipper breaks, it's Hatzenbuhler who comes up with an extra pair, Tamashiro said. Hatzenbuhler, who has been at Helemano for 16 years, also helps organize the school's Fun Run and has been "the underpinning" of its Parent Teacher Organization, Tamashiro noted.
Our biggest challenge: "Meeting the academic, social and emotional needs of our students under the existing guidelines of No Child Left Behind," Tamashiro said.
What we need: A new library. "We had to combine two classrooms 12 years ago to create our existing library," Tamashiro said.
Projects: "In analyzing our standards-based curriculum, we are developing a unique Helemano instructional model that addresses the strengths and interests of our students and incorporates effective instructional strategies that enhance thinking and creativity," Tamashiro said.
Reach Rod Ohira at 535-8181 or rohira@honoluluadvertiser.com
