OUR SCHOOLS • HAWAI'I PREPATORY ACADEMY
Waimea campus motivates kids
By Kevin Dayton
Advertiser Big Island Bureau
WAIMEA, Hawai'i — Students at Hawaii Preparatory Academy's audio-visual program gather and edit fresh material each week, recording musical performances, athletic events, the accomplishments of the school's equestrian program or the dedication of a new building.
Kevin Dayton • The Honolulu Advertiser
They use the material gathered from the busy Waimea campus as fodder for what is known as the MMV, or Monday Morning Video, shown at a school assembly at the start of each week.
Hawaii Preparatory Academy students Joseph Huang, Tiare Devenot and Allie Harmon gather with other students to watch an experiment in instructor Kawika Lynn's physical sciences class.
"The idea is, this is what other students have done, so what have you done?" said George Watson, who is audio/visual director for HPA. "Get in there and participate."
Student participation is built into the day at HPA, the Big Island's elite private boarding and day school. Every student must participate in athletics during every year of high school, and headmaster Olaf Jorgenson said the school expanded its service programs last year to include 60 separate projects.
In addition to a demanding curriculum and a hefty load of homework, the school expects boarding and day students to attend a half-day of classes on most Saturdays. Boarding students have jobs in their dorms as well as campus work requirements in the afternoons.
Yearly tuition for day students will increase to $15,000 next year, making HPA one of the most expensive schools in the state, but there is a long list of students hoping to get in. Boarding at the school will cost $30,000 starting next year, and still the school attracts students from more than a dozen nations.
Jorgenson and his governing board have been thinking about that Waimea waiting list, and debating what to do next.
The educational research says HPA is within the optimum range for school size today, and Jorgenson is unwilling to grow HPA if it means increasing class sizes from the current average of 12 students to 16. At the same time, the school seeks a diverse student body with a range of aptitudes and backgrounds, "because the HPA experience is more than academics," he said. "Much more."
What are you most proud of? "I've served at schools all over the world and the level of our faculty and staff commitment is unparalleled. ... Our faculty and staff's tenacious work ethic and their attention to individual student needs are the reasons why our students develop and perform as they do," Jorgenson said. "I go through a lot of thank-you notes."
Best-kept secret: "Our K-12 science program offers extraordinary hands-on learning opportunities — particularly in the marine science area — and provides our students with a very strong preparation for college."
Everybody at our school knows: "Dick Solmssen, who has been teaching English and Latin at HPA for more than 40 years. His sense of humor and positive attitude are contagious. Dick started our horse program in 1957 and continues to run the program today. He's also an accomplished classical guitarist."
Our biggest challenge: "Keeping the cost of a private school education down so more Hawai'i families will consider HPA as an option for their children."
What we need: "More financial aid to support Hawai'i families."
Reach Kevin Dayton at kdayton@honoluluadvertiser.com or (808) 935-3916.
