PUKALANI — Carden Academy of Maui is about to embark on a multimillion-dollar campaign to build a new campus Upcountry, The Maui News reported.

"We just got to that critical mass where we started thinking wouldn't it be nice to have our own purpose-built campus," explained John Harrisson, the private school's executive director.

Currently, the school leases space from Grace Church in Pukalani, across Kula Highway from King Kekaulike High School. It was started in the late-1990s by five mothers seeking an alternative education for their children.

They first got the children together in a garage and then moved to the church, adding a grade each year so that today there are now 118 students in kindergarten through 8th grade. Carden purposely stays small with a limit of no more than 16 students in each class, even with waiting lists in some grades.

The new campus will provide for the current capacity of 144 students, with the option to expand with a preschool and additional classrooms.

The Carden Academy of Maui is based on curriculum of the late educator Mae Carden, who opened her first school in 1934 in New York. Carden's curriculum engages children from the age of 3, with an integrated program that each year re-enforces and builds on strengths gained by the student.

Mae Carden's philosophy involved individualized attention to allow a natural unfolding of the mind, personality and capacities of each student. The curriculum emphasizes interrelationships of the subjects studied.

Third-grade teacher Christie Leval has been teaching the Carden method for seven years and was drawn to the campus because of its specialized programs and small classes.

"It's a safe environment for the children," Leval said.

She said she appreciates the staff camaraderie and the fact that the children require very little discipline.

"There's just this atmosphere of respect because the expectations are really clear," she said.

Carden board Chairman George Martin enrolled all three of his children in Carden and has a granddaughter enrolling this fall.

"Carden's got my heart," he said.

He said he's impressed by the school's academic program, as well as the values passed on to the children such as teaching them to be good neighbors.

Program Director Janet Betsill said students in grades 6 to 8 are provided opportunities to engage in community service projects. Earlier this year, the middle school carpentry group handcrafted three picnic tables, two of which will be used by students on the school campus.

The third was provided to the Pukalani Pool where the county Department of Parks and Recreation identified a need.

Other middle school projects included raising funds for care packages for U.S. troops in Iraq, for the Pacific Primate Center and for the Maui Humane Society. Two years ago, students raised more than $1,500 for the victims of Hurricane Katrina.

"In a school where we emphasize character development and seek to instill values and virtues for a lifetime, it's important to 'think globally and act locally' when it comes to good citizenship and community," Betsill said.

In building its new campus, Harrisson said Carden will ask for support from the community but also propose a facility for the community to hold evening meetings and perhaps weekend events.

With the help of three board members and an "angel," the school acquired 2.85 acres for a campus just down the street from its present location. A preliminary estimate for building the school runs at about $3.5 million, including several portable structures on the current campus to be moved to the new location.

Carden board members and supporters said they realize their capital campaign comes at a time when job layoffs are occurring and people are struggling to pay higher gas and food prices.

"We wouldn't be embarking on this unless we thought we would succeed at achieving this," Harrisson said.

Martin said board members believe they have to make a commitment now to the capital campaign because the school will outgrow its campus very shortly.

"I think anyone who believes in education will make it a priority," he said.

Beth McGregor, a Carden parent volunteering to help with public relations, said she and other parents are committed.

"It's our desire as parents to make this move," she said. "We're a very motivated group."

The fund drive will also set aside financial assistance for families needing help to send their children to the private school. Tuition for students in kindergarten through 5th grade runs between $7,650 and $7,950 a year. The middle school is priced at $8,950 to $9,250.

"We really believe this school can provide a fabulous education, and we want it to be extended to anyone who wants it," McGregor said.

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