01-09-2008, 06:12 AM
I apologize folks. I was deleting a post and removed a topic by mistake. I am restoring most of it here with the help of Damon (thanks!).
Punaweb moderator
I have a daughter that will be starting her 10th grade year and was wondering what high schools in Puna you would recommend.
Maholo,
Sharlee
When life gives you lemons....trade them for chocolate!
Carey
Punatic
1227 Posts
Posted - 01/06/2008 : 12:43:43
I have heard good reports on Connections Public Charter High School (in Hilo, but there is bus service to Puna) and Hawaii Academy of Arts & Science (HAAS) Public Charter in Pahoa, some good about Waters of Life Public Charter in Keaau (there are 2 start up Hawaiian Immersion Charters in Puna, but do not have any experience with these two. The other 2 Public High Schools (Pahoa & Keaau) are more mixed results, they are getting better, but can be rough for some students.
pohaku
malihini
USA
64 Posts
Posted - 01/07/2008 : 23:17:27
home school her, the public schools are rated with the lowest in the country and Water's of life was sued by the DOE
Johnnycake
Starting Member
USA
29 Posts
Posted - 01/08/2008 : 02:25:19
Aloha,
I second Carey...check out Hawaii Academy of Arts & Science (HAAS) Public Charter in Pahoa.
loffelkopffl
USA
423 Posts
Posted - 01/08/2008 : 06:38:01
i also have friends at connections and here nothing but good from them
billy
Starting Member
USA
37 Posts
Posted - 01/08/2008 : 09:28:08 Show Profile Email Poster Reply with Quote
yeah im not from hawaii but grew up a little in eva beach on ohau and everyday you are made to fight it was the girls too. If can you should home school or not public schools
punafish
175 Posts
Posted - 01/08/2008 : 09:40:20
Please don't make the mistake of lumping the Charter Schools in with the standard DOE public schools. I've heard wonderful things about Connections, as well as the negative reviews of Waters of Life.
But I will speak only from my personal experience: I sit on the local school board at Hawaii Academy of Arts & Sciences and my 18-year is in his senior year. (His 2nd year at HAAS, he's loving it; he also sits on the school board as a student rep) I know all HAAS's "warts", and still have to say it's a wonderful school with a great vision. And they just keep getting better, thanks to Steve Hirakami's leadership. Because of HAAS's success and the value they add to the community, the word is out: we now have a long waiting list of kids trying to get in.
I recommend you contact HAAS (or Connections) asap to get your child on the waiting list. Your children don't have to be home-schooled to get a good education here. Charter schools are the way to go.
Good luck. Email me privately if you'd like more information.
Aloha!
pohaku
malihini
USA
64 Posts
Posted - 01/08/2008 : 12:54:20
I had a friend with a daughter in (HAAS) and pulled her out cause of some poo poo there as well. I won't say anything specific until I get from the horses mouth, so to speak.
If I had a child of high school age they'd definitely be home schooled. 1 on 1 is always better than 1 on 30-40 or even 12. But try and see for you own self. The young cellist who played at the (Malama lama Renn/holiday faire), they just had. Was the young lass, Isolde Callihan, (see the HPPOA summer issue news), that won the National Geographic Bee for the State of Hawaii. Beat out 55 other students from all the schools, Kamehameha, St. Joseph's, any charter or public.
And she was home schooled.
punafish
175 Posts
Posted - 01/08/2008 : 20:41:32
Sharlee,
2 years ago I asked folks on punaweb to recommend a good high school for my (then) 16-year old. Lots of folks chimed in with their opinions. One person told me HAAS was a horrible school, open drug use, poor academic performance�, etc, etc. (For the record, my son says he's never seen anyone doing drugs on campus, and he just achieved a very high score on his SAT) Anyway, knowing that some people just love to complain, I had to check for myself. I met the principle at HAAS, spoke with teachers and students, and drew my own conclusion. Looking back over the last year and a half, HAAS has turned out to be one of the highlights of living in Puna. Sure glad I checked for myself.
Choosing a school is a very personal choice. So is the choice to home-school. If you have the talent, patience, commitment and discipline to home-school your child and you aren't concerned about (or can overcome) the socialization issues of a home-school environment, then by all means go for it. But don't buy the 1 on 1 is always better than argument; don't base your decision on hearsay of one child who may or may not have had a bad experience; and don't base it on whether a home-schooled gifted student won a memorization contest. Listen, research, then do your due diligence.
Your childâs academic success is tied more to parenting than any rule-of-thumb ratio. One-on-one could be a wonderful situation; it could also be a terrible decision if the parent lacks the skill, motivation, patience and discipline to home-school. If youre a good parent and your child is motivated, he/she will do well at HAAS (or Connections or even—gasp--Pahoa High School).
The good news is that home-schooling is not an either/or option: if home-schooling is your thing, HAAS has an Ohana program to support you. Connections might have a similar program as well. You have more viable options than you think.
If your daughter would like to talk to an actual student at HAAS, email me and we can arrange something.
Aloha and good luck!
Tim
pohaku
malihini
USA
64 Posts
Posted - 01/09/2008 : 08:29:52
A "memorization contest"? That's really a nasty snip it.
Would be like saying the SAT scores are a memorization assessment?
You haven't heard the dirt on HAAS, as every institution has. Maybe I can get the person who has the other side of the coin to post.
But don't wait, she's got more important things to do, like make sure her daughter gets educated to the best of her ability.
You reduce someone's academic accomplishment to a "memorization contest" would it seems narrow minded, and ill informed.
punafish
175 Posts
Posted - 01/09/2008 : 08:40:05
Sharlee,
I'm not going to go tit for tat and hijack this thread. My point is that you have to find out for yourself.
Pohaku, I made a point to acknowledge that she was a gifted student. I just don't think anecdotal evidence (winning an academic contest) should sway a parent's decision. Neither should someone's scores on the SAT. Just making the point that what people say doesn't necessarily reflect the reality. So sorry if I offended. Aloha.
Rob Tucker
Kama'aina
1167 Posts
Posted - 01/09/2008 : 09:09:41
I have two girls in HAAS. Both love it there. When they started this year, after the first day in a new school they came home saying "That was the best first day of school ever!!". Deep into the year there is zero report of fights, happy reports of teachers, lots of friends and good times.
Punaweb moderator
I have a daughter that will be starting her 10th grade year and was wondering what high schools in Puna you would recommend.
Maholo,
Sharlee
When life gives you lemons....trade them for chocolate!
Carey
Punatic
1227 Posts
Posted - 01/06/2008 : 12:43:43
I have heard good reports on Connections Public Charter High School (in Hilo, but there is bus service to Puna) and Hawaii Academy of Arts & Science (HAAS) Public Charter in Pahoa, some good about Waters of Life Public Charter in Keaau (there are 2 start up Hawaiian Immersion Charters in Puna, but do not have any experience with these two. The other 2 Public High Schools (Pahoa & Keaau) are more mixed results, they are getting better, but can be rough for some students.
pohaku
malihini
USA
64 Posts
Posted - 01/07/2008 : 23:17:27
home school her, the public schools are rated with the lowest in the country and Water's of life was sued by the DOE
Johnnycake
Starting Member
USA
29 Posts
Posted - 01/08/2008 : 02:25:19
Aloha,
I second Carey...check out Hawaii Academy of Arts & Science (HAAS) Public Charter in Pahoa.
loffelkopffl
USA
423 Posts
Posted - 01/08/2008 : 06:38:01
i also have friends at connections and here nothing but good from them
billy
Starting Member
USA
37 Posts
Posted - 01/08/2008 : 09:28:08 Show Profile Email Poster Reply with Quote
yeah im not from hawaii but grew up a little in eva beach on ohau and everyday you are made to fight it was the girls too. If can you should home school or not public schools
punafish
175 Posts
Posted - 01/08/2008 : 09:40:20
Please don't make the mistake of lumping the Charter Schools in with the standard DOE public schools. I've heard wonderful things about Connections, as well as the negative reviews of Waters of Life.
But I will speak only from my personal experience: I sit on the local school board at Hawaii Academy of Arts & Sciences and my 18-year is in his senior year. (His 2nd year at HAAS, he's loving it; he also sits on the school board as a student rep) I know all HAAS's "warts", and still have to say it's a wonderful school with a great vision. And they just keep getting better, thanks to Steve Hirakami's leadership. Because of HAAS's success and the value they add to the community, the word is out: we now have a long waiting list of kids trying to get in.
I recommend you contact HAAS (or Connections) asap to get your child on the waiting list. Your children don't have to be home-schooled to get a good education here. Charter schools are the way to go.
Good luck. Email me privately if you'd like more information.
Aloha!
pohaku
malihini
USA
64 Posts
Posted - 01/08/2008 : 12:54:20
I had a friend with a daughter in (HAAS) and pulled her out cause of some poo poo there as well. I won't say anything specific until I get from the horses mouth, so to speak.
If I had a child of high school age they'd definitely be home schooled. 1 on 1 is always better than 1 on 30-40 or even 12. But try and see for you own self. The young cellist who played at the (Malama lama Renn/holiday faire), they just had. Was the young lass, Isolde Callihan, (see the HPPOA summer issue news), that won the National Geographic Bee for the State of Hawaii. Beat out 55 other students from all the schools, Kamehameha, St. Joseph's, any charter or public.
And she was home schooled.
punafish
175 Posts
Posted - 01/08/2008 : 20:41:32
Sharlee,
2 years ago I asked folks on punaweb to recommend a good high school for my (then) 16-year old. Lots of folks chimed in with their opinions. One person told me HAAS was a horrible school, open drug use, poor academic performance�, etc, etc. (For the record, my son says he's never seen anyone doing drugs on campus, and he just achieved a very high score on his SAT) Anyway, knowing that some people just love to complain, I had to check for myself. I met the principle at HAAS, spoke with teachers and students, and drew my own conclusion. Looking back over the last year and a half, HAAS has turned out to be one of the highlights of living in Puna. Sure glad I checked for myself.
Choosing a school is a very personal choice. So is the choice to home-school. If you have the talent, patience, commitment and discipline to home-school your child and you aren't concerned about (or can overcome) the socialization issues of a home-school environment, then by all means go for it. But don't buy the 1 on 1 is always better than argument; don't base your decision on hearsay of one child who may or may not have had a bad experience; and don't base it on whether a home-schooled gifted student won a memorization contest. Listen, research, then do your due diligence.
Your childâs academic success is tied more to parenting than any rule-of-thumb ratio. One-on-one could be a wonderful situation; it could also be a terrible decision if the parent lacks the skill, motivation, patience and discipline to home-school. If youre a good parent and your child is motivated, he/she will do well at HAAS (or Connections or even—gasp--Pahoa High School).
The good news is that home-schooling is not an either/or option: if home-schooling is your thing, HAAS has an Ohana program to support you. Connections might have a similar program as well. You have more viable options than you think.
If your daughter would like to talk to an actual student at HAAS, email me and we can arrange something.
Aloha and good luck!
Tim
pohaku
malihini
USA
64 Posts
Posted - 01/09/2008 : 08:29:52
A "memorization contest"? That's really a nasty snip it.
Would be like saying the SAT scores are a memorization assessment?
You haven't heard the dirt on HAAS, as every institution has. Maybe I can get the person who has the other side of the coin to post.
But don't wait, she's got more important things to do, like make sure her daughter gets educated to the best of her ability.
You reduce someone's academic accomplishment to a "memorization contest" would it seems narrow minded, and ill informed.
punafish
175 Posts
Posted - 01/09/2008 : 08:40:05
Sharlee,
I'm not going to go tit for tat and hijack this thread. My point is that you have to find out for yourself.
Pohaku, I made a point to acknowledge that she was a gifted student. I just don't think anecdotal evidence (winning an academic contest) should sway a parent's decision. Neither should someone's scores on the SAT. Just making the point that what people say doesn't necessarily reflect the reality. So sorry if I offended. Aloha.
Rob Tucker
Kama'aina
1167 Posts
Posted - 01/09/2008 : 09:09:41
I have two girls in HAAS. Both love it there. When they started this year, after the first day in a new school they came home saying "That was the best first day of school ever!!". Deep into the year there is zero report of fights, happy reports of teachers, lots of friends and good times.
Assume the best and ask questions.
Punaweb moderator
Punaweb moderator
