Monday message 06.03.2024

Aloha mai kakou to the good people in the learning community of Alaka’i O Kaua’i Charter School. I hope this message finds you in good health and happiness as we conclude the 2023-2024 school year. Sadly, we concluded our on-campus time together last Thursday, and we will miss the joyous sounds of our learners on campus during July and August.

We greatly appreciate the gift of your time as we hosted several events to conclude the school year. The Hoike event was our culminating project-based learning activity, and every student was involved in every classroom at our unique charter school. We greatly appreciate the leadership of Ms. Kate, Kumu Noe, and Kumu Nouveau in helping guide our dedicated staff with this massive project. The stars of the show (as it should be) were our talented learners who clearly shared their learning from the project with all. We hired a professional company from O’ahu to capture the event and hope to share it with you in the coming weeks. Several of the photos for this message came from them.

We also celebrated our fourth annual Alaka’i O Kaua’i Charter School Talent Show on Tuesday and Wednesday last week. We immensely enjoyed the amazing skills, talents, and creativity of the performers who delighted us during the event. We also appreciate that supportive parents are the backbone that helps our students find the courage and fortitude to step up on a stage in front of hundreds of people.

Mahalo nui kakou to our selfless Board of Directors for the countless hours they invested in the search for the incoming Po’okumu. The Board of Directors commenced the search in mid-February and vetted close to 100 candidates for the position. After narrowing the search to the specific needs of our unique charter school, the Board of Directors then spent four different evening sessions in face-to-face interviews with candidates. We greatly appreciate their diligence and strong governance to ensure continued high-quality education at Alaka’i O Kaua’i Charter School, especially with the extra hours invested in this months-long journey.

At our Memorial Day Board of Directors special meeting last Monday we closely examined our process and current reality of hiring a new Director with only a week of school left in the 2023-2024 school year. After lengthy discussions about potential alternatives that would best support our school the Board of Directors did come forward with a proposal that we have all agreed in the best interest of our keiki.

It will be my honor to continue to serve our learning community as the Po’okumu again for the full 2024-2025 school year. The Board of Directors will reopen the Director position in January and hire a Hire Resources company to conduct a national search for candidates. In addition, our school will be hiring two vice principals to create greater internal leadership capacity and ensure that the culture of our school remains uncompromised. We will be announcing the incoming Vice Principal individuals in the coming weeks as we finalize the contractual Union contracts. We appreciate your patience as the Board of Directors diligently searched for a new Director, and it will be a privilege to serve the learning community for an additional six months longer than expected.

Please mark your calendars for Saturday, July 27th which will be our annual Campus Cleanup Day where our learning community comes together in collaboration to kick off the 2024-2025 school year.

Best wishes to you all for a happy, healthy, and restful summer. Looking forward to hearing all the incredible adventures that everyone enjoyed when we get back together for first day of school on Monday, August 5th. Malama pono.

DJ Adams
Po’okumu (Director)
Alaka’i O Kaua’i Charter School
Koloa, Hawai’i