Director DJ’s Message:

Aloha mai kakou to everyone in the learning community of Alaka’i O Kaua’i Charter School, and we hope this message finds you all in good health and happiness as we settle into the month of June.

Mahalo for your support of our unique charter school and we are currently in full-on preparations for the start of the 2023-2024 school year on campus. We have over 20 projects that we will focus our time, attention, and expertise on in June and July as we explore the exciting additions to Alaka’i O Kaua’i Charter School including 7th grade next year.

3 images of AOK staff working on various projects on AOK campus during summer break

We were fortunate to have the talented Sean from Maker Learning Network join us this week on campus to help improve our technology. Sean and our own Jon pulled hundreds of feet of fiber optic cable and we now have internet in the gym plus improved service on the lower campus. The phone system was upgraded to better ensure top-level communication on campus between all classrooms. Mahalo for your excellent work, Sean and Jon.

The ever-artistic Ms. Barb was on campus adding a fresh coat of bright school-colored paint to the benches, tables, and picnic tables that are found in great abundance on our campus. It is wonderful to see many of the drab colors removed and revitalized with vibrant new additions that go along with our school colors. Mahalo Ms. Barb for sharing your talents with us.

Our newly hired Hawai’iana and Physical Education instructor Kumu Nouveau also was on-site power washing away the remnants of the 2022-2023 school throughout the campuses. It is a massive task, especially considering that we use all three campuses daily and have an ever-expanding school population. Mahalo for helping us out on campus, Kumu Nouveau.

One of the major projects going forward will be the transition of the Grade Three classroom. The classroom currently is set up for a Science Lab but with expanding classrooms we now find the need to fully convert this space. The Grade Three classrooms will have all the old Science Lab stations removed. This change alone will double the learning space in this room.

image of a large empty room, the science lab at AOK, waiting to be remodeled

We will continue to post updates throughout the summer and share completed projects with you. We look forward to seeing everyone on campus in late July for the annual Campus Cleanup as well.

My apologies for the delay in sharing the SBAC results with you this week. We are simply awaiting the last of the state results outside of our school to be uploaded in order to share the most current data. The plan is to disclose the SBAC results with you next week in the Monday Message.

Best wishes to you all for a restful summer break. Malama pono.

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

“Ua ola no i ka pane a ke aloha.” There is life in a kindly reply.