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939 Hind Iuka Drive Honolulu, HI 96821 Phone: (808) 377-2414 Fax: (808) 377-2413 |
"Wailupe"
in the Hawaiian language comes from two words,
"Wai" meaning water and "lupe" meaning kite.
Although there is no written history about the
valley, Kupuna (teacher) Harbottle says the
Hawaiians were great kite makers and enjoyed flying
kites. There probably could have been kite flying
in this valley which is relatively wet and windy.
In 1964 the Bishop Museum was consulted and the
sting ray logo was selected to represent the other
meaning of "water kite". Wailupe
Valley School opened its doors on September 3,
1958. There were nine teachers in kindergarten to
third grade with a total of 205 students. Each
subsequent year, another grade level was added. In
the 1961-1962 school year, 405 students were
enrolled in grade levels K through
6. Today,
Wailupe Valley School is considered a "small"
school, with approximately 200 students. The small
school environment creates a community oriented,
safe, and efficient atmosphere which enhances the
student, faculty, and parent partnership. The end
result: quality education for the
children. Dear Parents,
Guardians, Staff, and Students, Welcome back to
school. Our first week of school has been very
smooth and children are settling into their new
routines. We want to especially welcome all new
families, students, and of course our 26 cute,
little kindergarten children. We also welcome
several new staff members to our school: Mrs. Tara
Takatsuka, grade 5 Teacher; Ms. Jerzelle Ruiz,
Special Education Teacher, Mrs. Gwen Zane,
Kindergarten Teacher, Mr. Paul Schroeder, Education
Assistant in Special Education, and Mrs. Allyson
McAdams, Parent Community Network Coordinator.
I'm happy to
announce that Aina Haina and Wailupe Valley are now
a part of the Kaiser Complex of schools. Our
teachers have had their first Planning &
Collaboration Day on July 28 with all of the Kaiser
Complex schools (except the high school). Our next
Planning & Collaboration Day will be complex
wide on Novemeber 12th. We are working together on
many training sessions for our complex teachers in
an effort to provide the best public education
possible to our East Honolulu Community. Our new
Complex Area Superintendent is Francine
Fernandez. The Department of
Education continues to focus all schools on
Standards-Based Education. With this change from
traditional instruction and assessment, new methods
of reporting progress toward meeting standards will
be introduced this school year. If your child was
in third or fifth grades last year, you may have
noticed the change in the Hawaii State Assessment
Report to Parents. We now use the terms "Exceeds",
"Meets", "Approaches", and "Well Below" when we
refer to proficiency in the Standards for the grade
level. Our teachers this year will transition our
students and parents to understand these new
methods of reporting progress. This is a challenge
for all of us, so we are asking your patience
during this transition year. We will continue to
use the same report card with the addition of a
progress report on the General Learner Outcomes.
Next year, Progress Reports will be very different
than our current report cards and soon thereafter
the state will initiate electronic report
cards. This year, we
will also be testing all grade 3, 4, 5, and 6
students in reading and math during the spring
testing period. If you wish to read more about
Standards-Based Education or review the Standards
for your child's grade level log on to
http://doe.k12.hi.us. With many changes
occurring in the department of education and our
school, the staff is challenged to be change agents
and life long learners. You are a major part of
this team as you encourage your child to complete
homework, limit television, and encourage daily
personal reading and by reading to your child. We
encourage you to take an active role in our Ohana
(parent organization), volunteer in the classrooms
if you can, and participate in Open House and
Parent-Teacher Conferences. Wailupe Valley's
Mission statement is our goal. "Our school
community is committed to provide students with
opportunities for academic, social, emotional and
physical growth. Our purpose is to assist students
to live as Responsible, Respectful, Resourceful,
Responsive, and Resilient global
citizens." Let's all join
together to make this a reality this year.
Aloha and
welcome, Jean
Hartmann