Faculty News
Due to participation in the GAVRT program, the school’s Astronaut Academy teachers and students were invited to be NASA's VIP guests at the launch of JUNO on August 5 from Cape Canaveral. Though it wasn’t feasible to take students to the launch, Middle School math teacher Jennifer Higa was already planning a trip to Florida and coordinated her visit with the launch date.
For a woman who once dreamed of being an astronaut on a space shuttle, this was an emotional event....
Message to the Campus Community from the Headmaster
Seven years ago today, 191 students and 27 employees gathered in the foyer of the Elementary School with dozens of parents to celebrate the first day of classes at Island Pacific Academy.
If you have been around IPA for a while, you know the drama leading up to opening day; the unfilled promise of early funding to build; waiting for Central Pacific Bank to feel comfortable with loaning $6 million for a start-up school and their...
Humanities teacher Laura Davis was selected as one of 15 educators from the United States to participate in a study tour with the China Institute in Summer 2011. The Freeman Institute partially funds the program, which is chartered by the State University of New York. This was the first time it was offered to teachers outside of New York state. The tour focused on exposing participants to the history and culture of China and developing awareness of current issues facing both the People’...
Richard Snell has joined the faculty to serve as the International Baccalaureate (IB) Primary Years Programme (PYP) curriculum coordinator. “I'm so excited to have someone joining our team with so much experience and passion for curriculum and teaching,” said Elementary Principal Sue Miller.
Snell’s 35 years experience in education includes teaching across the elementary grades and administrative positions. Coming to IPA from Catlin Gable School in Oregon, he also...
Headmaster Dan White outlined for the IPA community the urgent need for a fence, separating the school from Wakea Street. When Foodland opens in August 2011, Wakea will also open to traffic. From the time road construction began, almost two years ago, it has not been entirely clear until recently just when final preparations would be completed and the road would open.
The construction of Foodland, and the final work on Wakea, began after the budget for 2010-11 was set. So, simply put, the...
IPA has been awarded $75,000 by the Hawaii Community Foundation for its third year in the five year Schools of the Future (SOTF) program. The Community Foundation, in collaboration with the Hawaii Association of Independent Schools (HAIS), developed the grant program to address the opportunities and challenges in 21st century teaching and learning. At its core, the program focuses on what students need to know and be able to do in order to lead productive and meaningful lives.
Teaching...
What do Secondary Teachers Dale Dolejsi, Ben Murphy, and Chris Luthi all have in common? In varied places and for varied reasons, they all spent some time volunteering as teachers before coming to IPA.
For all three of these teachers, a volunteer experience gave something back to each of them. The joy of making a difference in someone’s life. Learning to appreciate and value people with a different life experience. Developing the skills that make them exceptional teachers. Not small...
The newly formed Hawai‘i Association of International Baccalaureate World Schools (HAIBWS) has elected Dr. Benjamin Feinstein as its first president. The HAIBWS is recognized by the International Baccalaureate Americas as the Regional Association for all IB schools in the state, and will work for the betterment of schools across Hawai’i. There are 36 such associations throughout North, Central and South America.
Feinstein’s involvement in the Ohio Association of IB World...
Guidelines for the 3rd Annaul IPAPA CHILI COOK-OFF here. Note: the guidelines for this year have been changed from 2011 to allow for a POPULAR VOTE winner (determined by number of ticket votes) and a JUDGES' FAVORITE winner. Contestants may offer only one "side" with their chili and there is a 3-gallon limit per chili contestant.
An exciting community event, the 3rd Annual IPAPA Chili Cook-off is coming up on February 24, 2012. The article below about the 2nd Annual IPAPA...
A four-week study tour in China will be part of Laura Davis’ summer plans. “I’m so excited to have been selected for this opportunity,” said Davis. The China Institute program is highly competitive, selecting only 15 teachers from across the nation each year to travel to several cities and important historical sites in China. All travel and accommodation costs for the program are underwritten by the Freeman Foundation.
While Davis teaches English, the...