Schools near Ka'u/Virtual Charter Schools? (Hilo, Kailua: rent, condo, homes)

[sillylilybaby]

Greetings!

My husband, daughter, and I will (most likely) be moving to our family's land/house in HOVE in the next year or so. I have a two-year old, and am wondering if there are any plans to build any schools closer to Ocean View? As far as I can gather, the closest is in Naalehu. I know the population of the area is growing, so I'm keeping my hopes up, because that's kind of a hike for a little one to make in the morning.

Also, what are your experiences with the virtual charter schools - Hawaii Technology Academy and Myron Thompson Academy? Are there any home-school community groups in the area?

If theoretically she attends a charter school in Captain Cook or Kona, would the school bus come out to "the moon"?

I'd really love to hear from anyone who has small children in the area, to pick your brain and gather information.

Mahalo!

Corinne

[Dreaming of Hawaii]

Sorry that I can't give you any personal knowledge. I live in Naalehu, and I know that there probably won't be any new schools built anytime soon because there is so little money. They just added on to the elementary school in Naalehu and they are building a new gym at the high school in Pahala. I agree that there is a growing population in Ocean View, but I haven't heard of any plans for any new schools.

I know a lot of people who home school in the area. Maybe once you move you will be able to find some more information. There is an organization called Tutu and Me that a lot of people take their small children to and would be an excellent way to meet other parents.

[sillylilybaby]

Aww, Tutu and Me...great name! I'll look out for it. Thanks for the information!

[KaraBenNemsi]

One of ours just finished Myron B Thompson last year. Don't know the lower grades, but their high school. When your child turns out to be somewhat self motivated it's a great alternative to the beyond-lousy public schools. Everybody will be pushed to graduate, attending school or not. Elementary or middle schools in Ka'u have problems with many non-english speaking kids from the Marshall islands and Micronesia.

[willowkim]

I've heard pretty good things about Hawaii Technology Academy... I almost went to an information meeting a couple of weeks ago in Kona but it turned out not to work with our schedules that week. My daughter is 3 1/2 and we live in Kona. I would certainly look into HTA and the Thompson program, or into plain old homeschooling (even though that means, in Hawaii, that your little one would have to do a GED course, because straight homeschoolers aren't granted high school diplomas here). Tutu and Me is a great traveling preschool program, so check that out as well.

We are here for a year initially and then we'll make the decision whether we're staying long term, so I've not firmly made the school decisions yet. :-) Although I do have many more options in the Kona area than you will down south... I still lean toward some type of homeschooling, HTA or something. Private schools are pricey and the good charter schools have waiting lists that stretch to infinity.

[sillylilybaby]

Thanks to everyone for the useful information!

[sillylilybaby]

Hello again,

So I'm wondering if anyone knows about the Gifted and Talented program in Hawaii. Where I live on the mainland, the overall test scores of a school are not a big indicator of how well your child will perform, because the GT kids are in their own classrooms (even in elementary school). So the benefit is that your child is with other children who are interested in learning, which usually cuts down on distractions from learning.

Is this the case in Hawaii? OR more specifically, at Naalehu Elementary?

I'm ready to pack up and go, as soon as I can figure out a good solution for schooling the little one.

Thanks everybody!

[OpenD]

Originally Posted by sillylilybaby

Is this the case in Hawaii? OR more specifically, at Naalehu Elementary?

I'm ready to pack up and go, as soon as I can figure out a good solution for schooling the little one

Have you talked to anyone at the school yet? Have you checked out the school's website, or the websites that rank schools? Sorry to say, I think you need to lower your expectations.

Naalehu is a sweet little town of about 1,000, the southernmost in the US, and Naalehu Elementary lays claim to being "the Southernmost School in the US." And it's a picturesque school, originally built in the 1920s I believe, and expanded several times since. I drove down there a year or two ago for a slack key guitar event with Cyril Pahinui. I found it to be quite charming, and the staff I spoke with there were very nice.

Unfortunately Great Schools ranks it for quality only as a 1 on a 10 point scale, and the state ranks it #178 out of 189 schools statewide and has it on their "troubled schools" list. And this is in a state school system consistently ranked as worst in the country. Apparently this has been going on a long time, because the "school improvement plan" posted on their website hasn't even been updated since 2006.

Naalehu School

The core problems, from what I can tell, are that 1) the school is so far from the population centers in Hilo (66 miles, 1 1/2 hrs) and Kailua-Kona (59 miles, 1 1/2 hrs) that it has trouble recruiting and keeping quality staff and teachers; and 2) the pay is so low that it has trouble recruiting and keeping quality staff and teachers.

And this highlights the reason it is so hard for many of us to recommend that area at all to people with children. Putting your kiddo on a schoolbus at 6am to attend a "troubled" school? To me personally that sounds perfectly dreadful. And you really don't have any good alternatives down there, except a distance learning program and/or home schooling. But then you'll still need to provide socialization opportunities. It won't be easy.

I wish you luck.

[sillylilybaby]

Thanks, OpenD! You described exactly (and more eloquently) all the reasons why I'm stretching my imagination to try to avoid that school and its' reputation entirely. It's a shame that the school is in such desperate need. I bet a moderately priced private school would do well down there!

So I'm thinking for my own situation, and assuming we make the move, we'll give ourselves a couple more years to save up more cash, and buy a condo around Captain Cook, where I know there is a good public school, and it's not as expensive or crowded as KK. My husband will be working in Kona anyway, and I think that will be easier on everyone to get to school and work and stay sane. We'll still have our HOVE property and can probably rent it out - maybe even just for the winter so that we can still enjoy it.

Does that sound crazy?

Btw, you are a great resource to have around! THANK YOU!

[Dreaming of Hawaii]

I think that you are making the best decision for your keiki. If I had kids in school in Naalehu, I would be homeschooling them. I have one friend who drove her son to Volcano every day for the charter school (45 minutes one way). I've heard about people trying to start a new charter school in Ocean View, but don't know how far they've gotten.