Program areas at IS
'iolani was founded in 1863 after king kamehameha iv and queen emma set out to establish an anglican church in Hawaii. The School was rooted in three small schools - a lahaina School on the island of maui, st. alban's college and 'iolani college - formed during Hawaii's monarchy days.the School's campus was once located on the grounds of st. andrew's cathedral, moved to nu'uanu, and then finally relocated in 1946 to its present 25-acre property. 'iolani was originally an all-boys School, but became co-educational in 1979.today, 'iolani's enrollment has grown to approximately 2,200 students, with roughly 1,500 in grades 7 - 12.there are approximately 449 full-time faculty and staff dedicated to students from diverse backgrounds enrolled in grades k - 12. Roughly 735 part-time or seasonal teachers, aides, coaches, and staff supplement the School's expansive after-school, summer, performingarts, athletic and extracurricular programs. The School's faculty is highly qualified and committed to their students with relational teaching a high priority. Teachers are encouraged to attend conferences either locally or nationally to stay abreast of current and effectivepedagogies. 'iolani upholds high standards of academic excellence and is considered amongst the educational leaders in Hawaii and around the world. The School maintains a healthy financial portfolio and attempts to keep tuition as low as possible. Tuition covers approximately 75% of the cost of educating a child with interest income from the School's endowment and fundraising covering the difference between tuition and the actual cost. 'iolani School is a private School, yet serves the public purpose of reaching out to the community, as well as being a resource for other organizations. The School is increasingly becoming more global, as students are connected by technology to other parts of the world.in the summer of 2019, the School's ka'i program celebrated its 10th anniversary of serving underprivileged youth in nearby palolo valley. This program began as a summer program for students attending jarrett middle School, a public School in palolo. Ka'i now includes a summer day care program, after School tutoring during the regular School year, and post-secondary education support.in 2019, 'iolani received a prestigious ee ford foundation educational leadership grant for its aina-informatics network program which aims to provide schools with the tools and resources to teach genome science.in the fall of 2013, the School opened the sullivan center for innovation and leadership, a four-story, 40,000 square foot green designed building offering collaborative learning spaces where students learn to be effective leaders through courses emphasizing empathy, interpersonal communication and real-world problem solving. The building includes a fabrication lab and maker spaces, a library with collaboration rooms, flexible open learning spaces, a wet lab, a media center, a seminar room, and a rooftop garden. The center is also acommunity resource for various local and national groups.2013-14 was the first year of full implementation of the i-department, which provides students with electives akin to college-level courses that inspire innovation and entrepreneurship. These classes include design and fabrication, ipad app design and development, applied renewable energy systems, robotics, the one-mile class, and video game design. In addition, the School maintains outstanding academic programs in english, world languages (chinese, japanese, spanish, french, latin, and Hawaiian), health education, history, mathematics, performing arts,physical education, religion, science and athletics. There is an active student activities office and each april, 'iolani holds a two-day community fair providing an opportunity to raise funds to support student travel initiatives.a residential hall and boarding program, with a capacity for 112 students, opened in the 2018-19 School year. The School also opened a new k - 1 community featuring large, open classrooms and a natural playground that encourages imagination and creativity in the summer of 2019. In the summer of 2020, the School opened two new buildings in its lower School, including expanded learning spaces for science, religion, reading, technology, dance, and music.student travel is a large part of the 'iolani experience as well, providing hands-on experiences with different cultures and opportunities for developing global citizens. 'iolani students are seen as leaders in the community and are dedicated to community service. Student accomplishments include state and national recognition in competitions such as math league, speech and debate, robotics, music, art. Ninety-nine percent of seniors attend college.during the summer, students from throughout the state and around the world enroll in classes. 'iolani offers an extensive summer and after School program with reinforcement, enrichment, elective and credit courses. The summer of 2019 was the first summer that a residential program was offered to students ages 11 - 17. Students from Hawaii, the neighbor islands, the u.s. mainland, and asia attended the program. Alumni now attending college returned to live in the dorm and work as residential assistants. 'iolani School is accredited by the western association of schools and colleges, and licensed by the Hawaii council of private schools.
'iolani is a member of the interscholastic league of honolulu (ilh). All participants are expected to fulfill all athletic requirements, to display good sportsmanship, and to follow the program set forth by coaches and the athletic department. There are 20 varsity sports for boys and girls, as well as many sports in the junior varsity and intermediate grade levels.for the lower grade levels, 'iolani participates in the christian schools athletic league for basketball and volleyball. There are also opportunities for youngsters to participate in intramural sports.the campus hosts numerous athletic tournaments and sporting games, which schools and teams from across the state and around the world participate in. Some examples of how the School shares its resources include: the 'iolani classic basketball tournament, state forensicstournament, 'iolani invitational cross country meet, Hawaii educational summit, and many more.
'iolani offers an extensive summer and after School program with reinforcement, enrichment, elective and credit courses. These courses are open to students from all schools and are available on a first come first serve registration basis. From dance, physical education, art,math, reading, robotics, video game design, sat preparation classes, more than 2,500 students enroll each year in 'iolani's summer and special programs. Many students come from the u.s. mainland and asia to enroll their children in 'iolani's summer programs, which employs teachers who are employed by 'iolani, other independent schools, and public schools. In addition, the ka'i program is a summer mentoring partnership between 'iolani and jarrett middle School, a neighboring public middle School. The performing arts department at 'iolani offers orchestra, dance (hula, ballet, jazz), stage band, marching band, jazz band, theater, musical theater, and choir. These different disciplines showcase their students' abilities through performances held either on campus or at theaters and other venues in the community. These groups also travel to the mainland and foreign countries to perform. A fall play and spring musical are presented each year and auditions are open to all students in upper School and, if required by the production, the lower School. Guest artists/teachers visit the School through sponsorship under the tam & young arts chair.
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