1st week of 2013

We hope you all had a happy healthy holidays. Welcome back to another great year of working, learning and succeeding together!

McComb Gate construction and closure:

Give yourself enough time to get to school on time. The construction at McComb and Waianae for the next few months will have added traffic at McNair Gate.

School Bus Qtr. 3 Payment:  The office is able to accept your payment for Quarter 3. The quarterly rate is: $72.00 rt; $36 ow.  Checks should be addressed to:  Department of Education.  For current riders who pay by the quarter, bring with you your student's bus pass to be punched.  Coupons are available at $12.50/sheet of 10 (cash only).  For questions about the bus, please call the school's office.

Lunch supervisors

Aloha, Once again we are looking for lunch supervisors both permanent and substitutes.  Lunch supervisors work either an hour and a half shift or a two hour shift both at $8.00 per hour.  If you are interested but aren't familiar with our cafeteria, I strongly encourage you to sit through our lunch block 10:30 AM to 12:30 PM in order to see what the lunch supervisors are responsible for.   If this looks like a job you are ready, willing, and able to tackle, please leave your name and phone number at the Main Office to schedule an interview.  Thank you, Agnes Leinau, Vice Principal 622-6380 ext 225

Edline Parent Code

       If you did not receive your Edline parent code to access certain information on the school web page (www.halekula.k12.hi.us), please email Principal Iwase at jan_iwase@notes.k12.hi.us and she will send you the letter with your code. 

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Mon. Dec. 31       NO SCHOOL – New Years Eve

Tues. Jan. 1         NO SCHOOL – Happy New Year 2013

Wed. Jan. 2        NO SCHOOL – Prepare your backpack.Choose your clothes.Go to bed early.

Thurs. Jan. 3       1^st day of school in 2013

Fri. Jan. 4          School Store in P14 after school every Friday – nothing over $1.00

Congratulations to Our 2nd Quarter Winners!

We had our random drawing for our 2nd Quarter Volunteer. We didn't get many nominations on our 2nd quarter blog, so we pulled a name from all of the volunteers for the 1st and 2nd quarter. The winner is . . . Pam Fuller! Pam was recognized for being a PTO board member as well as a classroom volunteer.
The staff member whose name was randomly selected is our Student Services Coordinator, Jennifer Sueoka. Mrs. Sueoka is recognized for her efficiency and for her willingness to help our special education teachers with their paperwork.

Pam and Jennifer receive a $50 gift card to Big City Diner, courtesy of the Hale Kula PTO. Congratulations, Pam and Jennifer!

If you'd like to nominate someone for the 3rd quarter, go to our Hale Kula web site at www.halekula.k12.hi.us
and click on "Hooray for Volunteers! or "Hooray for Our Staff!" and post your comment.

12/7 - 12/14

Principals Message

As we approach the holiday season, we notice that our students are especially active and often need many reminders about behavioral expectations.  Since teachers will be giving end-of-the-quarter assessments, we need our students to be focused and do their best to show us what they’ve learned since school began.  Please support us by reminding your children about the expectations for them when they’re in school.  We find it helps a lot when parents and school staff are repeating the same message.  With over 1,000 students registered at our school, it can be challenging to keep our students focused on school when their minds are on the upcoming holidays!  Thank you for your support!

         I would like to personally thank all of the parents who have volunteered at Hale Kula this semester.  Your assistance and support are very much appreciated.  We are always looking for ways to increase volunteerism, so if you have any great ideas that may have worked elsewhere, we’d love to hear from you.  Call me at 622-6380, e-mail me at jan_iwase@notes.k12.hi.us, or speak with our Parent Community Networking Center coordinator, Ellen Petry, in room P14. 

         Enjoy the holiday season, be safe, and take care! Mahalo!  Jan Iwase, Principal

Lunch supervisors

Aloha, Once again we are looking for lunch supervisors both permanent and substitutes.  Lunch supervisors work either an hour and a half shift or a two hour shift both at $8.00 per hour.  If you are interested but aren't familiar with our cafeteria, I strongly encourage you to sit through our lunch block 10:30 AM to 12:30 PM in order to see what the lunch supervisors are responsible for.   If this looks like a job you are ready, willing, and able to tackle, please leave your name and phone number at the Main Office to schedule an interview.  Thank you, Agnes Leinau, Vice Principal 622-6380 ext 225

Farewell

If you are not continuing at Hale Kula next year, please let the office know now. The teachers need to prepare a final report card. Teachers are not here over break, so all your exit paperwork will be delayed due to alte notification.

Edline Parent Code

       If you did not receive your Edline parent code to access certain information on the school web page (www.halekula.k12.hi.us), please email Principal Iwase at jan_iwase@notes.k12.hi.us and she will send you the letter with your code. 

Pantene’s Beautiful Length and Locks of love hair donations.

Drop off location in front office or Pigtails and Crewcuts near NEX. Free haircut with donation at Pigtails and Crewcuts.

Pantene’s beautiful lengths requirements: at least 8 inches. Free of permanent color, bleach or other chemical treatments, no more than 5% gray.

Locks of Love requirements: 10 inches minimum. Hair that is colored or permed is acceptable. Hair that has been bleached is not usable. Any questions contact Alexis or Paige Winston at LJ6772@aol.com or http://www.locksoflove.org/donate.html or http://www.pantene.com/en-US/PanteneBeautifulLengths/pages/default.aspx

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Fri. Dec. 7          Kindergarten Gingerbread event for families in cafeteria 1pm – 2pm (not J1)

                      All school library books must be returned. Mahalo

                        Wahiawa Christmas Parade 6:30pm – 7:30pm from Ka’ala School up California Ave. to Longs. At Longs parking lot are rides and activities and Santa.

Mon. Dec. 10         School starts at 7:55 every day – get a tardy slip from office if you are late

Tues. Dec. 11        Jamba Juice & Book Swap - $2.25 for 8oz smoothie. Exchange old books

Wed. Dec. 12        J1 Gingerbread event for families in the classroom

Thurs. Dec. 13      Super Eagle Assembly in the cafeteria from 5:00 pm – 6:00 pm

                      Love Notes guaranteed to be in the yearbook are due today

Fri. Dec. 14         Last day of school for 2012

                      NO School Store today at P14

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Have a happy safe vacation. If you are moving, we wish you safe travels. School resumes Jan. 3

Good News!

We just received a letter re. funding approval for our re-building, renovation project which will begin in the summer of 2013.  This project is being funded by the Department o Defense (80%) and the State of Hawaii (20%) and will include a new administrative building, library/tech center and student center building, a 10-classroom building, a covered playcourt, and other necessary improvements to our 53 year-old buildings.

This will be a 3-4 year project which will be an inconvenience for  us.  However, when the project is completed, we will have a "new" campus with upgraded 21st century features, based upon recommendations through a charrette process which included a Hale Kula team, the DOE, the military, and the architects from Design Partners.

As part of the project, all the rooms in A through J buildings will be renovated.  Two layers of tile and the asbestos underneath will be removed during one summer.  The following summer, rooms will be re-floored and painted, ceiling fans will be installed, and new cabinets and shelves will replace the metal ones we presently have.

Hale Kula is the only school in Hawaii to receive funding for this project (only 12 nationwide were selected), and it was based on condition of the buildings as well as capacity.  We are fortunate to receive funding, and all of us who have been involved in the planning process are excited to see this project coming to fruition.

In January, Gary Willis who is the project coordinator, will be back in Hawaii.  We will invite him to Hale Kula to share about the project with our school community.  We will keep you informed re. the date/time for this sharing.

Jingle Bell Run Cancelled

Due to the inclement weather and the muddy conditions, we cancelled the Jingle Bell Run today.  However, we collected the donations from students and will continue to collect them for the rest of the week.  We haven't met our $1,000 goal yet, but we still have time.  Next week, two Student Council officers will be going down to the KHON-TV news station to present our donation and be interviewed. Wouldn't it be great to be able to make a donation from Hale Kula that exceeds our $1,000 goal?  If your child forgot today, it's not too late.  Just send the $ in an envelope and bring it to the office.  Be sure to write that it is for the Laulima Giving Program.

Thank you for giving so generously during this holiday season!

Caring Community Contributors

The 3rd grade Hurricane Sandy "Coins for the Community" project raised over $1,800, far exceeding the goal of $1,000 which the students set. This Wednesday, December 5 if our annual Jingle Bell Run. Similar to the Turkey Trot, each grade level comes out at a specified time to run/jog/walk to music. This year, rather than collecting toys, we are asking each student/staff to donate $1. The proce

eds will be given to the Laulima Giving Project (formerly the Lokahi Project) which helps families in need. At Hale Kula, we are proud that our school community generously supports all of our service projects. General Learner Outcome #2 is Community Contributor. Thank you for helping our students to understand the importance of caring for others.

Mutual Respect

We continue to work with the US Army Garrison Hawaii and the School Liaison Office to address traffic and safety issues at Hale Kula.  We met with the Provost Marshall the other day and discussed how they might be able to help us.  We're looking at proactive, long-range plans as well as short-term solutions.  I understand that some angry words were directed at a parent yesterday regarding a FB Town Hall post concerning parking at our school.  This is unacceptable and has no place on a school campus.  We all want the same thing -- a safe school so our students can learn.  One of the agreements we teach our students is "mutual respect" or treating others the way we want to be treated.  We would appreciate it if parents remember to show mutual respect when they come on campus.  Thank you.