As  we all know, populations are increasing, buildable land is decreasing, and we’re just plain running out of space.  “Keep the country, country” is a commonly seen bumper sticker here in Hawaii.  And the rail?  Well, that's another subject that is bound to raise emotions.  But how to balance land use, development, and conservation?  More importantly, how do we teach students - our future community leaders, public officials, professionals - how to create sustainable, viable communities for all?

Mr. Lance Suzuki, award winning economics teacher at Maryknoll High School, has a great answer – participate in Urban Plan.  “Urban Plan is a realistic, engaging, academically demanding classroom-based curriculum in which students learn about the fundamental forces that affect development in the United States.” (www.uli.org/programs)  Students are placed in groups and charged with redeveloping a blighted site in “Yorktown,” a fictional city.  Each team member has a particular role to play within the group– finance director, marketing director, city liaison, neighborhood liaison, or site planner.  Together, they have three weeks to complete the project, which entails developing a financial pro-forma as well as a three-dimensional model of their city, with the ultimate goal being to win the contract from the city.  During those three weeks, land use professionals, who have participated in the UrbanPlan volunteer training, come to school at least twice to meet with the student groups to discuss their progress and make recommendations.  The final day, students present their proposals to a ‘city council’ compromised of these land use professionals.  The ‘city council’ listens to the presentations, challenges the proposals by asking questions of the students, which makes the hearing more realistic, and assesses the overall merits of the proposals.  Finally, the council decides on the best proposal and awards the contract to one team.  This year’s winning team was comprised of junior Nicolas Bly and seniors, Johnny Ngo, Marissa Uehara, Tyler Via, Cindy Wang and Kelly Yee.

Mr. Suzuki has been participating in this program since 2006.  He finds it to be a great way to integrate economic concepts that students have learned within a real world scenario.  Furthermore, in real twenty-first century learning, the students must work to resolve a problem that has no one right answer, acquiring the requisite skills to be prepared, engaged, citizens.

pictured from left to right: Nicole Choy, Kaytee Ching, Emerald Leong, Elizabeth Mueller, Kiana Lee, Christianne Michel.

A paradigm, according to the Merriam-Webster dictionary, is 'an outstandingly clear or typical example', which is exactly what our literary magazine, The Toad, Transcending Paradigms, is.  How do we know?  Well, for the second year in a row, The Toad is the recipient of the Most Outstanding High School Literary Art Magazine Award, awarded by the American Scholastic Press Association.  This makes our magazine the best in the country, clearly a paradigm for all other high school literary publications! 
Now in its thirtieth year, The Toad has won many awards and recognition.  Mr. Mason Donald, Creative Writing and English teacher at Maryknoll High School, is the current club’s advisor for The Toad.  There are about ten students who are actively involved in the club, although any highschooler can – and should – contribute!  Because the magazine is literary art, this means that multi media submissions, such as graphic designs, drawings, paintings, photos, short stories, essays, poems, are accepted.  The Toad, according to Mr. Donald, is a great place for students to have a voice and be published, which looks great on college applications.  If interested in submitting and being published in the best literary magazine in the country, please contact Mr. Donald in Room 203.  Submissions are due in mid – February.

Two very close and exciting games were played on Wednesday evening.  The girls lost to Kamehameha, 66-57, but the boys were able to squeak out a victory in a very low scoring game for our Spartans; win they did, though, beating Iolani 15-13!

Mark Twain is attributed with saying that “it usually takes more than three weeks to prepare a good impromptu speech.”  Our high school speech team, under the leadership of Dr. Fran Wong, would concur.  For the past six months, the speech team has been practicing and honing its speeches for the Neighbor Island Tournament (NIT) in Kona, which took place during the Martin Luther King, Jr. weekend.  This tournament is the first of three qualifying meets in which students can qualify for the state tournament.  Students who competed on the Big Island at Parker School prepared speeches in one of five categories: storytelling, impromptu, humorous interpretation, program reading and duo.  Earning superiors at NIT were Xavier Imperial, Kani Severson, John Chow and Chase Ogoshi, and Andrew Nilo.  Both Kani Severson and Andrew Nilo made it into the final round of competition, and Andrew, who took home first place in impromptu, will be competing in the state speech tournament, to be held in April.  Congratulations to all the speech team members and Dr. Wong for a great showing!  And thank you to the parents who accompanied the team and worked as judges in the tournament.  Good luck at states!

In honor of our founders, Maryknoll sophomores spent Thursday afternoon volunteering in various venues, truly ‘making God’s love visible.’  Some of the sophomores worked with grade school students to make valentines.  These cards will be sent on to the Mother House in New York, continuing the close, personal connection between Maryknoll School and the Maryknoll sisters.   The grade schoolers and high school partners also made rosaries that will be auctioned off at the Kekumano Scholarship Dinner.  Other students and their advisors spent the afternoon either with the children at Shriners Hospital, or the adults at Central Union Church, making valentines, playing games, and having a fun-filled afternoon.  Yet other sophomores and their advisors did some good, old-fashioned spring - cleaning by working at Makiki Library shelving books and dusting while others took the time to care for God’s Earth at the YWCA by landscaping and gardening.  Our Maryknoll sophomores and their advisors took to heart our motto, Noblesse Oblige, helping to enrich the lives of many this past Thursday.

Christianne Michel is a finalist in the National Merit Scholarship Program.  The National Merit Scholarship, which is based on high academic standing as well as outstanding test scores, is designed to recognize and honor academically talented students.  Christianne is both honored and excited to have received this recognition as well as to be able to represent Maryknoll School at the national level.  Christianne hopes to attend either the University of Redlands in California or Susquehanna University in Pennsylvania.  She also wants to major in creative writing and dreams of someday being a published author of young adult fiction.  Congratulations, Christianne, on being a finalist and good luck with your future endeavors!

Robots.  For some of us, when we hear the word ‘robots,’ we think of futuristic TV shows like The Jetsons, something so far removed from our daily life that it could only be a cartoon.  For the younger generation, though, robots are very much here and a part of reality.  Just ask any member of our Robotics team, who spend countless hours developing and building robots to do some pretty amazing activities.  For their most recent competition, an international VEX competition which occurred during President’s Day weekend, the students created, constructed and programmed a robot that could pick up sacs and put them into a trough.  Competing against 124 other teams, Maryknoll’s team, led by co-captains Calvin Chang and Andrew Nilo (and team advisor Mr. Jim Cramer), made it to the finals and took home third place overall.  Congratulations, Robotics Team and good luck in your next competition!

Our students are learning to fly, and in this case we’re talking the real thing - planes!  From saving crash victims in aerial search and rescue missions to international flight planning, Maryknoll students will be learning how to fly in the Civil Air Patrol Cadet Program (CAP).  Moreover, students will have the chance to travel internationally, earn scholarships for college, participate in humanitarian missions and beyond; the sky’s the limit!

Originally brought to Maryknoll in the late 1950s, the Civil Air Patrol Cadet (CAP) program was very strong for several decades and included a large percentage of the school’s population. This coming Fall, 2013, the cadet program will be returning to Maryknoll School after a lengthy hiatus.  The program is open to high school students.  The cadets are expected to participate in weekly meetings that last about two and one-half hours.  Additionally, cadets have the option of attending extracurricular activities that occur on weekends and in the summer, with the understanding that the more time and effort the cadets put into the program, the more they will glean from it.  Important to note, there is an educational component to CAP – aeronautics.  To that end, Maryknoll High School will be offering a course in aeronautics starting in the fall.  In this course, students will learn about the scientific concepts needed to understand aeronautics and the physics associated with flight.

For more information about CAP, email us at highschool@maryknollschool.org. Additionally, you can visit capmembers.com, and click on cadet programs on the menu on the right-hand side for details.  You may also want to watch this video.  Wheels up!
 

Beginning February 27, a lunchtime career panel will be held the last Wednesday of each month from 11:25am - 12:45pm in Room 200.  Each panel will consist of four - five diverse professionals (alumni and friends of Maryknoll) who will talk about their job, their college and career journey.  This is a great opportunity for students to explore career options, network with successful professionals, and gain insight for their own journey.  Sign up on Naviance as each presentation is limited to 25 students.  For more information, please see Mrs. Raymi Faria.  Also, click here to see the flyer and who will be coming on February 27.

Japanese Exchange students from Toride Shoyo High School pose with their Maryknoll student buddies. In this photo, students pose while on a tour of the campus on the first day of their exchange.

On Tuesday, March 5th, Maryknoll High School welcomed 16 students and two teachers from Toride Shoyo High School located in Ibaraki prefecture of Japan. The Japanese Exchange Students are living with Maryknoll host families and attending Maryknoll High School for 2 weeks. During their time here, the students will practice their English skills with the help of Maryknoll student buddies. The group will also learn about Hawaiian culture by taking a circle-island tour and visiting sites such as the Arizona Memorial, Japanese Cultural Center of Hawaii, National Cemetery of the Pacific, Iolani Palace, and the University of Hawaii at Manoa.  During the evenings and weekends, Toride exchange students will enjoy spending time with their host families touring the island and participating in various cultural activities.

By Maryknoll High School Senior, Nicole Choy

When I found out Pope Benedict XVI resigned from his position, I was surprised. I had known that being the leader of the Catholic Church was a job until death, and I was honored to have lived and watched as history was made. It was the first time a Pope has actually resigned from his position since Pope Gregory XII in 1415 and with the installation of Pope Francis, the first time a non-European ever held the position of Pope. I watched the reveal of the new Pope while in school at Maryknoll, and although I wasn’t in St. Peter’s Square, I empathized with those that were. I felt the same anxiousness as my classmates and I anticipated the reveal of our new Pope. It was interesting to learn about how the Pope is chosen and the different ceremonies he must go through before revealing himself to millions of Catholics around the world. There’s a lot of pressure for Pope Francis I, and to take on such an honor must be a somewhat stressful and trying ordeal. I have high hopes for him as the new Pope of our church and I continue to keep him in my prayers.

The Senior Project at Maryknoll continues to offer Maryknoll students an opportunity to demonstrate an in-depth understanding of a research project of their choice.  On Friday, March 15, 2013, Grades 8-12 assembled at the Maryknoll Community Center to watch three presentations selected by Senior Project Co-Coordinators, Natalie Morey and Sara Smitherman as outstanding exemplars of “Making a Difference.”  The students selected for this honor are for the 2012-2013 school year are:

1.    Devin Rettke, Mentor Jim Cramer, Subject “Limitless Potential of a Diabetic Athlete”
2.    Ryan Nakamura, Mentor Steve Caley, Subject “Hidden Killer:  The Dangers of Concussions”
3.    Emerald Leong, Mentor Chris Coats, Subject “The Emotional Benefits of Film”

(Pictured above: Emerald Leong, Devin Rettke and Ryan Nakamura)
Each student presented their project for 20 minutes and demonstrated their understanding of “Noblesse Oblige,” as well as their particular subject matter.  Devin’s project involved joining a national organization, the Children’s Diabetes Fund.  Ryan’s involved a community service effort, and Emerald’s represented a creative endeavor.  All three students have passionate interest in their subjects, put a great deal of hard work and effort into completion of their projects, and demonstrated the value of such a graduation requirement for Maryknoll.  Both Mrs. Morey and Mrs. Smitherman believe strongly that the project offers students the opportunity to take responsibility, to think critically and to develop habits of good citizenship, in preparation for college.

The Senior Project began in 1998, as a result of the belief that seniors need to do more than sit in their classes, take the typical exams and pass them.  The Senior Project, a graduation requirement, is highly consistent with 21st century learning principles, the principles of the Coalition of Essential Schools and the Expected School Learning Results, established by each department and approved by the Western Association of Schools and Colleges, the Western Catholic Educators Association, and the Hawaii Association of Independent Schools.

On Monday, March 25th, Maryknoll High School became the first educational institution on Oahu to be visited by members of the Native Hawaiian Roll Commission as part of the Kanaiolowalu project. Junior and Senior students of Hawaiian descent were invited to add their names to the national Native Hawaiian registry and students who are not of Hawaiian ancestry were invited to sign a pledge of support for the initiative. Learn more at http://kanaiolowalu.org/ 

On Monday, March 25, Mr. Cramer's Beginning Spanish class had the opportunity to participate in a special viewing and tour by Columbian wood block artist, Sergio Garzón, which took place at the ARTS at Mark’s Garage Gallery.  One of the highlights from this excursion was hearing Sergio recall catching massive arapaima fish, one of the largest freshwater fish in the world, from the river with the rest of his Chibchas tribe in Columbia. 

Another interesting aspect of this experience was the interdisciplinary connection amongst the students and Maryknoll’s art teacher, Mr. Koki.  The students visited Mr. Koki’s art class before the outing and he explained, in detail, the intricate process and the specific materials needed in wood block making.  This allowed the students to understand the hard work and long hours that Sergio Garzón puts into each and every one of his art pieces that were on display within the gallery.

The class learned a lot about Sergio Garzón and how he became such a distinguished and prominent artist.  He was originally born in Bogota, Columbia and currently lives and works in Honolulu, Hawaii.  His paintings and prints consist of abstract figurative narratives of his memories focusing on the people, the influence of cultures, and the politics of history.  His work is a variation of sculpture, video, photography, printmaking, painting, performance and installation; he is best at solving visual puzzles through manipulating natural bi-products of fire, earth and light, recyclables, and plant matter.  This was great for the students to learn and see with their very own eyes, the possibilities of working with materials comprised of natural elements.The students were very impressed by Sergio Garzón’s 200 square foot print of a whale, which took him over 300 hours to complete.  He used seven wooden blocks in jigsaw matrix, 30 yards of paper, and printed with 5.5 tons of weight displace per square inch!

We would like to acknowledge Lukela Los Banos for his Judo achievements and for proudly representing Maryknoll School.  “I lost count of how many awards and competitions I’ve won,” Lukela commented when asked about his accomplishments in the sport.  In addition to his successes, Lukela travelled to Miami, Florida during spring break to participate in the National Scholastic Judo Championships.  Lukela came in 4th amongst all the other competitors and qualified for the Olympic Team at the Olympic Training Center to prepare for the tournament in Mumbai this summer.  Portraying hard work, discipline, countless hours of practice and determination, Lukela is chasing after his dreams.  Keep up the good work and good luck with all your future endeavors Lukela!

Maryknoll…Living Green! was Maryknoll’s week-long celebration of Earth Week from April 22nd – 26th. The week consisted of green curriculum, a recycling fashion show, mini open market and a trash-less lunch week. In coordination with Ma’o Organic Farms and to promote educational awareness of Community Supported Agriculture, Maryknoll also offered a limited number of organic food boxes containing a dozen products, mix of salad greens, cooking greens, roots, herbs, fruits, and several other seasonal and certified organic foods as part of Maryknoll…Living Green!

One of the more popular events on campus was “Project Greenway” (a twist on the hit television series “Project Runway”) on April 25th; it was a fashion show that involves the making and designing of clothing mostly made from recycled materials like garbage bags, duct tape, Capri Sun packets, etc.  Each year, people throw away and waste recyclable items, when it can be used for something else; therefore, in celebration of Earth Day, the fashion show contest challenged each class to create outfits out of recycled materials and prizes were awarded to the class whose design was most creative.

Graduation will be at the Neal Blaisdell Concert Hall on Friday, June 7, 2013. Commencement begins at 5:30 p.m.  Admission by ticket only.  Doors open at 4:30 p.m.

Class Night will be at the Hawaii Theatre on Thursday, June 6, 2013.  Program begins at 5:00 p.m. Admission by ticket only.  Doors open at 4:00 p.m.

Baccalaureate Mass will be at the St. Pius X Church in Manoa on Thursday, June 6, 2013. Service begins at 9:00 a.m.  The church will open to guests at 8:15 a.m.

Wesley Kamikawa, a senior, won first place in the State for Impromptu Speaking by earning high marks during his final round of competition at the State Speech Tournament, held on April 20, 2013 at Punahou School.  What led to this momentous achievement?

It was in 7^th grade that Wesley’s natural talent for presenting before an audience first caught his public speaking teacher’s eye. But when she suggested that he join the speech team, he declined.  A few years later, the same invitation was issued by his sophomore American Lit teacher, who also happened to be the high school speech coach.  Although Wesley declined again, he was persuaded to attend a speech tournament at Kaiser High School to perform community service.  Wesley became an emergency substitute that fateful Saturday morning, when he and a fellow classmate, Reuben Pascual, were asked to fill in for a duo team who weren’t able to compete.  Reuben and Wesley simply read the script and “got their feet wet.”  The next year, both boys had decided to come out for the team.  They were juniors and choose to work on impromptu.

Wesley soon found he liked impromptu speaking. There was no script to memorize. He didn’t have to act silly, create voices for different characters, nor do any body gestures and facial expressions that are needed for interpretive speaking.  He came faithfully to practice each week. As he participated in the tournaments, he observed what his competitors were doing and began to create his own style of delivery. 

By senior year, Wesley was a competent and confident speaker.  He had personality, expression, and creatively addressed all the topics given to him in practice. His voice was clear, strong, and easy to listen to.  His content demonstrated critical thinking and originality.  He often pulled information from his vast storehouse of historical knowledge.  Best of all, he began to score higher and higher in the tournaments.  By spring of 2013, Wesley had earned a spot in the State Tournament.  At that point, taking up a suggestion by team parent John Imperial, Wesley decided to try International Extemporaneous speaking simply because he enjoyed keeping up with global events and it would be another challenge for him.  He qualified for the state tournament in this new event, and now he was set to compete in two different categories. 

By the end of competition day, Wesley had made it to final rounds in both impromptu and international extemporaneous speaking.  By the end of the evening, he had two magnificent trophies – one in each hand:  fourth place for International Extemporaneous Speaking, and first place for impromptu.  Maryknoll has not had a state winner since 1995, when Alice Bugman won first place in Dramatic Interpretation.   The eighteen year dry spell had been broken!

Pictured are the Maryknoll Speech team 2012-2013 qualifiers for the State Tournament, held on April 20, 2013.
Back row:  Michaela Yamashita, Andrew Nilo, Wesley Kamikawa, Nicole Choy, and Chris Chow
Front row:  Katherine Guevara and Theodora

The Maryknoll Speech Team finished its 2012-2013 season on a high note.  Seven students qualified for the State Speech Tournament, and competed in Duo Interpretation, Program Reading, Impromptu Speaking, and International Extemporaneous Speaking.  After four rounds of competition, Wesley Kamikawa emerged as victor in not just one, but two events:  fourth place in International Extemporaneous speaking and first place in Impromptu.  His achievement was recently acknowledged by the Honolulu City Council , which presented Wesley with a special certificate of recognition. 

The Maryknoll Speech team is a member of the Hawaii Speech League, that sponsors monthly speech and debate tournaments for both private and public schools throughout the state.  In addition, many students on the Maryknoll Speech team have earned membership into the prestigious National Forensics League, a national honor society for speech and debate.    Currently the Maryknoll team has a membership of forty-five students.  Practices are once a week, after school on Wednesdays with  Mrs. Fran Wong, coach.  The new season will begin in August 2013; those who wish to join the team are welcome to do so by attending the first day’s meeting yet to be scheduled.  Inquiries can be sent to:  fran.wong@maryknollschool.org