Honolulu Waldorf School, established in 1961, is a coeducational, independent school serving more than 300 children from early childhood through middle school located on the island of

Oahu Oahu () (Hawaiian language, Hawaiian: ''Oʻahu'' ()), also known as "The Gathering place#Island of Oʻahu as The Gathering Place, Gathering Place", is the third-largest of the Hawaiian Islands. It is home to roughly one million people—over t ...

in the

State of Hawaii Hawaii ( ; haw, Hawaii or ) is a state in the Western United States, located in the Pacific Ocean about from the U.S. mainland. It is the only U.S. state outside North America, the only state that is an archipelago, and the only state ...

. It previously included high school levels.

History

The original Nursery through Grade 8 school was founded in 1961 and is located in Niu Valley. The high school began in 1994 with its first freshmen class and graduated its first class of seniors in 1998. As of May, 2009 the high school campus was located in the Honolulu suburb of Kahala. It was relocated to an oceanfront property at 5257 Kalanianaole Highway in Aina Haina, in August of the same year (). In 2018 a flood affected the institution. The school closed admissions to its high school and closed the high school building effective May 2019, and for the 2019-2020 school year only four students who had been 11th grade students the previous year were allowed to be in the high school. The school cited issues with lower numbers of students, causing a decrease in funding.

Campus

The K-8 is on a monkey pod tree-shaded campus in Niu Valley (), at 350 Ulua Street, in East Honolulu CDP. - Page
1
an
2
/ref> In the

2000 U.S. Census The United States census of 2000, conducted by the Census Bureau, determined the resident population of the United States on April 1, 2000, to be 281,421,906, an increase of 13.2 percent over the 248,709,873 people enumerated during the 1990 cen ...

the

U.S. Census Bureau The United States Census Bureau (USCB), officially the Bureau of the Census, is a principal agency of the U.S. Federal Statistical System, responsible for producing data about the American people and economy. The Census Bureau is part of the ...

defined the K-8 campus as being in the urban

Honolulu Honolulu (; ) is the capital and largest city of the U.S. state of Hawaii, which is in the Pacific Ocean. It is an unincorporated county seat of the consolidated City and County of Honolulu, situated along the southeast coast of the island ...

census-designated place A census-designated place (CDP) is a concentration of population defined by the United States Census Bureau for statistical purposes only. CDPs have been used in each decennial census since 1980 as the counterparts of incorporated places, such ...

. For the 2010 U.S. Census the bureau created a new census-designated place,

East Honolulu East Honolulu is a census-designated place (CDP) located in Honolulu County, Hawaii, United States. As of the 2020 Census, the CDP had a population of 50,922, making it the 2nd most populated CDP in Hawaii, behind Honolulu. Geography East Ho ...

. The lower school in Niu Valley is graced by Giant Monkey pod trees and was known as Makau Campus while the former high school campus was in Aina Haina. It was known as the Makai Campus.High schoo
address was
"5257 Kalanianaole Hwy. Honolulu, HI 96821"

Curriculum

As a part of

Waldorf education Waldorf education, also known as Steiner education, is based on the educational philosophy of Rudolf Steiner, the founder of anthroposophy. Its educational style is holistic, intended to develop pupils' intellectual, artistic, and practical ski ...

, the Honolulu Waldorf School teaches what is developmentally appropriate beginning in early childhood and ending at Grade 12. In the high school, the academic year is apportioned into three to four week blocks called Main Lessons, whereby a subject such as science, history, math or English is taught for two hours every morning. Throughout the year students are presented a range of topics including

oceanography Oceanography (), also known as oceanology and ocean science, is the scientific study of the oceans. It is an Earth science, which covers a wide range of topics, including ecosystem dynamics; ocean currents, waves, and geophysical fluid dynamic ...

, Shakespeare, botany, foundations of

democracy Democracy (From grc, δημοκρατία, dēmokratía, ''dēmos'' 'people' and ''kratos'' 'rule') is a form of government in which the people have the authority to deliberate and decide legislation (" direct democracy"), or to choose gov ...

, comedy and tragedy,

Faust Faust is the protagonist of a classic German legend based on the historical Johann Georg Faust ( 1480–1540). The erudite Faust is highly successful yet dissatisfied with his life, which leads him to make a pact with the Devil at a crossroads ...

, zoology, biochemistry, physiology and analytical geometry.

Administration

Instead of school policies and curricula being created and maintained by a principal, the entire faculty administer the school through communal discussions and consensus decisions.

References

External links

* {{authority control Waldorf schools in the United States Private K-12 schools in Honolulu Educational institutions established in 1961 1961 establishments in Hawaii East Honolulu, Hawaii