The Hmong American Peace Academy (HAPA) is a charter school in
Milwaukee, Wisconsin
Milwaukee ( ), officially the City of Milwaukee, is both the most populous and most densely populated city in the U.S. state of Wisconsin and the county seat of Milwaukee County. With a population of 577,222 at the 2020 census, Milwaukee i ...
, under the authority of
Milwaukee Public Schools
Milwaukee Public Schools (MPS) is the largest school district in Wisconsin. As of the 2015–16 school year, MPS served 75,568 students in 154 schools and had 9,636 full-time equivalent (FTE) staff positions. The Milwaukee Public Schools system i ...
.
[Hmong American Peace Academy]
Milwaukee Public Schools website, accessed February 11, 2011 It includes the HAPA K-8 program, and it has an affiliated high school program.
[Pabst, Georgia.]
" ''Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
The ''Milwaukee Journal Sentinel'' is a daily morning broadsheet printed in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, where it is the primary newspaper. It is also the largest newspaper in the state of Wisconsin, where it is widely distributed. It is currently ...
''. January 6, 2013. Retrieved on March 2, 2014.
Chris Her-Xiong, Jeff Nha Yia Yang, Gwaub Thao, Jay Chong Zeb Xiong, and Dr. Douglas Vue were the co-founders of the school in 2004.
[ HAPA was established in 2004 for ]Hmong-American
Hmong Americans ( RPA: ''Hmoob Mes Kas'', Pahawh Hmong: "") are Americans of Hmong ancestry. Many Hmong Americans immigrated to the United States as refugees in the late 1970s. Over half of the Hmong population from Laos left the country, or a ...
children[Sarah Platt]
Milwaukee's fastest-growing charter school celebrates new, larger location
Fox6Now website, September 17, 2010 and other children with southeast Asia
Southeast Asia, also spelled South East Asia and South-East Asia, and also known as Southeastern Asia, South-eastern Asia or SEA, is the geographical south-eastern region of Asia, consisting of the regions that are situated south of mainland ...
n heritage. Initially it enrolled students up to fifth grade
Fifth grade (called Grade 5 in some regions) is a year of education in many nations, and some other regions call it Year 5. In the United States, the fifth grade is the fifth and last year of elementary school in most schools. In other schools, it ...
, but later extended from pre-kindergarten to eighth grade
Eighth grade (or grade eight in some regions) is the eighth post-kindergarten year of formal education in the US. The eighth grade is the ninth school year, the second, third, fourth, or final year of middle school, or the second and/or final ye ...
.[The History of Hmong American Peace Academy, Ltd.]
, Hmong American Peace Academy, Ltd. website, accessed February 11, 2011 Enrollment is about 1000 students, of whom 98 percent speak a language
Language is a structured system of communication. The structure of a language is its grammar and the free components are its vocabulary. Languages are the primary means by which humans communicate, and may be conveyed through a variety of ...
other than English.[
An affiliated school, the ]International Peace Academy
The International Peace Institute (IPI, formerly the International Peace Academy) is an independent non-profit lobby group based in New York (beside the headquarters of the United Nations, with which IPI works closely). The institute has regional ...
, is a charter high school
A secondary school describes an institution that provides secondary education and also usually includes the building where this takes place. Some secondary schools provide both '' lower secondary education'' (ages 11 to 14) and ''upper seconda ...
.[
]
Curriculum
The school provides its academic instruction in English, while it has its heritage classes in Hmong.[
]
Programs
The school has a Saturday academy for enrichment and extra support, an extended day program, after school tutoring.[
]
Demographics
As of 2013, 87% of students qualify for free or reduced lunch.[
]
See also
* Hmong in Wisconsin
Hmong Americans are the largest Asian ethnic group in the U.S. state of Wisconsin.[Language/culture-based charter school A language/culture-based charter school is a charter school whose curriculum is based on the language and culture of a specific ethnic nation or group of nations, although the schools are open to students of all ethnic backgrounds.
A review by the ...]
References
{{reflist
External links
Hmong American Peace Academy Ltd.
Charter schools in Wisconsin
Educational institutions established in 2004
Education in Milwaukee
Hmong-American culture in Wisconsin
Public elementary schools in Wisconsin
2004 establishments in Wisconsin