Princess Ruth Keʻelikōlani Middle School, shortened as Ke‘elikōlani Middle School (formerly known as Central Middle School, Central Intermediate School, Central Grammar School, and Ke‘elikōlani School) is a co-ed,

middle school Middle school, also known as intermediate school, junior high school, junior secondary school, or lower secondary school, is an educational stage between primary school and secondary school. Afghanistan In Afghanistan, middle school includes g ...

of the

Hawaii Department of Education The Hawaii State Department of Education (HIDOE, ) is a statewide public education system in the United States. The school district can be thought of as analogous to the school districts of other cities and communities in the United States, ...

that occupies a historic building in

Honolulu Honolulu ( ; ) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Hawaii, located in the Pacific Ocean. It is the county seat of the Consolidated city-county, consolidated City and County of Honol ...

Hawaiʻi Hawaii ( ; ) is an island state of the United States, in the Pacific Ocean about southwest of the U.S. mainland. One of the two non-contiguous U.S. states (along with Alaska), it is the only state not on the North American mainland, th ...

, built on the grounds of

Keōua Hale Keōua Hale was the mansion of Princess Keʻelikōlani, Ruth Keʻelikōlani at 1302 Queen Emma Street in downtown Honolulu, Hawaii. History The mansion was built upon the site of Ruth and her adoptive son Leleiohoku II, Leleiohoku's residence ...

, the former

palace A palace is a large residence, often serving as a royal residence or the home for a head of state or another high-ranking dignitary, such as a bishop or archbishop. The word is derived from the Latin name palātium, for Palatine Hill in Rome whi ...

of Princess Ruth Keʻelikōlani of Hawaiʻi.

History

A large palace for Princess Ruth Keʻelikōlani, known as Keoua Hale was built on this site in 1878. After she died in 1883, her estate passed to her first cousin,

Bernice Pauahi Bishop Bernice Pauahi Pākī Bishop KGCOK RoK (December 19, 1831 – October 16, 1884) was an '' alii'' (noble) of the royal family of the Kingdom of Hawaii and a well known philanthropist. Ancestry, birth and early life Pauahi was born in Hon ...

, who died in 1884. Later, the palace was sold to the government to be used for educational purposes. In 1895, Honolulu High School (formerly Fort Street English Day School) classes were held there until 1907, when the school was renamed McKinley High School and relocated to a new building facing Thomas Square. (That building later housed the Linekona School and is now the Honolulu Museum of Art School). Central Grammar School then took McKinley's old place in Keʻelikōlani's former palace. . In 1920, Central Grammar School was designated a forerunner of what would become the "English Standard" type of public school. Soon thereafter, English-language exams were required for entrance. Plans for a new building were commissioned to accommodate the rapid growth of students going on to secondary schools during the booming 1920s. The palace was demolished, and the makai wing of the new building opened in 1925. The school was originally named Keʻelikōlani School, but was renamed Central Grammar School in 1927 after it became too difficult for others to pronounce (One can still see the name "Keelikolani School" engraved over the first-story windows on that side.) After the other two wings were completed in 1927, Central Grammar School became Central Junior High School, one of only six public secondary schools in Honolulu at the time. In 1932, all junior high schools were renamed intermediate schools.

2021 name change

In 2021, Central Middle School was renamed to Princess Ruth Keʻelikōlani Middle School in honor of Keʻelikōlani. The effort to change the name began in 2019, and the change was approved by the Board of Education in September 2021. The renaming celebration took place on February 9, 2022.

Academics

As of the 2024-2025 school year, students are required to take core classes for each grade in English, mathematics, social studies, and science. For English, the Wonders Reading workshop is used for grade six, while the Amplify curriculum is used for grades seven and eight. Mathematics courses use the i-Ready software for implementation. The school also requires advisory and Social Emotional Learning (SEL) classes. For electives, the school offers a variety of courses, including

band Band or BAND may refer to: Places *Bánd, a village in Hungary * Band, Iran, a village in Urmia County, West Azerbaijan Province, Iran * Band, Mureș, a commune in Romania * Band-e Majid Khan, a village in Bukan County, West Azerbaijan Province, ...

orchestra An orchestra (; ) is a large instrumental ensemble typical of classical music, which combines instruments from different families. There are typically four main sections of instruments: * String instruments, such as the violin, viola, cello, ...

, and

physical education Physical education is an academic subject taught in schools worldwide, encompassing Primary education, primary, Secondary education, secondary, and sometimes tertiary education. It is often referred to as Phys. Ed. or PE, and in the United Stat ...

Architecture

The original design of the school was drawn up in 1922 by the prominent architectural firm of Walter Emory and Marshall Webb, who also designed such notable buildings as the grand

Tudor Revival Tudor Revival architecture, also known as mock Tudor in the UK, first manifested in domestic architecture in the United Kingdom in the latter half of the 19th century. Based on revival of aspects that were perceived as Tudor architecture, in rea ...

residence of Charles M. Cooke Jr. (1912), the eclectic Indian-Western-style Honpa Hongwanji Hawaii Betsuin Buddhist Temple (1918), and the

Neoclassical Revival Neoclassical architecture, sometimes referred to as Classical Revival architecture, is an architectural style produced by the Neoclassical movement that began in the mid-18th century in Italy, France and Germany. It became one of the most promin ...

and

Art Deco Art Deco, short for the French (), is a style of visual arts, architecture, and product design that first Art Deco in Paris, appeared in Paris in the 1910s just before World War I and flourished in the United States and Europe during the 1920 ...

Hawaii Theatre The Hawaii Theatre is a theatre in downtown Honolulu, Hawaii, United States. Built in 1922, it is located at 1130 Bethel Street, between Hotel and Pauahi Streets, on the edge of Chinatown. It is listed on the State and National Register of Histor ...

(1921). Their first design showed more influences of the

Mediterranean Revival Mediterranean Revival is an architectural style introduced in the United States, Canada, and certain other countries in the 19th century. It incorporated references to Spanish Renaissance, Spanish Colonial, Italian Renaissance, French Colonial ...

style that characterized many public buildings of that era, but they modified the plans in 1924 to add more

features, such as Ionic and Corinthian columns. This style was further enhanced by the Territorial building inspector at the time, Harry K. Stewart, a graduate of Central Grammar School who went on to design many other public buildings in the Territory, such as Baldwin High School and Molokai Public Library.

Enrollment and demographics

As of the 2023-2024 school year, the school has a total of 372 students. Of this, 210 students are

Native Hawaiian Native Hawaiians (also known as Indigenous Hawaiians, Kānaka Maoli, Aboriginal Hawaiians, or simply Hawaiians; , , , and ) are the Indigenous peoples of Oceania, Indigenous Polynesians, Polynesian people of the Hawaiian Islands. Hawaiʻi was set ...

Pacific Islander Pacific Islanders, Pasifika, Pasefika, Pacificans, or rarely Pacificers are the peoples of the list of islands in the Pacific Ocean, Pacific Islands. As an ethnic group, ethnic/race (human categorization), racial term, it is used to describe th ...

, 83 students are Asian, 30 students are

Hispanic The term Hispanic () are people, Spanish culture, cultures, or countries related to Spain, the Spanish language, or broadly. In some contexts, Hispanic and Latino Americans, especially within the United States, "Hispanic" is used as an Ethnici ...

, 5 students are

White White is the lightest color and is achromatic (having no chroma). It is the color of objects such as snow, chalk, and milk, and is the opposite of black. White objects fully (or almost fully) reflect and scatter all the visible wa ...

, and 41 students identify as

two or more races Multiracial Americans, also known as mixed-race Americans, are Americans who have mixed ancestry of two or more races. The term may also include Americans of mixed-race ancestry who self-identify with just one group culturally and socially (cf. t ...

. Approximately 65% of students are eligible for free lunch, and 10.6% are eligible for reduced-price lunch.

Notable achievements

In May 2024, principal Joe Passantino was named the Hawaii State Principal of the Year by the Hawaii Association of Secondary School Administrators, a national affiliate of the

National Association of Secondary School Principals The National Association of Secondary School Principals (NASSP) is a national organization of and voice for middle level and high school principals, assistant principals, and aspiring school leaders from across the United States and more than 4 ...

. Passantino was credited for doubling math scores and increasing English preparedness by 50%.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Princess Ruth Ke'elikolani Middle School Public schools in Honolulu Public middle schools in Honolulu County, Hawaii School buildings on the National Register of Historic Places in Hawaii Hawaiian architecture National Register of Historic Places in Honolulu