Erin Evans ʻ16, has received the 2016 Hawaiʻi Regional NCWIT Award for Aspirations in Computing. The award, sponsored by the National Center for Women & Information Technology (NCWIT) and the Department of Information and Computer Sciences at the University of Hawaiʻi-Manoa, recognizes young high school women for their computing-related achievements and interests as part of an effort to encourage more young women to choose careers in technology.

A total of 16 award-winners were selected from high schools across Hawaiʻi for their outstanding aptitude and interest in information technology and computing, solid leadership ability, good academic history, and plans for post-secondary education. The students will be recognized at an award ceremony on March 14 at the University of Hawaiʻi-Manoa.

Evans is the fourth consecutive HPA winner of this award. Previous award recipients were Mariko Thorbecke (2013), Hannah Twigg-Smith (2014), and Erina Baudat (2015).

Evans is very involved with research and athletics at HPA. At the schoolʻs Energy Lab, her projects have included building a gaming console using emulation station and a Raspberry Pi, restoring two non-working golf carts and converting them to run on solar power, and creating a radio frequency identification (RFID) check-in system to launch campus-wide. The RFID system will allow students to check in to their classes by swiping a card allowing the user/teacher to receive e-mail notification of who was in class that day.

In athletics, Evans was a starter on the girls soccer team, which won three consecutive DII state championships. She also has competed in cross country and currently competes in water polo.

"Erin is a synthetic, integrative thinker, who brings together many disparate ideas into a solution that might never have been tried," said HPA Energy Lab director Dr. Bill Wiecking, who has worked with Evans for the past four years. "Erin brings a non-linear approach to her problems, and will certainly enrich the projects and teams she joins in the future. Erin finds challenges enriching, an admirable trait in any explorer."

The NCWIT Aspirations in Computing program engages young women interested in technology and computing. By generating visibility for these young women in their local communities, the program encourages their continued interest in computing, attracts the attention and support of educational and corporate institutions, and emphasizes at a personal level the importance of womenʻs participation in computing and information technology.

For more information, visit www.ncwit.org.

Hawaiʻi Preparatory Academy will host the annual Waimea College Fair sponsored by the Hawaiʻi Association for College Admission Counseling from 6 to 7:30 p.m. on Wednesday, April 6, in the schoolʻs Castle Gym. The event is free and is designed for all Waimea area students interested in pursuing higher education opportunities.

This year's program will feature 70 colleges from Hawaii, the mainland, and overseas, including:

University of Arizona
University of British Columbia
University of California, Irvine
Colorado State University
Colorado College
Creighton University
Linfield College
University of Nevada, Las Vegas
University of Notre Dame
University of Oregon
University of San Francisco
Seattle University
Washington State University
West Point
Willamette University

A general advising and financial aid center will be available to students and their families to answer specific questions regarding the college admission process and financial aid.

For more information, please visit the Hawaiʻi Association for College Admission Counseling website at www.hawaiiacac.org, or e-mail HawaiiACAC@gmail.com.

By Jordan Virtue '16

With a pair of girls and boys BIIF championships and the girls team securing a second place state finish for the first time in school history, the 2016 HPA varsity swimming and diving team certainly knows how to make a splash. However, their successes in the water are not solely based on brutal sprint sets and intense dry land fitness workouts. They are based on a culture of involvement that pervades within all aspects of the team experience.

The HPA swim program calls each athlete to "be the best at getting better" and to embrace a mindset of "training ugly." The "train ugly" motto, emblazoned on a multitude of team sweatshirts, is to realize that "getting better is not pretty" and that "there are no gifts." It is only through seeking out challenges and "doing the hard things" that you can truly improve and will "enjoy every minute of it."

Mark Noetzel, head swim coach, emphasizes that "the cream rises from the bottom to the top." For Noetzel, a swimmer's ability level is not nearly as important as their ability to improve. This attitude sets the tone for the team as swimmers create daily, season, and future goal sheets before the start of the season. "We want to put something tangible in each swimmer's hands," Noetzel explains. "Giving every practice a goal for every athlete is a powerful piece. They're working for themselves and, through that, the team gets better."

This same sense of determination defines the dive program at HPA, which has grown monumentally in the past few years. "When I first started teaching at HPA 20 years ago there were no divers on this island," states HPA faculty member and BIIF diving coordinator Kristine Dahlquist. "And this year, boom! We had 10 divers at BIIFs this season! I love having so many other teams interested in diving. I just want it to continue to grow."

HPA's diving team featured veterans and newcomers alike. Hadley Beach '16 and Kaili Yuen '16 used their gymnastics and diving experience to consistently dominate island competition. Asher Robertson '18 and Christine Ocheltree '16 entered the season with no prior diving experience and quickly advanced. Each diver was able to find areas to challenge themselves and improve, and that is where true growth occurred. "For Hadley and Kaili, it's the little things. They know the dives, but they need a little more height on their doubles or their toes pointed a certain way. For them, it's the minutia. The fact that [Asher and Christine] were able to learn eleven new dives is amazing. They are scary dives, but they got up there and did them and committed to them. And it was fantastic."

"Success breeds success," Noetzel declares. "We're not going to look for a spike in performance that we can't follow up on, but rather a continuum of success. We spiraled up. Throughout the season, our improvement rate was incredibly high."

The hard work and commitment paid off. The girls team won every event at the BIIF swimming and diving championships and the boys won seven of the twelve events. The girls who advanced to the state level placed second for the first time in school history, demonstrating impressive balance and depth. "We were represented, with a potential scorer, in every race," Noetzel says. Six team records were broken over the course of the weekend, including all of the girls relay events. Kira Parker '18, Maile Lawson '19, Katie Jefferson '16, and Karly Noetzel '18 set a record time in the 200 medley while Noetzel, Parker, Taylor Doherty '17, and Frida Berglund '17 combined to set the 200 free and 400 free records. Jefferson beat her prior record in the 100 fly for an individual record while Berglund set new records in the 200 and 500 freestyle.

Throughout the course of a season, swimmers and divers endure grueling butterfly sprint sets, freezing Waimea rain on the pool deck, and suboptimal tan lines. The question naturally arises, then, of why student enthusiasm only grows. The season is about far more than setting records- it is about participating in an overwhelmingly positive team culture and environment. "It's the spirit of representing your school that moves you forward," Noetzel proclaims. "It provides an opening for character to show through and be experienced."

The swim team has a character of its own, emphasizing camaraderie and an overwhelming sense of fun. Swimmers and divers enjoyed multiple movie nights on campus, bringing potluck items to a Star Wars showing. Pancake Thursdays reward athletes after tough practices mid-way through the week, and the infamous team cheer echoes across the pool. Team shirts adorned with flags from the eleven representated countries demonstrates the diversity of the team, and the bus ride sing-alongs demonstrate the unity of the team spirit. Swimmers cheered for their friends and teammates in every race, supporting each other after difficult races and celebrating when expectations are exceeded.

"The thing I regret about the season is that it always seems too short," Noetzel laments.
"People are competing really well, and then it stops."

Viet Tung Dao ʻ17 received the Special Innovation Prize in the Junior/Senior High School Science Idea Competition at the Tsukaba Science Edge 2016 for his project, Brainwave Technology for Real-Time Driver Drowsiness Detection. The competition was held March 25-26 in Japan.

Students from 60 schools throughout Japan, Korea, Taiwan, Thailand, Singapore, Vietnam and the U.S. competed presenting original research and technology ideas. Dao, who developed his independent science research project at Hawai'i Preparatory Academy's (HPA) Energy Lab, was selected to present his project at the Tsukaba International Conference Center.

"Drowsiness is one of the major causes of traffic accidents," explained Dao. "In the U.S., drowsy driving is responsible for 100,000 crashes, including 6,000 fatal ones each year. I wanted to do this project to save lives in the U.S. and in other countries."

After the days of competition, four prizes are announced, including the first, second, and third prize. This is the first year "The Special Innovation Prize" was awarded. "Everybody was surprised when the judges announced the prize, including me," said Dao.

"Tung is an intelligent, thoughtful young man with great passion for changing the world," said Dr. Bill Wiecking, Daoʻs project advisor and director of HPAʻs Energy Lab. "His project seeks to prevent injury through traffic accidents, and is in keeping with his consideration for others. This is the sort of work from students that makes me optimistic about the future."

Tsukaba Science Edge is an annual competition for students to introduce science research topics and serves as an international exchange for careers in science. Judges of the science competition included Dr. Reona Ezaki, winner of the Nobel Prize in Physics, and other scientists from the Tsukaba Science Academy.

What happens when 220 joyous guests come together to work and join in for four hours of dining, dancing and celebration? On April 16, at HPA's Upper School campus, this powerful combination resulted in more than $140,000 raised for a variety of classroom equipment, tools, instruments, clubs, and supplies. Alu Mai: An Evening in Celebration of HPA earned rave reviews and gave those who attended a sense that they were a part of something larger.

As the perfect Hawaiian sunset turned the bright blue sky to feathery streaks in every hue of lavender, pink and orange, guests arrived at the inaugural dinner and dance to a stunning Upper Campus venue with twinkling white lights under the high-top tent. Elegant fresh orchid arrangements on every table added a splendid touch to the decor, and the two HPA Giving Trees, handmade by HPA's stagecraft students, were front and center with "wish-list" leaves for all to peruse.

With scrumptious offerings by 14 of the Big Island's finest restaurants, a photo booth complete with props, and the high-energy tunes of California's own Grooveline, Alu Mai was an evening that will not soon be forgotten.

Head of School Robert McKendry and Dean of Student Life Fred Wawner served as bantering, Adele-singing, auctioneers for a Live Auction which brought in approximately $60,000 for HPA's teachers, students, and campus.

By the end of the night, 90 "leaves" from the HPA Giving Tree were pulled, and more than $80,000 contributed for purchases that will aid the school in its vision to design educational experiences of unparalleled depth and scope, empowering responsible global citizens to create, lead, and thrive in tomorrow's world.

The list of individuals and companies that helped to make Alu Mai possible is a long one, and we couldn't be more grateful to them. Visit the Alu Mai website to see the names of those involved in making the event an unforgettable one! While you're there, check out the slideshow of pictures!

The Fortieth Annual HPA Horse Show and Play Day was held on April 10 at the Hawaii Preparatory Academyʻs Upper Campus. Terri Impson-Richards judged the event. Some classes were judged on the rider, so only the riderʻs name is listed. Other classes were judged on the horse and its rider, so both names are listed. Many events were timed. Results are listed below.

Class 1: Leadline

1. Flash/Simone Powell 2. Guinan/Mya Pinkert 3. Brazos/Kian Nikkhoo 4. Albian Cowboy/Jake Phillips 5. NaMakani/Emilia Ednie

Class 2: Walt Trot Pleasure

1. Ichabod/Lia Craven 2. Sista/Chi-Chi O'Leary 3. Keala/Mikela Parris 4. Francesca/Bayla Jefferson 5. Brazos/Kian Nikkhoo 6. Guinan/Mya Pinkert 7. Flash/Simone Powell 8. Albian Cowboy/Jake Phillips

Class 3: Open Pleasure

1. Dancy/Merrin Dickson 2. Leilani/Kristina Novotna 3. Ichabod/Lia Craven 4. Otiz/ Gina Bertaina 5. Sista/Mako Yamamoto 6. Geronimo/Lia Bicardo 7. Guinan/Sana Yamakawa 8. NaMakani/Malia McKendry 9. Ls/Presley Van Brow 10. Jessie/Elle Phillips

Class 4: Walk Trot Equitation

1. Gina Bertaina 2. Lia Bicardo 3. Mikela Parris 4. Tess Savage 5. Lia Craven 6. Chi-Chi O'Leary 7. Mya Pinkert 8. Bayla Jefferson 9. Simone Powell

Class 5: Open Equitation

1.Merrin Dickson 2. Presley Van Brow 3. Gina Bertaina 4. Tess Savage 5. Malia McKendry 6. June Kim 7. Sana Yamakawa 8. Mako Yamamoto 9. Mia Horton

Class 6: Stalls

1. Anela Stewart/Guinan 2. Mako Yamamoto/Sista 3. Mia Horton/Francesca 4. Tess Savage/Keauhou 5. Lia Craven/Ichabod

Class 7: Bucket Elimination

1. Lia Craven/Malia McKendry 2.Kristina Novotna/Merrin Dickson 3. Nikki Struempf/Mikyla Wana 4. Abbea Struempf/Nikki Struempf 5. Gina Bertaina/Lia Bicardo 6. Simone Powell/Mya Pinkert

Class 9: Balance and Hold

1. Malia McKendry 2. Lia Bicardo 3. Mia Horton 4. Mya Pinkert 5. Gina Bertaina

Class 10: Potato Drop Race

1. Mikyla Wana 2. Malia McKendry 3. June Kim 4. Lia Craven 5. Mako Yamamoto 6. Lia Bicardo 7. Abbea Struempf 8. Gina Bertaina 9. Mia Horton 10. Mya Pinkert

Class 11: Ride and Lead

1. Malia McKendry/NaMakani 2. Lia Bicardo/Geronimo 3. Chi-Chi O'Leary/Sista 4. Sana Yamakawa/Guinan 5. Gina Bertaina/Otiz 6. Bayla Jefferson/ Francesca

Class 12: Pole Bending

1. Nikki Struempf 2. Tess Savage 3. Tie: Mikyla Wana 3. Malia McKendry 5. June Kim 6. Gina Bertaina 7. Genneyrose Gouveia 8. Taylor Wana 9. Abbea Struempf 10. Koutaro Yamamoto 11. Kian Nikkhoo

Class 13: Barrel Racing

1. Tess Savage 2. Nikki Struempf 3. Malia McKendry 4. Lia Craven 5. Anela Stewart 6. Lia Bicardo 7. Mikyla Wana 8. Gina Bertaina 9. Abbea Struempf 10. Taylor Wana 11. Genneyrose Gouveia

Class 14: Cross Rails Equitation

1. Otiz/Gina Bertaina 2. Geronimo/Lia Bicardo 3. Leilani/Kristina Novotna 4. Ls/Presley Van Brow 5. Dancy/Merrin Dickson

Class 15: Jumpers Cross Rails

1. Otiz/Gina Bertaina 2. Ls/Presley Van Brow 3. Leilani/Kristina Novotna 4. Sista/Mako Yamamoto 5. Geronimo/Lia Bicardo 6. Dancy/Merrin Dickson

Class 16: Hunter Hack 2'3"

1. Dancy/Merrin Dickson 2. Keauhou/Tess Savage 3. Sista/Mako Yamamoto 4. Anuhea/Kristina Novotna

Class 17: Hunter Hack 2'6"

1. Dancy/Merrin Dickson 2. Anuhea/Kristina Novotna

Class 18: Equitation over Fences

1. Kristina Novotna/Anuhea

Class 19: Open Jumper 2'3"-2'6"

1. London Fog/Zoe Mercer 2. Anuhea/Kristina Novotna

The Hawaiʻi Preparatory Academy Community Book Club will meet at 7 p.m. on Thursday, May 5, in the Dyer Memorial Library, Upper Campus. Community Book Club meetings are free and open to the public. Light refreshments will be served and participants are invited to bring a snack to share.

Hawai'i Preparatory Academy seniors Kana'ikai Gaughen and Emma Taylor signed their National Letters of Intent on Wednesday, April 12, in the schoolʻs Castle Gym with their coaches, family, and friends in attendance. This fall Gaughen will continue his baseball career at Mississippi Valley State University (NCAA Division I) and Taylor will continue her track career at Boston College (NCAA Division I) in Massachusetts.

Pictured with Gaughen and Taylor are (l to r): Jordan Hayslip, HPA baseball head coach; Lupe Diaz, HPA baseball assistant coach; Ka'ai Spencer, HPA track assistant coach; and Pat Lau, HPA track head coach.

HPA will host a free public screening of the award-winning documentary, Most Likely to Succeed, at 6 p.m. on Wednesday, May 11, at Gates Performing Arts Center, Upper Campus. Following the 90-minute film, viewers are invited to stay for a conversation with executive producer Ted Dintersmith.

Most Likely to Succeed Trailer from One Potato Productions on Vimeo.

Described as "the best film ever done on the topic of school," Most Likely to Succeed inspires its audiences with a sense of purpose and possibility, and is bringing school communities together in re-imagining what students and teachers are capable of doing. Directed by acclaimed documentarian Greg Whitely, the film has been an official selection of two dozen of the worldʻs top film festivals, including Sundance, Tribeca, AFI, Cleveland, Dallas, Milwaukee, Sarasota, Seattle, Virginia, and Bergen. The film also has been featured at leading conferences on education, including ASU/GSV, Harvard/GoldmanSachs, and NewSchools Venture Fund.

For more information, visit www.mltsfilm.org.

Lower and Middle School students and families braved the misty rain and a chilly evening breeze to enjoy the opening of the annual K-8 Art Show from 6 to 8 p.m. on Friday, April 22, at the Village Campus.

Outside the sun shone in the bright blue sky, inside Gates Performing Arts Center the sweet fragrance from flower lei wafted through the packed center as the sound of the pu (conch shells) marked the beginning of the Lower School's annual May Day Celebration on Friday, May 6. A hush fell over the crowd and each class wearing a different color to represent one of the eight islands of Hawaiʻi processed down the aisle. On stage, Nā 'Ali'i o Hawai'i, the royal court comprised of the fifth grade class, entered and took their seats next to a colorful kahili also representing a Hawaiian island.

This year's program, Mālama Honua Nā 'Ali'i: The Chiefs paid tribute to the past, present, and future leaders of Hawai'i. In a touching presentation, each class presented lei to K-8 principal Midge Jambor, who is retiring at the end of the school year.

The storytelling, songs, chants, and hula performances brought to life the lives of the ali'i, their commitment to their people and their impact on Hawai'i's social, political and economic history.

By Jordan Virtue '16

HPA English students cluster around a cascading waterfall, poetry books open and pens uncapped as they listen to Richard Braithwaite, English teacher and adventurer. He is perched on a rock above the waterfall, reciting Yeat's "A Dialogue of Self and Soul" by heart as the stream murmurs in the background. In perfect meter and pacing, Braithwaite declares that "We must laugh and we must sing,/ We are blest by everything,/ Everything we look upon is blest." Referencing the use of metaphor, syntax, and diction within the poem, the class discusses various aspects of the poem, ultimately concluding that it is through consciously finding joy in our reality that we confer a state of "blestness" onto our lives.

This intellectual conversation takes place in the rolling Waimea hills that surround HPA's campus. Students hiked from their usual English classroom and watched the landscape around them change from a buzz of activity around the academic center of campus into something wholly peaceful and calm. The class forms a winding parade across the fields, hiking silently in order to fully absorb the space around them.

The physicality of the hike immediately changes the dynamics of the learning environment. It is one thing to consider complex, nebulous notions of the human mind and heart within a structured classroom environment. It is an entirely different experience to take that thinking into a larger physical and mental space outside of the business of the school environment. "The main thing is the break from classic academia, such that minds have space to reconnect with intentional wondering and wandering," Braithwaite states. "And, through the process of going out, students often go into their own brains more effectively. Then, when they return to the classroom, hopefully they're refreshed."

Sitting in the grass and feeling the splash of a waterfall and the wind moving across the hills makes literature shifts from being words on a page into something tangible, real, and impactful. Within the serenity of nature, students hear the world around them and their own thoughts with increased clarity.

By Jordan Virtue '16

After hastily wrapping up an impromptu card game at the Hilina Pali overlook, HPA students hoist their camping backpacks and begin a two mile, 3,000 foot descent into the lava field below. Loose lava makes the downward climb difficult, but students frequently pause to admire the expansive ocean view below them. The group begins the remaining seven miles of the hike winding through lava fields and thorny shrubs, braving the midday heat with a limited water supply. After nearly seven hours of hiking, they reach Halape. As the sun sets, bowls of ramen change hands, laughter ensues, and students spread sleeping bags across the sand to gaze at the shooting stars that fly overhead.

At daybreak, dirty and sore hikers wake to their first true impression of Halape. The massive waves are alive, with mist curling off the crests as they crash into the coastline. They immediately walk to a freshwater pond nestled in a crevice, leaping off the rocky edge into the refreshing pool below. After enjoying a breakfast of tortillas and Nutella, students hike along the shoreline together, splashing in the shallows towards Halape Iki. Students swim in perhaps the most beautiful lagoon in Hawaii, performing back flips as dramatic cliffs rise above them in the background. Once they tire of swimming, they return to their campsite to knock coconuts from the trees above, scraping the sweet meat from the shells.

In the afternoon, students re-pack their backpacks and embark on the next leg of their journey, a five mile hike to Apua Point. They find themselves on the beach after a few hours of hiking, surrounded by native Naupaka bushes. They marvel at both the stunning view above the ocean's surface and the incredible sea life below it, stooping to examine sea cucumbers and slumbering eels in the tidepools. While watching the setting sun, students speak with researchers from the Hawksbill Sea Turtle Project who monitor the beach for nesting turtles and their hatchlings.

Students wake up early the following morning, with a sliver of moon and several stars still dotting the darkened sky. Reasoning that the moon's presence translates to more sleep, they nestle back into their sleeping bags and hope for a few more minutes of rest. Soon, however, they rise to begin cleaning up the campsite. Crepuscular rays shoot from the sun across the sky, shattering the clouds. Palm trees and crashing waves frame the scene, and students feel imperceptibly small, but also as though they are part of something greater.

Senior Will White has been named a National Merit Scholar and is the winner of a $2,500 National Merit Scholarship. The National Merit Scholarship Corporation (NMSC) made the announcement.

The 2,500 National Merit Scholar designees were selected from more than 15,000 outstanding Finalists in the 2016 National Merit Scholarship Program. HPA seniors Tristan Kilkenny and Jordan Virtue also were named Finalists in this yearʻs competition.

White, the son of John and Laurie White of Kamuela, has been a very active member of the HPA community. In addition to serving as student council president and dorm prefect, White was a member of the boys basketball team and co-published an article about Hawaiʻi Island coqui frogs in The Washington Postʻs Morning Mix during his internship with Morning Mix founder and editor Fred Barbash. He is an accomplished musician and a self-taught, award-winning banjo player, who also plays piano, guitar, and ukulele. White will attend Stanford University this fall and plans to study product design through the College of Engineering.

National Merit $2,500 scholarship winners are the Finalists in each state judged to have the strongest combination of accomplishments, skills, and potential for success in rigorous college studies. The number of winners named in each state is proportional to the state's percentage of the nation's graduating high school seniors.

These Scholars were selected by a committee of college admissions officers and high school counselors, who appraised a substantial amount of information submitted by both the Finalists and their high schools: the academic record, including difficulty level of subjects studied and grades earned; scores from two standardized tests; contributions and leadership in school and community activities; an essay written by the Finalist; and a recommendation written by a high school official.

This year's competition for National Merit Scholarships began in October 2014 when more than 1.5 million juniors in about 22,000 high schools took the Preliminary SAT/National Merit Scholarship Qualifying Test (PSAT/NMSQT®), which served as an initial screen of program entrants. Last fall, the highest-scoring participants in each state, representing less than one percent of the nation's high school seniors, were named Semifinalists on a state-representational basis. Only these 16,000 Semifinalists had an opportunity to continue in the competition.

From the Semifinalist group, 15,000 students met the very high academic standards and other requirements to advance to the Finalist level of the competition. By the conclusion of the 2016 program, about 7,500 Finalists will have earned the "Merit Scholar" title and received a total of about $33 million in college scholarships.

NMSC, a not-for-profit corporation that operates without government assistance, was founded in 1955 specifically to conduct the National Merit Scholarship Program. The majority of scholarships offered each year are underwritten by about 440 independent corporate and college sponsors that share NMSC's goals of honoring scholastically talented youth and encouraging academic excellence at all levels of education.

Hawaiʻi Preparatory Academyʻs lower and middle school students, faculty, staff, and parents gathered at the Village Campus on Tuesday, May 10, to break ground for the schoolʻs 7,667 square-foot multipurpose covered play area. The $2 million structure, made possible by an anonymous donor, will serve as covered play space for physical education activities, while being flexible enough to accommodate occasional use for other school activities.

HPAʻs Kumu Kuwalu Anakalea conducted the traditional Hawaiian groundbreaking ceremony, known as ʻEli Honua, with her Hawaiian Studies students. A representative from every class, grades K-8, along with school administrators and the project team, participated in the ceremony.

Aaron Spielman ʻ95 of Nanea Studios in Waimea, designed the facility, which will be located behind the fourth and fifth grade classrooms. Building features include an alcove, covered lanai, office, and storage space. Spielman also incorporated tennis court-style flooring with an additional coating to provide cushioning, daylighting to reduce the need for artificial light, and motorized louvers to provide natural ventilation. The peak of the roof, designed to be north/south, will optimize weather performance, reducing building "bulk" when viewed from Kawaihae Road.

Contractor Quality Builders will begin construction in early June. The building is scheduled to open in April 2017.

Hawai'i Preparatory Academy (HPA) honored the following Upper School students on May 16 for special achievement in academic studies, the arts, athletics, and community service.

Alumni Association Award (Juniors): Casimir Dahrouch and Sidney Vermeulen; Alumni Association Award (Sophomores): Malcolm Davis and Julia Perry; John L. Pricher Award: Tyler Alt and Janelle Laros; Holi Bergin Memorial Scholarship Award: Colby Camero and Sabrina Marvin; Cy Keala Spencer "Spirit of Aloha" Award: Elijah Anakalea-Buckley; Ulrike Katharina "Bieni" Kohler-Johnson Scholarship Award: Rowan Kotner and Janelle Laros; U.S. Army Reserve Scholar Athlete Award: Savannah Cochran and Justin Perry; Athletic Booster Club Career Athlete Awards: Kauʻinohea Taylor and Justin Perry; Hawaii High School Athletic Association (HHSAA) Champion Awards: Emma Taylor, Kauʻinohea Taylor, Boys Cross Country Team (Division II), Girls Soccer Team (Division II), Boys Soccer Team (Division II), and Girls Track Team.

New members of Cum Laude, the school's honor society: Tyler Alt, Anthony Beetem, Alicia Chow, Tania DuPont, Louisa Duggan, Sarah Emmons, Erin Evans, Jordan Grainger, Sabrina Marvin, Daniel Matsumoto, Kai Miller, Kieu-Giang Nguyen, Juan Miche Rosales, Emma Ostrem, Alice Patig, Tanner Riley, Emma Taylor, and Sidney Vermeulen.

ENGLISH

Mount Holyoke College Award: Sarah Emmons; Paul Knauff Creative Writing Award: Daniel Matsumoto; Excellence in English Award: Jordan Virtue.

FINE ARTS

Ka Makani Theatre Award: Sarah Emmons; Ka Makani Musical Theatre Award: Christine Ocheltree; Career Performance Award: Meiyo Abe; Phyllis A. Richards Theatre Arts Scholarship: Colby Camero; Vocal Music Award: Patrick Wong; Instrumental Music Award: Kengo Dupuis; Andy Ackerman Art Award: Kristina Novotna; Academy Art Award: Tyler Alt; Art History Award: Savannah Cochran; George Watson Audio-Visual Award: Nathan Ladwig; Photojournalism Award: Nana Ueno.

MATHEMATICS

Algebra I Award: Mikaela Chong; Geometry Award: Kyra Hartley; Algebra II/Trigonometry Award: Zhichun (Rachel) Zhao; Pre-Calculus Honors Award: Sidney Vermeulen; AP Calculus Award: Seungyou (Bruce) Kim; AP Statistics Award: Tanner Riley.

MODERN LANGUAGE

Chinese Language Award: Seungyou (Bruce) Kim; Japanese Language Award: Will White; Eva Perez Hawaiian Language Award: Taimane Kamaka; Spanish Language Award: Jordan Virtue; Institute of English Studies Outstanding Progress Award: Airi Tomihara; Institute of English Studies Achievement Award: Yi-Chen (Tina) Wu.

SCIENCE

Joseph Martire Biology Award: Keanna Lundy; Thomas Webb Mar Physics Award: Zen Simone; Alan Fujimoto Chemistry Award: Sidney Vermeulen; Environmental Science Scholar Award: Tyler Alt; Engineering Award: Janelle Laros; The Science Award: Alice Patig.

SOCIAL STUDIES

Jay Wilder Award for Excellence in History: Alexandra Thomas; Cathy Schmidel Award for Excellence in Social Studies: Louisa Duggan; Ben Dillingham U.S. History Award: Anthony Beetem.

By Kengo Dupuis '16

The first night of Olympics is where the whole school sees the amount of preparation and effort given by every class. Classes march in the gymnasium with their class shirts, banners and props to show team spirit along with pride. As the Freshmen, Sophomores, and the Juniors settled in their seats, the Seniors marched in with authority. We held our heads high, observing the energy flowing throughout the gymnasium. As we made our walk around the gym, four seniors along with myself walked to the percussion instruments set up under the far baseline of the gym entrance.

This semester, I took up an independent music study where I used my experience in orchestra percussion to teach students how to play a non-marching drumline. Teaching was a new concept for me, so it only caused the task to be a greater challenge. There's a great difference between leading and teaching. Leading gives you the ability to contribute to the team's efforts. While in teaching, I struggled with giving as much as of my knowledge as I could, but knowing, in the end, the students decided their own individual fate, or quality of their performance.

I saw the faces of my students as we walked up to the drums in front of the whole school. There was no question that they were nervous and quite afraid. Their fear was inevitable since none of my students ever had the experience of performing in front of a large crowd, especially one that was 400 strong. Contrary to my students' nerves, I felt the stage could not be prepared for us any better. The loud banging of buckets from the mighty junior class, the victory-hungry sophomores who rallied together, the curiosity and enthusiasm from the freshmen, and most of all the support from our faithful senior class set the atmosphere.

It may not come as a surprise, but this moment had great contrast compared to the mannerisms of orchestra performing I grew up with. There is a certain calmness that a theatre has to maintain when an orchestra is performing. Not during HPA Olympics. Losing your voice is an expectation. There was never a time I felt so passionate about striking the drum as loud as possible, and never a time when the crowd screamed so loud they forgot who they were on an average day.

Through attending HPA and preparing for the Olympics performance, I learned the value of teaching and teamwork. As a teacher, it is required for one to have great skills in finding that mutual learning point, so the whole class can progress to reach the goal. However, my case was not average -- I had the opportunity to teach students in my class, who are perhaps smarter and more knowledgeable than me. It's a great feeling to transfer the knowledge in striking the drum to my peers.

By Kate Sensenig '17

"It looks so good!" gasps Oliver '16, sprinting through the Student Union, swinging his arms wildly in every direction.

"It looks SO good. You guys have to come out and see!"

The senior class rushes outside and gazes up at their newly painted banners emblazoned with big, orange tigers snarling in defiance on a field of midnight black. They nod appreciatively at their handiwork, knees and elbows covered in orange and white paint. These are the banners they will carry into the opening ceremony the next day. The freshmen have monkeys, the sophomores, snakes, and the juniors, dragons. Each animal is from the Chinese zodiac, and will become each class's mascot for the next three days as they battle it out on the court, field, beach, and stage. HPA's Olympics is about to begin.

For someone not associated with the HPA community, Olympics appears, at first glance, to be like any other high school pep rally, or even a middle school field day. HPA Olympics is not like this, it is not like this at all. For three days, students are relieved from their scholarly duties and asked to participate in a tradition on the scale of something like the Triwizard Tournament from Harry Potter. However, unlike the Triwizard Tournament, where individual students compete for their own classes fame and glory, HPA's Olympics is about working together to be the best.

And it all happens on the rolling green hills of Waimea, near the roar of the Pacific Ocean, and under the watchful eye of the bright Hawaiian sun. HPA's magnificent location is one of the many things that sets it apart from other schools, and Olympics is a way for students to reconnect with the land on which their school is built. Most students would agree that beach day is the best day of Olympics. The whole school gathers at Hapuna to eat, play in the waves, and dig up some sand with events like tug-o-war, chariot races, and beach volleyball. Students return home that night red from the sun and encrusted with sand and salt. This is a common occurrence on Hawai'i Island. Everyone goes to the beach here, but no one gets to experience the beach like HPA students during Olympics; four hundred kids catching the surf, basking in the sun, consuming copious amounts of food and having a grand old time. It is quite a spectacle.

Olympics truly is a strange beast. At its foundation is competition and rivalry; each class battling each other for the top spot. But what's strange and wonderful about Olympics is when those lines between the classes begin to blur. Seniors band together with freshman, juniors cheer on the sophomores. In some cases, students will compete for another class's team to provide some support. Such was the case with the tree-planting contest, where the senior class only had two representatives against the juniors who had five. The maximum number of teammates was four, so Etera, '17, joined the senior team without hesitation. The seniors were the first to finish with Etera's help.

It's this kind of incredible generosity that set the tone for this year's Olympics. Yes, in the end, the Junior class was crowned the victor, everyone went home exhausted, and a much needed spring break began. But unlike a high school pep rally, easily forgotten and wholly unimportant in the grand scheme of things, HPA Olympics is a tradition that feels almost ancient to current students and recent alumni. It's not the games, or the beach, or the competition that makes HPA what it is, it's the HPA community that shape Olympics into the zany, intense and wonderful celebration that it is.