Class of 2030 enjoys new adventures on the Valley Isle
Our spring semester of neighbor island trips continued this week for the Class of 2030. Eighteen students, joined by Mr. Kanakanui, Mr. Ganiron, and Mrs. Hsia, enjoyed the past five days on Maui. The group stayed at the Made in Hope Center in Wailuku, a Christian retreat center dedicated to educating youth about their work with human trafficking survivors. During the week, students visited the Maui Nisei Veterans' Memorial Center and the popular Maui Ocean Center.
Service was an important component of the trip, and as students participated in service projects across the island, they could see the different community needs. The group shared songs and interacted with the kupuna of Maui Adult Day Care Center and the keiki of Kansha Preschool. Later that day, they spent a meaningful afternoon at Waiola Church in Lahaina, cleaning the cemetery grounds and witnessing the rebuilding process after the devastating wildfires in 2023. After catching a passenger ferry, the group served at the Lana'i Cat Sanctuary, helping to feed cats, paint cat houses, and scan microchips. Their last project took students to the Olowalu Valley to work on restoring the lo'i.
With a strong emphasis on teamwork and serving others during this trip, these 8th graders are well-prepared for their upcoming high school years. We look forward to them taking advantage of more travel opportunities and sharing God's love beyond our state!
Mathlete advances to State competition
Congratulations to our middle school MathCounts team, coached by Dr. Kwong! After months of weekly practices during lunch periods and competing in two interscholastic competitions during the fall, KCS mathletes were poised for a strong performance at the annual MathCounts Honolulu Chapter Competition. Held at Kamehameha Schools Kapalama on Saturday, February 8, they worked together to place 10th in the team competition. In the individual (target & sprint) rounds, Danae Hsia ‘30 earned Top Scorer for KCS. As Danae's score landed her in the top 25% of competitors, she advanced to the MathCounts State Competition on March 8. This is the first time KCS will send a mathlete to States; way to go, Danae!
New adventures for middle school students
KCS continues to provide memorable trip experiences for 7th and 8th graders! From November 17-21, 32 students and 12 parent & staff chaperones spent five days on the Garden Isle. The group stayed at the picturesque accommodations of Makanalani Kids Camp on the North Shore of Kauai, surrounded by open fields, gardens, orchards, and farm animals. During the week, students enjoyed several of the island's best cultural, historic, and adventure activities, including a train excursion at the Grove Farm Museum, learning coconut leaf weaving at the Kauai Museum, and ziplining at Outfitters Kauai. The trip also incorporated a service component. Students worked the lo'i at the Waipa Foundation and served joyfully at the Kauai Humane Society, completing a variety of tasks, from folding laundry to unloading pallets and washing crates.
This is the third neighbor island trip for our middle school department in recent years, allowing students to take advantage of our beautiful island home. In the spring of 2023, the Class of 2028 explored the island of Maui, while they were joined that fall by the Class of 2029 on Molokai. KCS hopes these trips strengthen friendships and bonds between students, helping them to look forward to more opportunities to travel to the mainland and overseas destinations in high school.
New club makes its debut at cubing competition
The recent phenomenon of "speedcubing" has made its way to campus this year, as the KCS Cubing Club officially launched last fall. Focused on solving the iconic Rubik's cube invented in 1974, the Cubing Club meets weekly for members to learn algorithms, memorize steps, and build their muscle memory to increase their speed in solving these puzzles. Club president, Caleb Yoshioka '24, began cubing in 5th grade and started the club to share his passion with students in 5th-12th grade.
On January 28, Cubing Club members had the opportunity to compete in the Oahu 'Ohana Cubing competition, an official event sponsored by the World Cube Association. Held at the UH Manoa Ballroom, KCS participants competed in a range of events, from the traditional 3x3x3 cube to cubes of other dimensions (2x2x2 or 4x4x4) and shapes ("Skewb" or "Pyraminx"). The younger team members represented KCS well in their first competition experience. Congratulations to Callen Miyata '30 and Caleb, who advanced to the 2nd round in the 3x3x3 event, finishing 26th and 29th, respectively.
Looking ahead to the rest of this semester, Caleb is contemplating sharing "a more expansive view" of cubing with club members, shifting from cubing competitively to exploring the collection aspect. He also plans to focus on solving different types of cubes, not just the traditional 3x3 cubes. Way to go, Caleb and KCS cubers!