New Teacher Dance 2021 Video

We are now going to introduce to you all the new teachers for the 21-22 school year! There are quite a few, so let’s get started! First up, is team Laulima’s new Social Studies teacher, Ms. Kaley! Ms. Kaley was born and raised in Austin Texas, and came to Oahu to attend college on the North Shore at Brigham Young University, which is where she still lives now. She loves to dance, knit, and nerd out about History and Star Wars. On a normal day, you will either find her reading on the beach or hitting the gym before a loooong night of Netflix. 

Next up, we have Mr. Phung, Koa Kau Lio’s new Social Studies teacher! He graduated from Kahuku High school, and then went on to study at BYU. His hobbies include spending time with his one year old daughter and wife, surfing, Taekwondo, and lion dancing! 

Also joining us this year is Ms. Vijil Hicks, who will be team Laulea’s new Social Studies teacher! Ms. Vijil comes from Baltimore, and after graduating from the University of Maryland, has been teaching 8th grade history for four years. She moved back to Hawaii to be closer to family, and has a 2 year old son named Dante!

Coming up next is team Hui Manao’s brand new art teacher, Mr. Torres! He enjoys drawing, spending time with friends and family, and watching Marvel movies. Welcome to Highlands, Mr. Torres!

Next up is Mrs. Martin, team Alakai’s new English teacher! She actually grew up in South Korea, and loves eating; in fact, she says anyone who likes to go to all-you-can-eat barbecue restaurants can be her friend! Other than eating, she also enjoys working out. Mrs. Martin also admits to being a terrible driver, and warns against asking her to go on highways or freeways, especially H-1. She already loves her students, and is looking forward to a wonderful school year! 

Ms. Taylor, is Hui Ha’aheo’s new teacher! Ms. Taylor is from San Diego, California, and actually just moved here! She’s been a teacher for three years, all in middle school. Her hobbies include traveling, scuba diving, swimming, and going to the beach. Welcome to Hawaii Ms. Taylor! 

Next we have another shining new social studies teacher on team Hui Ha’aheo, Ms. Rodriguez. She grew up in Japan and the Philippines as a military kid, but still considers Kahalu’u home. Ms. Rodriguez is a proud alumni of Mill College in Oakland, California and UH Manoa, earning degrees in Ethnic Studies and Education. While she’s been teaching for 20 years - first in Kaneohe, and the last 16 years in Kalihi, she’s very excited to now be a part of the Highlands ohana here in Pearl City! 

Our next newest teacher is Mr. Shirafuji, team Hui Ha’aheo’s new PE teacher! As a graduate from Aiea High school and UH Manoa, Mr. Shirafuji coached soccer for over 20 years and enjoys golfing in his free time. He’s coming from teaching weight training at Waianae High School for 10 years. So far, he’s enjoying the short drives to work and his new 7th grade students! 

Next up is Mrs. Herman, team Hui Lokahis new math teacher! This is her 6th year teaching, and she’s so happy to be here at Highlands Intermediate! She moved from Missouri to Hawaii this summer and is looking forward to an awesome year ahead! 

Our final teacher is team Hui Lokahi's new English teacher, Ms. Yco. Ms. Yco was born in Manila, grew up in Guam, and went to high school in Hawaii. She got her bachelors in English at UH-Manoa and her Masters at Loyola University Chicago. When she is not teaching, you can usually find her spending time with her nephew, cooking, and obsessing over her new hobby: knitting!

Spirit Competition Kick Off 2021! Video

The Highlands Spirit Competition 21-22 kicked off with the teachers over the course of 1 week battled for the top spot on our Nintendo Switch! For the game, Mr. White chose the super fun racing game based on the Pixar movie: Cars 3! 2 teachers from each team raced the Copper Canyon Speedway track and tried their very best to get the fastest to the checkered flag! The competition was furious as the teachers tried to tap into their inner child for video game skill and strategy! Each teacher played once, and the average team time was taken to determine the winners of the games!

Ironically, Team A (Laule'a) - Cars took first place! Congrats to Mr. Esteban and Mr. Zhang for being our Teacher Champions and bringing eternal glory to your team this year!!!

 

Student Council 21-22 Intro Dance "Say So!" Video

Aloha Colts! First off, we’d like to welcome you all to this 2021-2022 school year! After spending all year online last year, we're so looking forward to everything we have planned for all of you! With everyone back to in-person learning, it’ll be an entirely new adventure for every single one of us. The road ahead is bright, and your Highlands school experience is just beginning....

We challenge you to take a few steps out of your comfort zone - even if it’s just a few steps - and start making the memories that will last a lifetime! In order to help you make those memories, your Highlands school year will be filled to the brim with student activities from start to finish! Colts, look forward to participating in all sorts of games, competitions, and events -- you won’t want to miss it!

And now, we're going to introduce you to some of the people that are going to make these activities happen! Announcing the Highlands Student Council for the 2021-2022 school year! Get ready, Colts because this year’s Student Council wants you to know that if you’re feeling the fun and excitement, you just have to “Say So!” 

 

New Year = New Teachers, New Students, New Teams!

Whoop, whoop, hooray! School is finally getting back to in-person learning, and Highlands Intermediate is so excited! It’s a new year, a new start! And with this new, exciting 2021-2022 school year coming in, we have brand-new teachers, students, and teams! Last year, our school theme was video games, fitting with COVID, but now, it’s the ever so funny Pixar! Like a phoenix rising from the fire, Highlands Intermediate has emerged from the darkness, bigger and better and raring to go! Our teams have picked their new Pixar identities, this year’s Student Council officers have been elected, our teachers have prepared for class, and us students are waiting anxiously with our bags packed for every new day! Plus, a little birdie told me that Student Council is just itching to plan some incredible activities for everyone! Colts, an awesome year has just started, what will you do with it? Mia, Student Government Vice President  

Student Council Introductions 2021 Video

Aloha Colts! First off, we’d like to welcome you all to this 2021-2022 school year! After spending all year online last year, we're so looking forward to everything we have planned for all of you! With everyone back to in-person learning, it’ll be an entirely new adventure for every single one of us. The road ahead is bright, and your Highlands school experience is just beginning....

We challenge you to take a few steps out of your comfort zone - even if it’s just a few steps - and start making the memories that will last a lifetime! In order to help you make those memories, your Highlands school year will be filled to the brim with student activities from start to finish! Colts, look forward to participating in all sorts of games, competitions, and events -- you won’t want to miss it! 

And now, we're going to introduce you to some of the people that are going to make these activities happen! Announcing the Highlands Student Council for the 2021-2022 school year!

Welcome Back Assembly 2021 Behind the Scenes

Who’s ready for a new year?! No, not the New Years new years, staying up until midnight and popping fireworks. I mean the new SCHOOL year, with smiling faces, full bags, and, for Highlands Intermediate, the annual Welcome Back Assembly! With the pandemic still going, we had to resort to making the Welcome Back Assembly 2021 virtual, but that didn’t make it any less special! However, there was a LOT of work that went on behind the scenes to make this assembly possible! Before it went live, Student Council spent their time planning, organizing, and recording to make sure we started this year off with a “BANG!” And after weeks of classes and breaks spent in front of a camera and late night for Mr. White used to edit every piece of the puzzle together, the students of Highlands Intermediate laid their eyes on the wondrous virtual Welcome Back Assembly 2021! Mia, Student Government Vice President

Welcome Back Assembly 2021 Video

The Highlands Intermediate Welcome Back Assembly 2021: “To Highlands And... Beyond!” premieres Thursday - August 19, 2021.

The purpose of this Pixar-themed event is to: 1.) instill team, class, and school pride! 2.) to introduce the new teachers, staff and student leaders! 3.) to introduce this year’s Pixar theme “To Highlands And... Beyond!” 4.) to kick off this year’s spirit competition by giving away as many spirit points as possible! 5.) and lastly, to show that Highlands makes learning fun and enjoyable!

We ask during the performance that you get comfortable, do not talk or play around and cheer when appropriate ;) We hope you love it!!!

Welcome Highlands Intermediate Interact Club!

Pull out your cameras and get ready to cheer…please welcome, the Highlands Intermediate Interact Club! Sponsored by the Rotary Club of Pearlridge, we finally have our very own Interact Club! The Rotary Club of Hawaii has helped create awesome Interact Clubs all across the island for one purpose: to better our community! The Interact Club strives to support the heartwarming society of our islands through service projects, fundraisers, and all around fun activities that make everyone feel welcome! And on April ___, the president of the Rotary Club and a representative made their way down to our school to present us with our official certificate of organization, and kick start our first project with them! I assure you, these thank you posters to the healthcare workers of Pali Momi are just the beginning to a year of great service projects and contributions to our community! Mia, Student Government Vice President

Spirit Competition Kick Off 2021: Cars3! Video

The Highlands Spirit Competition 21-22 kicked off with the teachers over the course of 1 week battled for the top spot on our Nintendo Switch! For the game, Mr. White chose the super fun racing game based on the Pixar movie: Cars 3! 2 teachers from each team raced the Copper Canyon Speedway track and tried their very best to get the fastest to the checkered flag! The competition was furious as the teachers tried to tap into their inner child for video game skill and strategy! Each teacher played once, and the average team time was taken to determine the winners of the games! Ironically, Team A (Laule'a) - Cars took first place! Congrats to Mr. Esteban and Mr. Zhang for being our Teacher Champions and bringing eternal glory to your team this year!!!

 

Spirit Competition Kick-Off 2021! Cars3

It’s time to kick-start the Highlands Intermediate 2021 Spirit Competition! And what better way to start than with our very own awesome teachers? From August 10 to August 13, a Cars 3 competition for the teachers was run in the Student Council Room and boy was it awesome! Teachers from all across campus gathered in the spirit filled StuCo room and fought for glory on the switches. After being without many activities for over a year, everyone jumped at the chance to finally get back into the game! Plus, whoever won would get a head start in our school’s spirit competition, and we all know how competitive the teams can get! At the end of the year, winners receive the sought after spirit cup and the chance to choose their identities first. So with gaming reputation and spirit points on the line, teachers, ready? Steady? GO! Mia, Student Government Vice President

Welcome Back to School 2021

The 2020-2021 virtual school year ended and now we are kicking it off with Highlands Intermediate School Year 2021-2022! Every year, our school gets a new theme. If you remember, last year's theme was video games. Can you guess what this year's theme will be? It's Pixar: “To Highlands…and Beyond!”  Last year, our classes were all online. We only got to go to school in-person once a week at the end of the school year. This year, we are all grateful to be back into a full in-person learning environment. Teachers are glad to see students' faces, students are glad to see their friends, and overall, it just feels "normal" again. Highlands Intermediate Student Council was ready to welcome all of the returning 8th grade students and new 7th grade students to our campus. On the first two days of the new school year, Highlands Student Council all got up early and waited by the office parking lot, ready to greet the students on their first day of the school year. We played lots of upbeat music and were doing different cheers to get the students excited to start off their first day of school. Each of the Student Council members put hard work into making a Pixar themed poster to make kids feel welcomed. They all were full with color and were later put up around campus to make kids feel welcomed throughout the year. Marina, Student Government Treasurer

Student Council Bootcamp 2021

It might’ve still been summer for some, but the Student Council was already hard at work preparing for the upcoming school year to make it the best it could be. Student Council Bootcamp took place on August 2nd, 2021 from 9:00 am - 3:00 pm in the StuCo room. The StuCo team met with each other along with Mr. White and StuCo alumni. We held this Bootcamp to help train the StuCo members for the upcoming school year and how to be StuCo members. Bootcamp also acted as bonding for everyone by playing ice breakers and energizers, doing cheers, and having a memorable time together. We were able to learn more about what it means to be a StuCo member. The StuCo was able to learn more about what the school year would be like and how it would work with COVID while still being able to do student activities. The alumni present were able to share their experiences and words of wisdom with everyone, then later showed their leadership in action. It was in these moments that we all knew our StuCo family and an amazing school year were only getting started. Naomi, Student Government Secretary