This design competition was sponsored The Nature Conservancy and
Kapolei High School, and was supported in part by an award from
the National Endowment for the Arts. Other supporters included:
the James and Abigail Campbell Foundation, Makai Village Partnerships,
Grace Pacific Corporation, and the family of the late Muriel Flanders.
 Vision:
Kapolei High School is an exciting and dynamic student-centered
learning environment at the heart of the community.
Essential
values: caring, dignity and integrity
The
vision of Kapolei High School (KHS) is based on the recommendations
of 'Breaking Ranks: Changing an American Institution', a report
published by the National Association of Secondary School Principals.
Using the reports key elements and a collaborative planning process,
KHS has evolved into a student-centered learning environment that
focuses on the relationship between the school and the community.
Each is essential to the growth and development of the other, in
supporting and preparing students for the real world, and in preparing
the nation for the future.
Kapolei
High School, the newest public high school on O‘ahu, serves
1,800 to 2,400 students form the surrounding residential communities.
The school serves Kapolei, Makikilo, Honokai Hale and Kalaeloa.
The school is defined by six design principles: personalization,
authentic and relevant learning, academic rigor, building community,
career launching pad and technology. KHS provides dynamic and flexible
learning environments ("family pods" and "neighborhoods"
instead of classrooms) where students cultivate a sense of group
as well as individual responsibility. KHS emphasizes project-based
instruction with a focus on science, technology, environment, and
culture and arts. It is the heart of the community, providing students,
families, educators and business partners a collaborative learning
environment.
Kapolei
High is a fully “wired” campus. Technology is an essential
part of students’ experience and serves as an educational
tool to extend, enhance and enrich learning. Blended with problem-based
learning experiences, students are encouraged to see the connections
between school and the real world, understand the relevance in academics,
and gain a deeper understanding of academic and technical concepts.
The learning experiences are designed as authentic, academically
rigorous, student-centered projects.
For more information, see: www.k12.hi.us/~khshome
 WHAT
IS THE NATURE CONSERVANCY? The Nature Conservancy of Hawai‘i
is an affiliate of The Nature Conservancy, an international non-profit
environmental organization founded in 1951. The Nature Conservancy
is based in Arlington, Virginia with chapters in all 50 states and
30 countries, including Canada, Latin America, the Caribbean, and
many Asia/Pacific nations.
OUR
MISSION: To preserve the plants, animals and natural communities
that represent the diversity of life on Earth by protecting the
lands and waters they need to survive.
OUR
APPROACH: The Nature Conservancy takes a collaborative
approach to conservation. Our philosophy is grounded in cooperation
and compromise, not confrontation and conflict. Our ability to work
with business, government and private citizens – balancing
the needs of people and nature to achieve realistic conservation
results – characterizes our approach.
NATURE
CONSERVANCY PRESERVES: 1,400
The Conservancy has the largest system of private nature sanctuaries
in the world. Lands are acquired by gift, exchange, purchase, conservation
easement or management agreement. The Conservancy maintains these
lands as a public trust, providing management and encouraging appropriate
scientific, educational and recreational use.
•
A HISTORY OF PROTECTION IN HAWAI‘I: Since 1980, the
Hawai‘i program has established a statewide system of 12 preserves
totaling 32,000 acres, and helped protect another 8,600 acres in
privately-owned preserve lands. Working with the federal government,
we have helped acquire 150,000 acres for national wildlife refuges
and parks. Today, we are taking conservation to a new level in Hawai‘i
by protecting the larger landscapes and biological systems of which
these preserves are a part. Together with other public and private
landowners, we are protecting almost 1 million acres of ecologically
important lands through voluntary, cooperative partnerships that
allow landowners to share expertise and resources and work across
ownership boundaries.
•
PUBLIC AWARENESS AND COMMUNITY OUTREACH: In addition to
on-the-ground conservation, we also focus on public awareness. The
public generally is not aware that the decline of our native forests
affects not just the environment but the health, economy, and overall
quality of life in the islands. Our forests are our primary source
of water, and water is a resource in limited supply. A major goal
for public awareness is to raise the profile of forest protection
efforts and increase funding for conservation to support work by
conservation agencies and organizations throughout the state.
•
O‘AHU PROGRAM: The Nature Conservancy's O‘ahu
Program focuses on reducing critical threats to native forests across
the island and links our work to volunteer training and community
outreach. Honouliuli Preserve, located in the southern Wai‘anae
mountains above the City of Kapolei, is home to more than 70 rare
and endangered plants and animals, and is a living laboratory for
native forest restoration and rare species protection. Lessons we
have learned are having a wide-scale impact through our partnerships
with government agencies, schools, and community groups, and solid
volunteer support. The Mālama Learning Center will be a venue
to share these lessons and build new knowledge about and community
support for conservation.
For
more information, see: www.nature.org/hawaii
 Vision: A nation in which artistic
excellence is celebrated, supported, and available to all.
Mission: The National Endowment for the Arts enriches
our Nation and its diverse cultural heritage by supporting works
of artistic excellence, advancing learning in the arts, and strengthening
the arts in communities throughout the country.
In
2002, The National Endowment for the Arts awarded 13 grantees in
its third annual New Public Works initiative, with particular emphasis
given to the design of innovative schools. The agency will provide
up to $75,000 each to the organizations to help fund national design
competitions for a range of public projects. The Mālama Learning
Center is one of the awardees. This is the final year of the initiative,
although applications for future design competitions may be submitted
in the NEA's Creativity category.
For more information, see: http://www.nea.gov
Aston Hotels and Resorts is the official Hotel Sponsor for the Mālama
Learning Center design competition.
For more information, see: http://www.aston-hotels.com
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