Ka Wai Ola - Office of Hawaiian Affairs, Volume 31, Number 2, 1 February 2014 — Molokaʻi Middle School STEM leaders on the move [ARTICLE+ILLUSTRATION]

Molokaʻi Middle School STEM leaders on the move

oloka'iMiddle School

students are planning to embark on an adven-

turous field trip to Florida fromApril 13 to 19, 2014. The trip's overall theme is "Science in Motion." The students have been fundraising by selling everything from luneh plates, car washes and See's candy. This is the first time in Moloka'i Middle School's history that they are planning an out-of-state excursion.

In 2011-2012, Moloka'i Middle School was the most improved school in the state of Hawai'i and last school year it was recognized for being the second-highest performing middle school in the County of Maui. The school's mission is to challenge all individuals to achieve their personal best by providing rigorous, engaging instructional programs that develop skills and promote lifelong learning. Moloka'i Middle School has a STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Math) program, chess, history, math club, VEX and Lego robotics, and girls' Bridges team. These programs take students on real-life, hands-on experiences to places both on- and off-island. Students who have been participating in these programs have been making headlines lately in the news. They

have been perennial winners in the

STEM, Robotic and Scienee Fairs Competitions. The upcoming Florida trip is a once-in-a-lifetime experience for most of the 20 students who have signed up to attend. Many have never traveled out of state before. The trip will focus primarily on the STEM program through visits to the Kennedy Space Center, Disney World, Epcot Center, scienee museums and even attending an NBA game. They will also get to experi-

enee an earthquake simulation, study different greenhouse systems, dissect coastal creatures and take a look at some of the best conservation efforts. As part of their college- and careerreadiness program, they will be able to explore and analyze future options that may be available to them As with any small island, the students' families along with the entire Moloka'i community have been a great support in the students' efforts to fundraise. Students who have seized this opportunity will gain real-life experiences and will be able to enrich their learning. If you would like to kōkua with this educational trip, please eontact Kelly Kaawa Richardson, trip adviser at (808) 567-6940, (808) 658-0877 or email hoku richardson@gmail.com. ■

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Twenty Moloka i Middle School students, some of whom are shown here, are preparing for a trip to Florida in April. - Courtesy photo