Coming Together For Good Cause

Wizards, witches and even Wonder Woman were spotted across campus on October 21 as the school 'ohana celebrated Halloween - with a good cause in mind. 

As part of the "Costumes For a Cause" campaign, students donated $3 to "dress-down" or "dress-up" for the day. 

Proceeds from the Lower School will benefit Aloha United Way, and the High School's efforts will go towards the National Catholic Educational Association's Hurricane Relief Fund to assist Catholic Schools devastated by recent storms. 

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Seniors Host Spooktacular Carnival at Leahi Hospital

On October 25th the Class of 2018 facilitated a Halloween Spooktacular Carnival for the seniors at Leahi Hospital as a part of the annual Senior Class Service Day. 

Students and seniors played a variety of fun games like, Frankenstein’s Hungry—where participants needed to feed Frankie by shooting rings into his mouth, and Spiderville Mansion where spiders of various sizes where aimed into a window of the house. Another was Matching Mystery where images where the tops and bottoms of characters such as a mummy, witch, werewolf, Frankenstein needed to be match up. 

Residents earned tickets which were redeemed for prizes provided by the Class of 2018. By all accounts, the event was a Spirit-filled experience!

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2017 Fright Night Preparations Begin

Excitement filled the air on campus as a hard-working crew of parent and student volunteers began prepping for the annual Fright Night celebration on October 27. Graveyards are popping up here-and-there, spider webs are being spun, pumpkin patches are growing and ghosts are creeping out from doorways!

Over 1000 parents and students are expected for this family-friendly Halloween activity, which is planned, organized and staged by the Academy's dedicated Parent Organization.

Costumes are ready and eager event patrons are looking forward to an awesome treat!

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Does Java Actually Jolt Growth?

As part of their unit on cell division, the "biologists" in AP class recently set out to confirm or cast doubt on the belief that coffee inhibits growth. 

The students soaked pieces of garlic in three different substances - coffee, water and growth hormone and prepared a slide for each sample. Then students carefully studied the reaction in each garlic piece under a microscope. And, using a cell phone they captured a close-up image to document the action and count the instances of cell division.

Their surprising findings? Coffee actually made the garlic "grow more!"
 
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Academy Marching Band Fall/Winter Parade Schedule

A friendly reminder that our Sacred Hearts Academy Marching Band will be practicing in the front parking lot every Tuesday and Thursday starting October 31st thru November 21st from 4PM-5PM. Please follow all safety instructions given by our posted Band Booster Parents as you enter our lot to ensure the safety of our students. Mahalo for your patience and understanding! 

Want to watch them live? Cheer them on at the following upcoming parade performances!

• Wahiawa Veterans Day Parade
• Saturday, November 11th at 10AM
• Waikiki Holiday Parade
• Friday, November 24th at 7PM
• Kaimuki Christmas Parade
• Thursday, December 7th at 6PM

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Cheering For Top Title

The members of the Academy's Varsity and Intermediate Cheerleading squads have been hard at work, practicing and preparing routines since the beginning of this past summer.

Their dedication has paid dividends - the Varsity currently holds first place in the Interscholastic League of Honolulu, and the Intermediate scored consistent competition finishes in the top two.

Buoyed by this momentum, the Academy's cheerleaders will vie for the League Championship TONIGHT at Kamehameha Schools. Best of luck ladies! #GoLancers #SacredHeartsAcademy

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#FunkyFridayFaculty Meet Ms. Kathryn Bickford

It seems only natural that Kathryn Bickford would become an educator after gaining inspiration from her mother, a fellow teacher. In guiding her students, she draws upon her experiences playing collegiate lacrosse for four years, including three appearances at the National Championships, and as a coach for five years. 

The former Massachusetts resident earned her Bachelor’s Degree in Historic Preservation from the University of Mary Washington and holds a Master’s Degree in History from Salem State University. Prior to joining the Academy, she logged six years of teaching stints in Massachusetts and California. 

Bickford thoroughly enjoys reading a good book, engaging in lots of laughter and being outdoors, especially going hiking and to the beach. She also has set a goal to complete the Honolulu Marathon this December, her fifth such race!

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Artists Fall Into Spirit of Season

Motivated by the features of fall, the Academy's aspiring artists are channeling the signs and sounds of the season into their festive creations! However, despite Halloween looming soon, the Lower School students are taking their efforts beyond simply recreating classic, iconic characters.

They are delving into history and cultural traditions and the use of varied art tools, techniques and practices, including color theory and mixed media, during the creative process.

These works of art, including the second graders' "Sugar Skulls," based on decor from the celebrations of "Dia Des Los Muertos," or "Day of the Dead," will be unveiled soon - along with a few ghosts too!
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Pink Flags Planted In Tribute of Cancer Awareness

For Breast Cancer Awareness Month observed in October, the High School Student Council spearheaded a special effort recently to increase knowledge of this health ailment, which primarily affects women. 

Lower and High School students were given bright pink flags, on which they wrote a prayer, encouraging quote or the name of a loved one impacted by breast cancer. 

Over the fall break, members of the Council planted these flags near the Performing Arts Center - in the shape of a commemorative ribbon - to spark continued awareness and dialogue about Breast Cancer. 

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Passports Punched & Journalists Are In The Field

Passports in-hand, seven of the Academy's aspiring journalists on the Ka Leo and Lancers Lately staffs landed safely earlier this week in Fuzhou, Fujian, having traveled through Beijing, China!

On the second day of their week-long adventure, the students visited various cultural sites with their "Big Sisters" from Hwa Nan College in Fuzhou, Fujian. 

The group will document their exciting adventures throughout their journeys - stay tuned for when these stories "hit the airwaves!"

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Robotics Ready to Rock When "Ring" Comes to Campus!

The members of Sacred Hearts Academy's Lower School and Junior High Lancer Robotics teams are enthusiastically preparing venues - and the "Ring" - in eager anticipation of hundreds of people descending on campus for the Airgas Lancer VEX IQ Challenge on October 14. 

Over 200 students on 38 teams from across the Islands will take on this year's intriguing challenge, "Ringmaster" during the competition. 

Good luck to all the participants, and "mahalo" to all the volunteers who will make this a "solid" weekend!

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#FunkyFridayFaculty Meet Mrs. Gaylen Isaacs

English teacher Mrs. Gaylen Isaacs began her teaching tenure at Sacred Hearts Academy in 1973 immediately after finishing her master's degree at the University of Hawaii at Manoa.  She is a woman of many talents having taught many courses over the years including lower school computer classes, French, Japanese and Spanish.

As many of her students can attest, Mrs. Isaacs is passionate about education and reading. She shared that her love of learning stemmed from two extraordinary English professors she had in college who reinforced her love of reading and expanding her world through their lessons.

What some students and alumnae may not know however is her love of animals. Mrs. Isaacs has had many dogs as pets over the years, most often two at a time since the early 1970s. Since then she has also taken on the role of "neighborhood bird lady", as she feeds the neighborhood doves, cardinals and finches twice a day, even setting up a shallow dish as a makeshift bird bath!

Another little known fact -- in her senior year in high school Mrs. Isaacs was one half of her school's first tennis doubles team. 

"For once in my entire short-lived tennis career, my partner and I beat Punahou. Nobody beat Punahou. While it may not have been Punahou’s first team, it was more than memorable for me and my partner." -Gaylen Isaacs

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