Hawaii Healthy Me to be distributed to island’s 4th grade classes
Big Island Wellness Solutions announced the publication of a 96-page booklet, “Hawaii Healthy Me,” addressing healthy lifestyles. The booklet will be distributed to every public school fourth-grader on Hawaii Island. The fourth grade class in Naalehu was the first class to receive the book.
Big Island Wellness Solutions, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization, was awarded a grant to address healthy eating lifestyles. The booklet sections include eating right, cooking right, a guide to manners, healthy recipes and playing right.
DAR conducting essay contest
The Hawaii Loa Chapter of the Daughters of the American Revolution announces its student essay contest for 2014-15, “Celebrate America’s History.” Essays are due Jan. 5.
Students in fifth through eighth grades are invited to write an essay on “A Child’s Journey Through Ellis Island.” The year 2015 marks the 125th anniversary of Ellis Island as an immigration station. Immigrants arriving could expect to spend up to seven hours in processing activities to determine if they were legally and medically fit to enter the United States. Students are invited to imagine themselves as a child traveling through Ellis Island in 1892. Length is 300 to 1,000 words, depending on grade level.
Ninth- through 12th-graders may participate in the Christopher Columbus contest, “Joining Christopher Columbus on His Voyage to the New World.” Students should imagine themsevels being chosen to join Columbus’ crew as he sets out for the New World. Length is 800 to 1,200 words.
For more information, call 959-8986 or contact hawaiiloadar@aol.com.
Scholarships offered for environmental leadership program
The Kohala Center and Brown University are offering full tuition scholarships for two high school students residing in the state of Hawaii to participate in the Brown Environmental Leadership Lab-Hawaii to be held March 21 to 29 on Hawaii Island. The deadline to apply is Jan. 16.
Students in 10th through 12th grades are eligible to enroll in the one-week program. BELL-Hawaii integrates the development of leadership skills with outstanding opportunities for high school students to study the biology, ecology and cultural traditions of the Big Island.
Program activities include meeting with cultural practitioners to learn about the culture and history of the island, participating in the restoration of native forests, exploring the geological wonders of Hawaii Volcanoes National Park, kayaking, camping near the ocean and learning about coral reef ecology and management.
For more information, visit brown.edu/ce/pre-college/bell/hawaii. Application materials are available to download at The Kohala Center website, kohalacenter.org/bell-hi or by contacting Al-Qawi Majidah at 887-6411 or amajidah@kohalacenter.org. Stu-dents applying for scholarships must send their application materials directly to Majidah at The Kohala Center and do not need to pay the deposit or application fee.
Yamaguchi, Note selected for internship program
U.S. Sen. Brian Schatz, D-Hawaii, has announced the selection of 15 Hawaii high school students to participate in this year’s Schatz Seniors Internship Program. This year’s class represents eight public and seven private schools on Hawaii Island, Kauai, Maui and Oahu. Students from Hawaii Island include Shevalyn Yamaguchi of Pahoa, who is attending Kamehameha Schools Hawaii, and Michael Note of Waimea, who attends Parker School.
The program provides a hands-on opportunity to high school seniors interested in learning about the U.S. Senate. Students will work with Honolulu outreach staff and help identify issues of interest in their schools and communities. They also attend and staff special events co-hosted by Schatz. As part of the program, all students must maintain a 2.0 grade point average. Interns were selected based on their community involvement, diversity of interests and demonstrated leadership qualities.