From March 27th to 29th, Alan Saunders traveled to Kona, on the Big Island of Hawaii to conduct teacher training and student centered workshops at the High School of the Pacific. http://www.highschool-pacific.org

The High School of the Pacific consists of youth from throughout the Pacific islands who are encouraged to develop strong ethical and moral standards based on actualizing universal principles. It is a college preparatory high school that offers a comprehensive educational experience, academic excellence, leadership skills, and which has a focus on how to substantially put principles of world peace into practice.

Mr. Saunders gave a one-day teacher training workshop to the teachers of the high school highlighting the UPF character education initiative, with emphasis on the program prospectus. He endeavored to build on the excellent foundation created by the Headmaster, Mr. Bart Mwarey, and the other administrators and teachers at the school.

The UPF character education initiative is developed around the three life goals, namely how to develop a mature character, how to foster and build successful relationships, marriages and families, and how to make a positive contribution to society.. The initiative also focuses on how to answer the existential questions of life such as: How do I attain happiness? How do I develop more purpose and meaning in my life? How do I become successful at relationships while building the foundation for a successful career? The workshop for the teachers went very well, with a lot of time for discussion, interaction, and questions and answers. The teachers were enthused to hear that the initiative includes ideas and suggestions from all elements of society, including perspectives from student leaders.

Action steps and goals were created in how to put the many ideas into practice. Mr. Saunders also met with community leaders and members of the administration to assist in the development of the community-wide initiative, which includes service learning and teaching on a broader level.

Mr. Saunders then gave a half-day workshop to the students of the high school. The 9th and 10th grade students are very respectful and are grappling with how to maintain the best of their cultural traditions while being influenced by Western society. Mr. Saunders utilized the new student curriculum, Discovering the Real Me, to research into ideas of friendship, value, and other sensitive issues such as love, infatuation, and feelings of attraction. Overall, the students were inspired and Mr. Saunders was encouraged to return for more in-depth trainings on leadership, character education, and relationship skills building.

The administrators, teachers, and students of the High School of the Pacific were excited to hear about the internship program that is in the formation stages of being developed. The idea of the mentoring and internship program would be to train college- and mature high school-aged youth to work with the students of HSP in their islands to teach character education, service learning, and leadership skills.

For more information on this initiative, please contact Alan Saunders at: saunders@iifwp.org

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