AVID Program at Waiakea High School
AVID, Advancement Via Individual Determination, is a college readiness system for elementary through higher education that is designed to increase schoolwide learning and performance. The AVID College Readiness System (ACRS) accelerates student learning, uses research based methods of effective instruction, provides meaningful and motivational professional learning, and acts as a catalyst for systemic reform and change.
The AVID elective focuses on the least served students in the academic middle. The formula is simple - raise expectations of students and, with the AVID support system in place, they will rise to the challenge. What distinguishes AVID from other educational reform programs is its continuous success rate.
The Title I funding and consortium grant that currently funds the AVID Program at Waiakea High School is ending in 2013. The Foundation is currently raising money to continue funding this program for students in the Academic Gap Group.
These Gap Group Students are hoping to be first-generation college students and are enrolled in an AVID elective class, which teaches them writing, inquiry, note-taking skills and Socratic seminars. AVID teachers require special training sessions and attend a national conference. Waiakea’s first students in the Avid Program are scheduled to Graduate in 2014.
The AVID program at Waiakea High School is a component of our DOE and School-Wide goals of College and Career Readiness. AVID began in School year 2010/11 with one elective class and has expanded to 6 elective classes for the school year 2013/2014.
Our Site Team forms the support system for our AVID students and consists of Site Team Coordinators: Louann Kimura and Nanette Bishop; Counselors: Johnalynn Lyman-Mandaloniz, Penny Yanagisawa, and Adrel Vicente; AVID elective class teachers: Zaida Igawa, Kari Sato, Kristie Calicdan, Clemente Julian, and Joel Wagner-Wright; and AVID content teachers: Robin Fujioka and Colleen Ray.
Meet some of the WHS AVID students: