Waldorf’s high school is the latest casualty among Honolulu private schools

When Saint Francis School announced in January it would close its upper school, Honolulu Waldorf School offered a tuition discount to entice students to try its unique approach to education.

But by May 21, Waldorf officials had their own bad news to share: They too were shutting down their high school. The last day for students was May 31. The decision came as a surprise, shortly after students and staff had celebrated the high school’s 25th anniversary with an official resolution at Honolulu Hale.

“Based on what our board had seen, the budget and enrollment numbers, we were faced with a difficult decision,” said Erika Takahashi, chairwoman of Waldorf’s board of trustees. “It was unfortunate with the timing. It was with deep regret that we had to make this decision.”

Waldorf’s lower school, from prekindergarten through eighth grade at its Niu Valley campus, is still doing well, and Takahashi said she hopes the high school can eventually be resurrected.

Citing financial difficulties, Saint Francis ended up closing its entire school, prekindergarten through 12th grade, at the end of May, 95 years after its founding.

The two campuses are the latest casualties among small private schools in Honolulu that face enrollment declines and stiff competition. St. Anthony School in Kalihi shut down last year, and Lutheran High School in Manoa and Cathedral Catholic Academy in Nuuanu both ceased operations in 2016.

“The Enrollment Management Association is reporting nationwide drops for private school for a variety pack of reasons,” said Joyce McCarthy, enrollment coordinator for Honolulu Waldorf. “There are lots of choices for parents, and some question the value proposition, What am I getting for my tuition?”

The competition includes growth in online schools, public charter schools and home schooling, as well as long-standing alternatives such as traditional public schools and major private schools that can offer more financial aid with their large endowments.

Waldorf’s overall enrollment in prekindergarten through 12th grade had dropped to 231 last fall, down from 300 in the 2014-15 academic year. Its high school had just 43 students, compared with 79 in 2014-15, although demand for its early education program prompted the creation of an extra class for 2-year-olds last fall.

Takahashi pointed to the damage caused when stormwaters in April 2018 flooded the high school campus on the makai side of Kalanianaole Highway in Aina Haina.

“I think the flood that we experienced was extremely traumatic for our school,” she said. “We weren’t able to get the enrollment up immediately after that. Looking forward, we weren’t seeing big increases.”

Students displaced from its high school are transferring to Pacific Buddhist Academy, Mid-Pacific Institute, Assets School and public schools, according to McCarthy. Five juniors are expected to return to Waldorf in a special program, still being fleshed out, that will allow them to graduate with a Waldorf diploma, she said.

Waldorf schools are known for “educating the head, the hands and the heart,” weaving music, languages, theater, arts and “learning by doing” throughout the curriculum.

“We don’t just educate the head like most schools do,” Takahashi said.

Quinn Tommasino, who attended Waldorf from kindergarten through graduation in 2016, was saddened to hear of the loss of the high school but relieved “the essence of the school, the majority of the school, is still present for me there.”

“My first concern was about the teachers and where they were going,” said Tommasino, who is pursuing health sciences at Whitworth University in Spokane, Wash. “I established such a good relationship with them.”

The closure displaced eight full-time teachers and six part-timers, roughly a third of the staff, according to McCarthy. Earlier this year the school’s board had made plans to consolidate the high school with the lower-school campus in Niu Valley, but ultimately voted at its May meeting to close it.

Tuition will remain steady for the coming year, at $16,700 in grades 1 through 8. High school tuition in 2018-19 was $19,100.

“Our hope is to pause for a moment to really focus on our foundation again and work toward building a high school in the future,” said Takahashi, who has a child in the lower school and used to head the Waldorf Parent Hui.

“I get very emotional because I love our school so much and I just really want the best for it,” she said. “Waldorf is a unique educational experience. … It’s not about the competition or race for life; it’s about how can we make this a better place together. They are cultured, caring and collaborative students.”