New Kaiser High School Principal Shifts Focus

by L. KAE GRANIEL
Sun Correspondent
Archived May 2008 article

Since Larry Kaliloa, Principal since 2005, departed in September of 2007 for family obligations on Kauai, Kaiser High has been lead effectively by acting Principal Patrick Marquart and Vice-Principal Tony Gayer.

In March of this year, Sosa was confidently appointed the position and even though the timing was unconventional, Sosa feels the leadership baton passed without missing a beat. Prior to coming to Kaiser, Sosa gained experience on multiple levels as Principal of Kaewai Elementary School and Aiea High School. Before taking on those educational leadership roles, he spent four years at the Hawaii State Department of Education in the Professional Development and Educational Research Institute.

In his unpretentious office, Sosa explained how he sees himself as a "Servant Leader" who wishes to uncover and meet the needs of the underserved. This is to say that in every institution there is a population that needs just a little awareness and support in order to flourish. The idea is, great leadership equals motivation. When a leader's focus is on assisting and allowing others to become healthier, wiser, and more autonomous, the end result is a strong foundation upon which anything can be successfully constructed.

According to Sosa, the immediate plan is to accomplish three things: build a solid Complex System between the elementary, middle, and high school principals; establish community outreach; and develop strong signatures that will make Kaiser High School the most desirable choice for education. The Complex System is an alignment between the elementary, middle and high schools. The principals of the three levels of education now meet monthly to collaborate on how to make the K-12 grade experience one that builds smoothly by choosing text books, teaching techniques, and extra-curricular activities that compliment each other and build on the coming years. For example, if strings are offered in music at the middle school level, parents can rest assured that they would be offered at the high school level with the same enthusiasm and support. The Complex System is not new to administrative staff, but with Sosa, it is a priority. He says, "When Hawaii Kai residents are confident in the public education in their own backyard, community stability, growth, and integrity is inevitable." Community outreach is still in the preliminary stages. Sosa hopes to see local partnering as well as activity with service clubs. "If people have ideas, all they need to do is pick up the phone and call me - I am accessible. I see our students wanting to help the community succeed as much as the community wants to help our students succeed. It's an obvious win-win." Signatures are programs that help put public high schools on the radar even louder than distinction. Distinctions are wonderful, and signatures are icing on the cake.

In regards to signatures, Sosa wants everyone to know that Kaiser offers not only solid Advance Placement (AP) courses but is also the only local high school that has Inter-Baccalaureate (IB) courses for 11th - 12th graders. IB courses allow high school students to earn college credits that transfer internationally. "AVID would be another great signature to add to Kaiser High and the Complex System", says Sosa. AVID is a fourth- through twelfth-grade system that prepares students in the academic middle for four-year college eligibility. It has a proven track record in bringing out the best in students, and in closing the achievement gap. AVID stands for Advancement Via Individual Determination.

Sosa acknowledges that Kaiser already has three major strengths secured - great students, superb staff, and an outstanding facility. Some areas for improvement include a stronger PTSA, and a better support system for improved communication. The popular EDLINE system is being considered where parents can get immediate and up-to-date information online. "Volunteering of parental expertise would be another great asset," says Sosa. Kaiser recently got the funding for a robotics program that could be phenomenal with the mentoring of parents with engineering or technical skills.

Sosa's long-range goal is to create a branding for Kaiser so that when people think of Kaiser High School, an upstanding, confident, and exceptional phrase comes to mind. His intention is to be in it for the long haul, take Kaiser from very good to great, and "leave it better than I found it, because it is not about what you have, but how you use what you have that makes the difference."