95. Erik Swenson Dives Deep Into the WHEA Way

Today my guest is Erik Swenson, the Student Service Coordinator and Project Teacher at West Hawaii Explorations Academy (https://www.whea.net) PCS, fondly known in Hawaiʻi as WHEA. WHEA began when a Hawaiʻi island high school teacher built a famous solar car team that raced across Australia, the continental US and Europe. From that experience came first a school within a school, and then, in the year 2000, the chartering of WHEA as a public startup, Hawaiʻi Island high school. Erik describes himself as an analytical, data driven critical thinker with a diverse skill set applicable in varied educational settings. He sees himself as a big picture thinker with a bias towards practical action. He endorses a procedural based theology, loves project-based learning (https://www.pblworks.org/what-is-pbl) and authentic assessments, and is devoted to student needs and providing equitable access to learning for all. He also describes himself as environmentally conscious with a deep understanding of Hawaii’s aquatic environment gained from years of experience. As always, our theme music comes from the vast catalogue of pianist, Michael Sloan (https://open.spotify.com/artist/13fQfOrSW6Xv9zQXKEgboj). Our post production engineer and editor is the talented, Evan Kurohara. Please give us a five star rating and review in your favorite podcast app!