Hip Wah Summer Program serves children in grades 1-7. Based in Oakland, California, the program is run by teachers and supported by parent participation. It is held for four weeks during the summer at Redwood Day School in Oakland.
Hip Wah was founded in 1984 by Kalei Inn Lam and Shirlaine Kee Balwin, who wanted to create a summer enrichment program that encouraged strong self-image and identity through Chinese and Chinese American cultural studies. This included developing Chinese speaking, reading, and writing skills, and providing exposure to Chinese arts and culture. The first program was located at the Berkeley Chinese Community Church in Berkeley, Calif.
Hip Wah is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization serving the East Bay community, with an all-volunteer Board of Directors.
Classes
- Classes are Monday through Friday, from 9 am - 2 pm.
- Hip Wah offers an optional before care (7:45 am - 8:45 am) and aftercare program (2 pm - 6 pm daily) for an additional fee. For more information, see the Fee List.
- Children may bring their own lunch or buy lunch provided by Hip Wah at $3.50/lunch. A lunch menu can be downloaded in the Forms section.
- Class names are based on the Chinese zodiac symbol associated with the students' birth year. The 2012 classes are:
- Dog (1st grade level)
- Rooster (2nd grade level)
- Monkey/Ram (3rd grade level)
- Sheep (4th grade level)
- Horse (5th grade level)
- Hip Wah 2 (6th grade and higher with music instruction)
- Hip Wah 3 (7th grade and higher)
2012 Schedule
- Application - Online application opens: 9 am PST, Saturday, Feb. 11
- Deadline for Application fee ($60): Feb. 25
- Program Acceptance Emails Sent: March 9, by 8:00pm
- Program fees and completed registration packet due: April 6, 2012
- Program Orientation - Saturday, June 23, 8:30am-9:30am, at Redwood Day School
- Program & School Set-up/ Aides Training - Saturday, June 23, at Redwood Day School
- Program - June 25 to July 20 (Wednesday, July 4 is a holiday), at Redwood Day School
- Open House/Food Fest - Redwood Day School, Saturday, July 14, time TBA
- Music Program - Saturday, July 21 (Time and Place TBA)
Board of Directors 2011-2012
President: JoAnn Mar
Vice-President: David Won
Treasurer: Sandra Montgomery
Registrar: Kari Jeffs
Secretary: Bonnie Lamb
Fundraising: Michelle Uchiyama
Site Director: Vivian Leung
Members-At-Large:
Parent Participation: Ken Wong
T-shirts: Crystal Jang
Advisors:
Susan Tom
Denise Jin
Joline Owyang
Judy Thai
Tammy Yuen