About Hip Wah

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.

Classes

• Classes run 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 for $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:
• Horses (1st grade level)
• Snakes (2nd grade level)
• Dragons (3rd grade level)
• Rabbits (4th grade level)
• Tigers (5th grade level)
• Hip Wah 2 (6th grade and above with music instruction)
• Hip Wah 3 (for Hip Wah 2 graduates only)

Summer 2008 Schedule

• Application - Online registration opens at 9 am, Saturday, Feb. 9
• Deadline for Application fee, Feb. 22
• Program Acceptance Emails Sent, March 3
• Program fees and completed registration packet due, May 2
• Program Orientation - Saturday, June 21, 10am-12pm, at Redwood Day School
• Program & School Set-up/ Aides Training - June 28, at Redwood Day School
• Program - June 30 to July 25 (July 4 is a holiday), at Redwood Day School
• Open House - Saturday, July 21, 10am-1pm
• Music Festival - Saturday, July 26, Skyline High School

Board of Directors 2007-2008

President: Denise Jin
Vice-President: JoAnn Mar
Treasurer: Sandra Montgomery
Registrar: Margie Young
Secretary: Nancy Hing Wong
Parent Participation: JoAnn Mar, Joline Owyang
Fundraiser: Tammy Yuen
Site Director: Susan Tom

Members-At-Large:
T-shirts: Crystal Jang