As we celebrate the 60th Anniversary of Seabury Hall in the beautiful upcountry slopes of Olinda, students and faculty reflect on what was and what is to come.
Seabury Hall opened in 1964 as a Episcopal boarding school for girls, and in the 60 years since then has become a thriving coeducational school teaching students in grades 5-12. Seabury began accepting boys into the program in the 1970’s, and stopped the boarding program in the 1980’s to focus on educating more students on island.
In its first graduating class of 1967, there were a total of only 14 seniors; this coming spring, 95 seniors will graduate and make their way into the world. While so much has changed since then, its students still remember and look back on the wonderful early years of Seabury, and how they’ve helped create the learning community its students are thriving in today. And not just its students remember the long history of the school: many of the teachers here have taught for long periods of time and still teach each class with kindness and an overwhelming enthusiasm for learning.
“I started costuming plays here in 1995, but I was hired in 2004,” Ms. Kelly remembers. “So that’s 20 years, right?”
And a lot changes in 20 years. In the time she’s taught, the high school has been built, along with the gym and theater buildings. But Ms. Kelly has kept teaching what she loves.
“I love what I do,” she said last week. I could probably teach other subjects, but drama, drama, drama. Theater arts — it’s the best.”
When asked what the biggest change Seabury has experienced since she began working here, she responded “Wow, that’s honestly a very tough question. With the change of heads, there’s always a new initiative, and honestly in 20 years, a lot changes in the world. I mean, it’s not just the buildings, it’s the way we deliver content.”
She, of course, said her favorite change out of all of them is when they built the theater building. But much of the campus has not changed. Like the iconic reflection pond, for example, still remains at the heart of the campus fronting Cooper House, which was originally known as “Maunalei.”What is now the office for Seabury Hall’s administration, was built in 1929. The lovely Mrs. Kate Cooper acquired the estate in 1945 and in 1958, bequeathed the property to the Episcopal Church of Hawaii for use as an all-girls boarding school.
Because of her, Seabury Hall has become a perpetual place of learning, community and Spartan pride.
Ms. Martelles has been working at Seabury since 1989, and when asked what her favorite thing about working at Seabury is, she said she loves “the joy of the students as they grow into their gifts and possibilities; the joy of my talented colleagues as they awaken and nurture the understanding and capacities of their students; and my personal joy—as a teacher—of working in an environment that allows me the creative freedom to follow my own inner vision and give from my heart.”
Her love for her jobs and her students has shined through in her work even through the many changes that have happened in 36 years.
“One of the most dynamic changes over the course of 36 years is the shift from a focus on curriculum content to that of inspiring and activating deeper connections: the connection between students and their learning experiences; the connection between students and their school, island, and global communities; and the connection between the student and the unique life-giving roots of our ʻāina and Hawaiian culture.”
Her favorite change is and has always been “the marvelous growth in these fascinating and wonderful young people—to encourage and be a part of their “becoming” as thoughtful, creative, caring humans capable of deeper understanding and the ability to think for themselves.”
Ms. Martelles has been here longer than most of the staff, and her love for her students shines through in every class she teaches. Even after many years of education, a student who went through middle school here still remembers her class for its fun, engaging lessons, and the kindness that permeated her class everyday.
After 60 years of many evolutions, Seabury Hall is thriving today, and its students continue to show up ready to learn and grow. When it comes to this school, the values and what the students stand for, Ms. Martelles sums it up nicely: “In a word, it’s JOY.”
* View more photos in Seabury’s 2024-25 Hali’a Aloha, set to be published in May 2025.
