More Than a Check-In: How ‘Iolani School Is Building a Culture of Student Self-Advocacy

In a school community grounded in academic excellence, character, humility, and respect, students are constantly challenged to grow. 

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But growth isn’t only about what happens in the classroom. It also means helping students build the skills to recognize the emotions they’re experiencing, and ask for help when they need additional support.

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At ‘Iolani School, that philosophy shapes the way well-being is woven into the student experience, said Health & Wellness Educator Molly Takagi, who led the school’s Sown To Grow implementation.

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“I was gung ho from the minute I saw it,” Takagi remarked about the platform.

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Part of the vision for introducing Sown To Grow was to give advisory teachers an opportunity to build more of a connection to students, and to give students another opportunity for reflection and self-advocacy.

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That vision started with a small pilot: Takagi partnered with an advisory teacher and counseling team to introduce Sown To Grow to a group of just 15 students. The weekly check-ins quickly showed how much could surface with a structured routine to share.

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“We felt it really helped us get to know our students,” Takagi explained, “especially the ones who were a little more reticent, or less likely to speak up in that advisory setting.”

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The pilot eventually expanded to the entire seventh and eighth grades. Today, students complete a weekly check-in during Thursday advisory, with SEL activities and lessons incorporated twice each month. Behind the scenes, the school has also built structures to help teachers feel confident responding to what students share, including clear alert protocols, regular implementation meetings, and the ability to refer students to the emotional health and wellness team when additional support is needed.

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“We’ve had interventions with students just based on their emoji that unearthed major mental health and social emotional distress that we wouldn’t have known about for some of our students,” Takagi said.

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The value of Sown to Grow, however, extends beyond crisis moments, Takagi said. It is about helping reflection and self-advocacy become skills students practice throughout their school experience.

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“That was sort of my mission: to help our school see that SEL is not just something that lives in a health class that the students do for a quarter,” she explained. “It's something that's integrated throughout the life of the school, through advisory and classes and pedagogy.”

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That perspective is making a difference, Takagi said, and it’s evidenced in students' thoughtful Sown To Grow responses, and teacher feedback that they’re seeing the benefit of having the check-in touchpoint with kids every week.

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Now, with the 26-27 school year expansion of Sown To Grow to ninth grade, ‘Iolani is continuing to build on that foundation, which is especially helpful for high schoolers in a rigorous academic environment.

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“For students to have an extra opportunity to advocate for themselves and to learn and practice these skills,” she said, “it’s a huge benefit for our entire community.”

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At ‘Iolani, reflection isn’t an isolated exercise. It is becoming part of how students learn to understand themselves, communicate their needs, and take an active role in their own well-being — and how the adults around them learn to listen.

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^{Interested in learning how Sown To Grow may fit with the student support goals in your own school or district? Click here or below to chat with a member of our team!}