"Once upon a time, long, long ago," reads an inscription beneath a framed black-and-white photograph gracing the wall in the principal's office at Wai'anae Intermediate School.

The 1966 picture depicts a sleepy, two-structure country school sitting peacefully alone in the shadows of the Wai'anae mountains, which tower in the background. That idyllic, fairy tale setting would alter over time as the school's initial enrollment of 400 students nearly tripled, the facility evolved into a sprawling campus and the staff faced the special challenges affecting the economically disadvantaged region.

One former student recalls that 15 years after it started, Wai'anae Intermediate barely resembled the photo on the wall. Yet, it maintained its sense of community.

"I went through the seventh and eighth grades at this school from 1979 to 1981," said Raechelle Fabrao, who today is the school's acting principal. "It was great. There were connections. There are a couple of teachers here who were teaching when I went to school."

Today, Fabrao said, a "family-like" bond remains between students and teachers in spite of, or perhaps because of, the challenges the school continues to face — high-risk students, low achievers, increasing numbers of homeless children, absenteeism and a high teacher turnover rate.

The school meets these challenges head-on, never losing sight of its stated commitment to strive for excellence.