Hawaii Academy Pearl Harbor Gym

Kris Reaper
1 ⭐
I’m not one for sharing negative reviews. But here’s my story.

I loved working there. I truly did. But keep in mind, I had zero experience! Not just in the field, but at all. They kept me on because I was a quick learner, always willing to learn something new, and there was CONSTANT call outs- And I was the one who came in nearly every time for those call outs. Mind you, that was multiple times a week. I didn’t mind the extra hours though. That was more pay and more experience for me. Win win! But some drama went down with some management in 2019, and it was downhill from there.
It wasn’t great before- But the whole experience was like a downhill snowball. Not only were classes being maxed out, but over filled. And it was hard to handle children of that magnitude! Schools won’t even give you that many kids without an aid!! Parents were getting furious because kids were getting out of hand and management was getting impatient and refused to thin the classes out. “If you can’t handle it, you shouldn’t be working here!” It went from being a gymnast facility, to a babysitting center. And coaches were getting exhausted!! Then kids were assaulting coaches, and nothing was getting done about it. Not removal of child from the facility, not a warning, not even a switch of classes was offered. Children were allowed to assault the coaches. Then parents came and verbally assaulted them for not getting things under control- And managers laughed at the coaches in this situation.

My breaking point? I had gotten an injury late summer of 2019 at the facility. Shortly after one of the overwhelming, overstuffed classes- Rolled my ankle on the trampoline. FML! I ended up in the ER. I was still expected to come to work the next day- IN A BOOT…. To fill in for another coach who didn’t want to work that day. That wasn’t the breaking point…. It was a few months later, after constant hazing from the staff, parents, and then- The little kid who was allowed to get in my face and scream at me…. Because my class maxed out and over filled, and she didn’t like not getting her way- So her Karen mother stepped in and demanded to know why I couldn’t control the class- With multiple kids on the spectrum and mini Karen’s that wouldn’t listen…. And management laughed at me…. Breaking point reached….

Now, keep in mind- This was MONTHS after my injury. It still wasn’t healed. What happened? The tendon ripped off the ankle bone. Took some bone with it. After months, I left the facility. Put in my notice. Started going to physical therapy (and school). They had to crack it back into place before they could even start. I was in physical therapy for about a year. Because by that point, we were in the midst of Covid. Most of 2020, I was in physical therapy. With about a month off while they redo their regulations for Covid. 2x a week, sometimes 3. It’s now 2023. I still do physical therapy at home. I can’t walk without my ankle clicking loudly. So much for my career in being a ninja lol But all jokes aside, I can barely walk now without pain. The tendon is getting very weak from rubbing the bone constantly. There is nothing more they can do without surgery. Even then, it’s not a guarantee it will be fixed. I’m in constant pain. I’m stuck with this for the rest of my life!! And you know what they did? Laugh, bully, and keep me on the floor- Instead of train me on the desk so I could heal? What the??

But I was the only they could count on to come in…. Every…. Freakin…. Time….

Caitlyn Meier
1 ⭐
There’s only one employee we’ve had a good experience with. Mike, the instructor for Ninja class, is awesome and so good with kids! He’s very patient and a good judge of what is safe. He seems to genuinely enjoy teaching children.

However…some of the instructors don’t know what they’re doing!! It can get dangerous, especially for littles. The first class of the new year, my son suddenly had a different instructor because his previous instructor, Mike, moved gyms. This new instructor, a girl who couldn’t have been more than 5’4”, had five-year-olds doing forward flips off of a six foot ledge and onto a mat that was no more than a few inches thick (approximately). That is way too high to be doing those stunts, especially for five-year-olds who are just beginning. My friend’s son hurt his neck doing that maneuver. The kids felt pressured into doing it. If your child goes here, make sure they know that they do not ever have to do a move they’re not comfortable with. This was the reason I decided to make the longer commute to the other gym so that my son could be with his previous instructor.

Also, keep a close watch on what you’ve paid and have documentation, specifically when dealing with the lady with the white hair in a pony tail (I never did catch her name). Because what seems to happen is you will be verbally told you’re paid up THROUGH a certain month, only to later be told that what was said was you’re paid up TO the previous month. Thus, you’re charged late fees. This happened to me twice. The first time, I was confused about where she was getting her numbers but I reluctantly paid anyway thinking I had made the mistake. But the second time, I knew I was being scammed because I made it a point to write down what she said the end date was. I saved my receipt and everything. I noticed in my email that the end date was conveniently left blank, even though the start date was on there. So…Just watch your back and your wallet.

As for the facilities, I’ve been to the Pearl Harbor gym and the Waipahu gym. Out of the two, the PH gym is way better/cleaner. Just know the restrooms for the PH gym are porta-potties. The Waipahu gym is basically under a giant metal canopy and it is a shared space with what appears to be something like a restore/goodwill/salvation army/scraps type business.

I wanted to like Hawaii Academy…but because most of the staff was rude/untrained and we were getting surprise charges added to our account…today was our last day.

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