On behalf of the Shared Services Center, we thank and congratulate the panelists for the inaugural symposium featuring the scholarship and perspectives of five fabulous Fellows. We reached a new milestone in our campus’ mission to become a model Native Hawaiian and indigenous serving institution through the Symposium, Ka Wa Mā Hope: The Future is in Back of Us.
The Symposium marks the first time in our campus history that we have brought together scholars among our colleagues who are pursuing graduate programs focused on promoting Native Hawaiian student success. The Symposium elevated the scholarship of five emerging leaders across Kapiʻolani Community College by through their scholarly research on Native Hawaiian Student Success in Today’s Higher Education Landscape. The panelists were:
- Michaelyn Nākoa – (Counselor, Coordinator, Kapo’oloku Program for Native Hawaiian Student Success) Ph.D candidate fall 2019, Educational Psychology.
- Angela Coloretti McGough – (Employment Prep Center Coordinator.) Ed.D candidate fall 2019, Educational Leadership.
- Keōmailani Eaton – (STEM Outreach Coordinator) M.A. candidate fall 2019, Indigenous Studies.
- Keisha Nakamura – (Native Hawaiian Academic Advancement Coordinator) M.S. candidate fall 2019, Global & International Education.
- Keauhou Mitchell-Aldan – (Career Explorations Facilitator) M.A. candidate fall 2020, Indigenous Education.
The Symposium featured a panel discussion on maintaining work-school-life balance as scholars pursuing graduate education while working full-time at Kapiʻolani Community College. In the audience were current employees who are currently furthering their education while working full-time for the College, as well as others considering furthering their education.
Kara Plamann Wagoner, an institutional analyst and doctoral candidate in Educational Psychology at the University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa, shared,
“I see the incredible work that the panelists of Ka Wa Mā Hope perform every day to prepare our students for success, so it was especially uplifting to see how these powerful women serve as role models in their own academic pursuits. Through the panelists’ research, I have new questions about what it means to be an analyst in an indigenous-serving institution and ideas of how I can honor our campus vision. Through the panelists’ openness, I have a fresh perspective of work-life balance as I begin to pursue my own PhD this fall. Thank you to everyone for creating such an inspiring event!”
The panelists will be publishing their original scholarly contributions in a forthcoming journal focused on Native Hawaiian student success. The panelists are collaborating with Kelli Nakamura, assistant professor of history, as their professional editor for this exciting new venture.
The Symposium was funded by the University of Hawaiʻi Student Equity Excellence, and Diversity (SEED) Initiative for Inclusion, Diversity, Equity, Access and Success (IDEAS). Sara Ohashi, Title III fellowship coordinator, successfully applied for seed grant funding for the Symposium and forthcoming publication to elevate the scholarship for the featured panelists.