Story and photos by Jamie Sickel, Kapi‘olani CC We returned to Maui this month for what turned out to be a beautifully sunny day of reflection and progress on our Wo work at UHMC - mahalo to Whitney and Jeff for planning our day and hosting us again! Our day began with an insightful breakfast and talk story with Deans Kahele Dukelow (Arts and Sciences, Wo Gen VII) and Laura Lees Nagle (Career and Technical Education). They shared Ka‘ao Framework for student success, which consists of 4 parts, taken from the story of Maui: Hua (your "why", motivation or catalyst for transformation), Ha‘alele (a departure from the community - into this new college journey), Huaka‘i (a series of "lifes and deaths" - the challenges you confront and how your grow from them), and Ho‘i (a reintegration back into the community - how you will give back). Kahele and Laura shared their own Hua - what motivates and drives them - and their journey to their current leadership positions. Afterward, we headed out to ‘Īao Valley, where Neil Stotts (Wo Gen XII) served as our guide for the morning. He shared with us his own reflections on his journey at UHMC, specifically through the tenure and promotion process, and how he felt that parts of who he was in the past had to die in order for him to grow. We were encouraged to reflect on our own hua and huaka‘i as we wandered through our beautiful surrounds.
As we walked down to where we began, we came upon a circle of rocks where we gathered to reflect and share our hua and our thoughts from the morning. I've been reflecting quite a bit since this conversation about my own purpose, my journey, and the parts of myself I might need to let go of in order to move forward and grow.
In the not-so-distant future, we will pass the torch to a new generation of Wo Learning Champions. We have just one more meeting left to our generation alone before the final, all-generation Wo gathering that will mark the end of our time together as current Wo Learning Champions. I will try not to focus on the end, but remain present during the remainder of our journey...what an amazing journey it is!
7 Comments
Story and photos by Jamie Sickel, Gen XIII, Kapi‘olani CC
Video by Kimberlee Bassford, Gen XIII, Windward CC
Happy new year! Our first gathering of the new decade was at Windward CC. We were all abuzz and excited to be reuniting after the holiday break. Our morning began with a breakfast of fresh fruit and baked goods and a seriously refreshing and inspiring talk story sesh with Windward CC chancellor, Ardis Eschenberg, who shared her journey into administration and to Windward CC.
Ardis, much like our Wo coordinator and Kapi‘olani CC chancellor Louise Pagotto, echoed what we also previously heard from Leeward CC chancellor, Carlos Peñaloza - she never intended to become an administrator. I've found this a common admission among our leaders who most selflessly and passionately serve. Ardis spoke openly about the challenges she faces as an administrator as well as the affirmations she has experienced that tell her that her service - as part of a dedicated and supportive community at her campus - is positively impacting lives. She encouraged us to consider how we can lead - from any position - and effect positive change in support of our students, our colleagues and our communities.
After an energizing breakfast and conversation, we headed out for some rewarding physical labor! Hawaiian Studies associate professor Kalawai‘a Moore introduced us to the Hawaiian Studies Mala (garden), where we would be getting a hands-on orientation to uhau humu pōhaku, or Hawaiian dry-stack masonry. Kalawai‘a divided us up into three teams: 1 team was in charge of stringing a line to which we would align our pa pōhaku (rock wall); another team would dig the trench in which our foundation stones, or niho, would be placed, and a third team was in charge of selecting these stones for transport to the site. It was hard work (well...for the trench-digging team!), but it was also gratifying.
Kalawai‘a explained to us that the large foundation stones are called niho (teeth) because they sit in the trench like teeth in gums, anchoring the wall into the earth. After the trench was prepped and a sufficient number of niho were ready for placement, we worked to identify the best position and move them into the trench. This was no mean feat, and it took a concerted team effort (with a lot of encouragement and correction from Kalawai‘a) to get the pōhaku into place. As I looked around us at the thoughtfully constructed pa pōhaku made by students, staff and faculty, I had an entirely new appreciation for the knowledge, strength and teamwork that went into these structures.
After a quick clean-up, we headed over to Hale ‘Iolani to drop in on Jordan Souza and his students in the woodcarving studio. We began in the classroom, which was full of impressive carvings and projects from Windward CC students and faculty. Jordan talked about the focus on Hawaiian cultural woodworking and wood carving in the classes he teaches. He showed us not only a variety of carving types, but mediums as well, including shell, rock, coconut and many types of wood traditionally used in Hawaiian woodworking (which Jordan emphasized extend well beyond koa!). In fact, he discussed a number of native trees traditionally used in Hawaiian tools and resources that are threatened or in danger of dying out. He stressed the importance of efforts to preserve these trees, a point he emphasizes in his teaching as well.
From the classroom, we moved to the studio to see where the magic happens. Here, Jordan explained more about the program and how he aims to strike a balance between honoring and teaching Hawaiian culture and being inclusive of all learners. The nature of the woodworking courses are so multi-faceted - they foster the development of not only woodworking and carving skills, but critical thinking, design, research, and an understanding of relevant language and vocabulary as well as cultural, environmental, community and global issues. We also visited the storage area where a variety of woods, including rare and extinct specimens, are stored, along with the tools, both modern commercial and handmade by the students and faculty. From there, we made our way outside, where the students and faculty in the program have really made their own special space. They really have a special community in which they cultivate their own plants, store and prep wood donations, and serve as caretakers of the space. Jordan emphatically encouraged all of us to return any time, noting that this is a community space and we would always be welcome. It was obvious that this group is more than just a college class or program - it's an ‘ohana.
After our inspiring morning with Windward admin, faculty and students, we moved back to our home base for a beautiful lunch, courtesy of Chef Dan Swift and the Windward CC Uala Leaf Cafe. During and after lunch, we discussed some proposals, made decisions on applications for Wo funding and dug further into planning for our project #whyUHCC, which now has a dedicated page here on the site and will be rolled out to our campuses soon and via social media (follow us on Instagram!) at the Hawai‘i Student Success Institute (HISSI).
It was an uplifting, energizing and productive meeting, and I left refreshed, a little muddy and full of gratitude!
Story and video by Kimberlee Bassford, Gen XIII, Windward CC
Photos by Jamie Sickel, Gen XIII, Kapi‘olani CC
Our meeting at Kaua‘i Community College was all about ‘ulu … or Ulutopia to be precise!
We walked over to an ahu (mound) where Hawaiian Studies faculty Malia Chun and Molly Ka‘imi Summers welcomed us with an ‘oli and shared the history of the place. Malia relayed that the ahu was built with stones gathered from all around the island. She also said that the ‘oli referenced three hōkū (stars), indicating that the area was once used for celestial navigation training. Ka‘imi then took us to see two young ‘ulu (breadfruit) trees, which were clones of the same ‘ulu brought to the island centuries ago by a famous navigator.
The 64-tree orchard is the first scientifically designed field experiment studying the potential of ‘ulu as a major field crop. According to the Ulutopia website (www.kauai.hawaii.edu/ulutopia), the objectives of the project are to create a teaching plot where students can learn agricultural-based field methodology, study the effects of cultural practices on the growth and yield of breadfruit, determine the effect of fertilizers and cover crops on breadfruit pests, diseases and soil microorganisms, and help the community by providing breadfruit plants as a source of food.
Brian shared with us that the orchard yields two harvests a year instead of the usual one. And then we got to work serving as his research assistants measuring the trunks of the trees and shouting out the numbers as Brian recorded the data in the project binder. Ducking down under the tree branches to get to the trunks was a challenge at times, but everyone seemed happy to be part of the Ulutopia research team. We even got to harvest and taste some of the ripe fruit, which had more of a jackfruit flavor than the cooked ‘ulu we had tried earlier.
Story and photos by Jamie Sickel, Gen XIII, Kapi‘olani CC
Video by Kimberlee Bassford, Gen XIII, Windward CC
Previous generation LCC Wo's William Albritton (Gen X), Warren Kawano (Gen X), and Summer Miles (Gen XII) joined us as we started our day with an engaging chat with recently appointed Leeward CC Chancellor Carlos Peñaloza. The Chancellor shared his journey from Venezuela to New York, then Kansas to Hawai‘i. Hearing him speak so passionately about his work with underserved populations and how connected he remains to previous students was truly inspiring, and it's exciting that the UHCC system has gained such an energizing leader!
After talking story and catching each other up on our summer breaks, Teacher Education faculty Jeff Judd and Michael Cawdery showed up to collect us and lead us on a tour of their beautiful new digs. 'Imi 'Ike is home to the Associate of Arts in Teaching program. The LEED-certified building houses classrooms, offices, a community events space and collaborative workspace for students. We had the opportunity to see the thoughtfully planned classrooms that accommodate a variety of configurations and approaches to instruction and wrapped up with morning tea in the student gathering space that was designed to build community and provide a sense of place for LCC's preservice teacher candidates. Here, we discussed and debated math education, specifically pondering how we can bolster elementary teachers' content knowledge, pedagogical content knowledge and confidence in math instruction.
After teacher ed., we moved outdoors for a visit to the automotive technology program. Here, our fantastically informative former graduate and current student tour guide, Camille Basa, showed us the ropes. Camille was a perfect transition from teacher education to automotive technology, as after graduating, she plans to teach automotive tech at a local high school. She guided us through a world of cars, trucks and automotive parts of every kind, introducing us to the various modules and their respective instructors and students. Milton Ayakawa, Eric Pang and Jeff Eligio discussed everything from the Ford ASSET program to the evolution (and vast improvement) of engines. Mark Lacasandile set up an exciting demo of an airbag deployment. We all gathered around with the students, armed ourselves with protective eyewear and readied our cameras as Mark counted down...3...2...1.........After several failed attempts to deploy the airbag (and many anticipatory photos), we moved on with the tour, revisiting at the end to try again: 3...2...1.......same result. We all got a good laugh out of it, though we were a little sad for the students to miss out on the finale. After saying our mahalos and goodbyes, we made our way back toward the middle of campus, and just as we were nearly out of earshot, we heard the "POP!" followed by a round of applause :)
Our next stop was the library for an informative presentation on Open Educational Resources (OER) by OER champions Wayde Oshiro, Leanne Riseley and Junie Hayashi. They talked to us about the system-wide OER network, how they encourage and support OER on their campus, and offered realistic advice for initiating, incentivizing and growing OER efforts at our own campus. Leeward has recently achieved 40% textbook cost 0 courses, thanks in no small part to the efforts of these folks!
Our last stop on this well-rounded whirlwind tour of LCC was the stunning new theater building, where our host Don Ranney regaled us with stories of productions past and shared the rich history and present state of the theater facilities and program at Leeward CC. Don is a truly engaging storyteller, and it was a treat to be able to tour the theater with someone with so much historical knowledge to share. But what is a trip to the theater without a performance? We were extremely fortunate to witness both musical and theatrical performances from Jessica Choi's piano student, who played a piece she'd recently performed in competition, and Loretta Tan's theater students, who performed a self-written production entitled 'The P Word', in which they drew upon their own unique perspectives and lived experiences to tackle issues of privilege. The student performances were certainly a highlight! The talent and enthusiasm (and sheer courage!!!) in the students' performances was inspiring, and we were all grateful for their willingness to share their time and gifts with us.
We returned back to home base in the Education building, energized and inspired to re-address our Gen XIII project over lunch. While we now have a consensus, I will leave the details to a later post as we continue developing our plans, but I believe we were all grateful to have identified a purpose! More details to come...
We wrapped the official Wo meeting and said a hui hou to several of our Wohana who had to head off. The remainder of us continued on to our post-Wo tour of Kō Hana, where we learned about the fascinating history of the former pineapple plantation, turned sugar cane farm, turned distillery. Kō Hana uses native Hawaiian heirloom sugar cane varietals to produce its unique rum. We were able to see the various types of sugar cane growing outside the facility; the stalks are hand-harvested, pressed into juice in the field, and distilled on site. We sampled freshly pressed sugar cane juice, five types of rum, rum-infused chocolate from Mānoa chocolate factory, rum cake, and barrel-aged honey. Several of us walked away with the honey, and we all had a great time. Mahalo nui loa to Kō Hana for comping this experience and to Kelsie and Michelle for setting it up - I believe several of us will be booking the tour with guests in the future!
Story and photos by Jamie Sickel, Gen XIII, Kapi‘olani CC
Video by Kimberlee Bassford, Gen XIII, Windward CC
While fueling ourselves for the day, Chancellor Lui Hokoana welcomed us and talked story about his journey to UHMC.
The next hour was spent touring the campus with Associate Professor of Art, Mike Takemoto. We started with the crowning jewel of UHMC, an amazing two-story mural adorning the Ka‘a‘ike building, which serves as the main focal point of the campus. The mural itself is fascinating, and the story of its genesis is equally compelling. A true testament to the richness of the experience and support present in the UHCC environment, this mural was born out of a class project. Student Kammy Kaiwi requested to work on a mural for his art class, and when his sketch was complete, it became apparent that the artwork was worthy of a prominent canvas on campus. It took a year for Kammy to complete the mural, with the help of Mike Takemoto and other UHMC art faculty. Even the chancellor pitched in, captaining the lift from time to time. Mike relayed that every once in awhile, a passerby would stop to admire the progress and offer a suggestion ("Hey - you should add dolphins in the water...") that would be integrated into the painting. The mural depicts three phases of the traditional Makahiki season. A great deal of research informed the portrayal of the people, food, and events in the work, and Ho‘oulu, the UHMC student newspaper, published a fantastic article on the details (A Thought, a Dream, a Vision and Success!).
Our tour took us all around campus, where we visited "Dolphin", created in 1987 by then Maui Community College welders Linlee Boulet, Eric Sato, Gwen Brush with the support of their instructor John Ringen. We also saw "A Path Through the Trees", created by Satoru Abe, a small grove of patina-covered bronze sculptures. A new-to-its-location installation of heavy cast bronze sculptures anchored in rock, called "Na Moku ‘Ekolu (The Three Islands)" was created by Sean K. L. Browne and came to UHMC through the Art in Public Spaces program. "Kūlapa Kai (To Frolic in the Ocean)" was a gift to the campus. It's a sculpture of a monk seal and her pup carved in New Zealand marble. Many forms of student artwork was showcased throughout the outdoor spaces.
From there, we moved on to visit the Library, a veritable art gallery in itself. In the atrium, we saw "Nalu Analua (The Wave Cave)", carved and donated by Maui woodworker David Mouffe. The base of the 1,000 lb. sculpture is carved from a monkeypod tree. Cascading down from the ceiling above was "The Art in the Everyday Community Quilt". This social engagement project, led by visiting artist Laura Phelps Rogers, is currently visiting the UHMC library before moving on to travel the world through 2023. The intent is to celebrate the everyday through creatively interacting with common items around us. Upstairs in the library, we saw more student works, from sketches and paintings to ceramics and quilts.
After being inspired by the diversity of art around campus, it was our turn to step behind the easel. UHMC graduate and artist Malorie Arisumi led us in a fun and engaging creative expression session with acrylics. We had a great time painting (and often laughing at ourselves) as we all followed the guidance of our kumu.
While we shared the subject of lily pads floating in water and even walked through the same procedures, it was fascinating how every Wo had their own unique result.
During and after lunch, which was an ōno selection of quite possibly the biggest bentos I've ever seen, we reported out on our legacy projects, finalized revisions to the Wo awards, addressed requests for funding, and planned for our fall meetings. Most of our discussion was aimed at homing topics, outcomes, and formats of our special project, which may (or may not) focus on the theme "Why [I'm at my] community college," "Why I teach, counsel, etc." and/or "How to keep the joy [in what you do]" and may (or may not) include podcasts, professional development workshops, and/or an unconference. There was a lot of solid brainstorming, and it seems we're circling around some key themes, but for now, we're sitting with it over the summer break and hoping to jump back in this fall with renewed energy and clarity. Mahalo nui loa to Whitney, Jeff, Lui, Mike, Malorie and the Maui Wos of the past generations who generously provided transportation and food - it was a wonderful day! For now, I'm wishing everyone some time to relax and recharge in the sunshine this summer, and looking forward to reuniting and continuing our journey in the fall! A hui hou, Wohana!
Story and video by Kimberlee Bassford, Gen XIII, Windward CC Photos by Jamie Sickel, Gen XIII, Kapi‘olani CC For our third meeting, we ventured to Kap‘iolani Community College where Jackie and Jamie brought the theme of sustainability to life. Sustainability is a buzz word these days for obvious reasons: we live on islands, we’re running out of fossil fuels, and we’re changing the planet with disastrous consequences. Sustainability is also a UH System-wide initiative with new programs and classes cropping up on all campuses. The activities of the day, however, illuminated how multidimensional sustainability can be and how simply one can put it into practice.
During our breakfast potluck, we also got to meet some past WoLCs from Kapi‘olani. Joining us were Laure Burke (Gen V), Vern Ogata (Gen VI), ‘Iwalani Koide (Gen VII), LaVache Scanlan (Gen VII), Wendy Kuntz (Gen X), Annie Thomas (Gen XI) and Kelli Nakamura (Gen XII). We then learned about how sustainability can bring seemingly disparate disciplines together. We met KapCC’s Sustainability Project team, comprised of Dr. Kathleen Ogata (Chemistry), Ronald Takahashi and Chef David Brown (Culinary) and our own Jackie Lindo (Economics), who won the 2018 UH President’s Green Project Award. For more on this impressive project, visit the KCC Sustainability Project page.
Ron then shared what he and the culinary program have been doing to create a sustainable food service initiative at the college such as using biodegradable disposables, converting to LED lights, planting edible gardens, composting food waste and using waste cooking oil to generate biodiesel fuel.
Jackie’s and Beau’s presentations also connected to our service-learning for the day as we got to make our own candles from glycerin. The Kapi‘olani CC ceramics students generously donated some of their beautiful work (thank you!). It was a fun process of pouring various chemicals, including what would have otherwise been waste from the creation of biofuel, bringing our mixture to a boil and then letting it cool in ceramic candle holders. We also got to experience other aspects of The Sustainability Project. Chef Dave Brown took us to see the edible gardens on campus where we got to taste finger limes … zesty! He also showed us the forced-air composter and vermi-composting (earthworm composting) bins. On our way back to the classroom, we spotted the Cooking Up a Rainbow food truck, which serves as a mobile, hands-on classroom for culinary students and delivers healthy meals to keiki at six meal sites out in the community during the summer. The campus tour and hands-on activities were definitely inspiring. But hearing more from Jackie about her class and also talking with KapCC’s sustainability curriculum coordinator (and WoLC Gen VII) Krista Hiser made me think more seriously about the ways I could incorporate sustainability in my own teaching. For instance, I loved how Jackie takes her students on the Tour de Trash, where they follow the path of opala from blue, green and grey bins to their respective sorting, composting and waste-to-energy facilities. And Krista made it seem like a no-brainer to consider making courses at least S-Related (indicating that the course includes a significant assignment related to sustainability), if not S-Focused (meaning sustainability is a major theme of the course). During lunch, we got to business and debriefed HSSI and started brainstorming our cohort project, a process we’ll continue at our next gathering. I left the meeting with a list of notes on how I might revamp my courses to incorporate sustainability issues. And sustainability is potentially one of the areas our cohort wants to explore for its project. Thanks Jackie and Jamie for planting the seeds! Special thanks to our Wo drivers, Wendy Kuntz (Gen X), Annie Thomas (Gen XI) and Kelli Nakamura (Gen XII) for airport transportation, the past generation Kapi‘olani Wos for joining us in our potluck breakfast, our amazing faculty and student presenters, Kaili Chun and her ceramics students for donating their beautiful cups, and Kōkua Hawai‘i Foundation for donating reusable sporks!
Story, photos and video by Jamie Sickel, Gen XIII, Kapi‘olani CC
Windward Community College was the second destination on the Gen XIII itinerary. We’d all been in touch at a distance over the course of the last month and were excited to be reuniting for another day of inspiration and learning. Mahalo to Kim and Christian for planning a day that exceeded our expectations!
Arriving to Windward campus, I was awestruck by the beauty and serenity of my surroundings. The Koʻolau mountains cascaded down into the sprawling, green landscape accented by beautiful, Spanish Mission Revival architecture.
Our first order of business was to catch up with our fellow Wos over an amazing breakfast spread provided by Chef Dan Swift and the Hiilaniwai Foodservice Innovations Training Program team. During breakfast, Kim and Christian introduced us to their campus and our team building activity, including stories and artifacts of their work with students. We all received copies of the student newspaper, Ka ‘Ohana, which provided campus and local community insights and served as an impressive example of applied learning. We also viewed a trailer for a documentary that the Windward CC Creative Media students are creating on Kawainui Marsh, the site of our service learning activity for the morning. The documentary will examine the complicated controversy surrounding the Kawainui-Hamakua Marsh Complex Master Plan, exploring concerns for conservation, infrastructure, education, tourism and efforts to mitigate human interference while acting to ensure the native ecosystem thrives.
They have brought hundreds of students into the area for education, conservation and work study projects and host community workdays on the third Saturday of every month. Lehuakona educated us on the history and current state of Kawainui Marsh, the largest wetland in the state of Hawai‘i and site of the earliest known inland settlements in the Hawaiian Islands. We learned that the Ramsar Convention, an environmental branch of the United Nations, recognizes Kawainui Marsh as a "Wetland of International Importance,” helping bolster efforts to preserve the center of the Kailua ahupua’a.
Lehuakona led us up the trail to an overlook with a humbling view of the expansive wetlands below.
ʻAhahui Mālama I Ka Lōkahi is currently working to recreate the native lowland forest across 12 acres, planting 80 different species of native Hawaiian and early Polynesian plants. From our vantage point, we could view the three ponds where the water levels are controlled to provide habitats for various native wetland birds. We also learned about Nā Pōhaku o Hauwahine, the rocks of the Hawaiian Mo‘o guardian of Kawainui Marsh. The lizard-like goddess is said to have sunned herself on the large rocks, presiding over the land and ensuring that its resources were shared fairly among the people.
We worked diligently in the time we had, carefully picking, digging, pulling up and carrying away invasive plants while leaving Aunty Waimea’s ti plants to flourish. It was rewarding to be a part of something so much bigger than ourselves. Learning about the long history of Kawainui Marsh and helping to prepare for an optimistic future for this ‘āina brought a welcome sense of perspective.
Back at Windward CC, we cleaned up and enjoyed an ‘ono lunch of multigrain rice, fresh garden veggies, steamed ginger fish with red velvet mochi, lemon cake and peanut butter cookies for dessert. The entire meal was so satisfying after working up an appetite all morning, but there was one dish that a clear crowd favorite: the uala hummus with kabocha! We enthusiastically inquired with Chef Dan about the recipe, which he graciously shared with us. Here are the notes, directly from him. Just click the image to open a PDF version of this recipe - you’ll definitely want to give this one a try!
The rest of our day was focused on WoLC business. Louise reviewed the expectations of Wo Learning Champions, and we deliberated over the Wo award applications, discussed potential changes to the awards in the future, planned for the upcoming Hawai‘i Student Success Institute, and selected our Gen XIII swag for guests, volunteers and presenters. We received our Gen XIII Wo shirts, which we will debut at HS2I, and Mitch created and gifted custom Wo Learning Champion stickers to all of us in our unofficial, official color (mahalo nui, Mitcho!).
I finished the day with a sense of accomplishment and an overwhelming sense of gratitude - gratitude for the good fortune to live in such a beautiful place on this Earth, for the perspective brought by our experience at Kawai Nui, for the selfless efforts of people like Lehuakona and ʻAhahui Mālama I Ka Lōkahi, and for the opportunity to spend the next year and a half on this journey with such inspiring people. I am so grateful to be a part of our Wohana!
Story and video by Kimberlee Bassford, Gen XIII, Windward CC
Photos by Jamie Sickel, Gen XIII, Kapi‘olani CC
Generation XIII officially kicked off today on the Big Island of Hawai‘i. A huge mahalo to Neva and Toni for hosting us and for organizing a thought-provoking and productive day at Hawai‘i Community College.
He also shared the deeper meaning of the pahu and pū. The pahu, which was the first sound we heard, is a reminder of our connection to one another. Just as the first sound we hear in our mothers’ wombs is her heartbeat and our fetal hearts find rhythm with hers, he said we need to find rhythm with the universe. The pū and its oceanic origins reminds us that Hawaiians and all native peoples migrated, adapted and innovated. So should we. The Kīpaepae ended with each of us and our hosts touching noses, breathing in the same shared space.
We also met agriculture instructor Lew Nakamura and learned of the unique partnerships between his program and with Hilo High School (offering dual credit courses) and with the college’s culinary program. We later visited the Agricultural Farm Laboratory and marveled at the rows of pristine lettuce and herbs in the greenhouse, many of which we got to enjoy at lunch.
Lunch, which was so generously hosted by Lew and the culinary and Farm to Table programs, was an event. Everyone wanted to bring home the kai choi soup. It’s just the thing that would hit the spot on a rainy Hilo day–or any day really. The greenhouse salad, smoked meat and assortment of desserts (chocolate mochi, butter mochi, cookies and blueberry cheesecake) rounded out a memorable and thoroughly satisfying meal.
Then it was time for business. Perhaps it was Dr. Tangarō’s call for us to be in rhythm with the universe that our generation settled on our shirt in 20 minutes flat. Louise had us drill each other’s names into our brains: Toni, Shaunte, Jackie, Kim, Christian, Jamie, Michelle, Mitch, Kahale, Whitney, Jeff, Neva, Kelsie, Michael, Louise … got it! We talked about the Hawai'i Student Success Institute, started brainstorming our group project and shared what was on our minds.
As I sit on the plane back to O‘ahu, my mind is brimming with ideas for our meeting #2 next month at WinCC. And I know I’m in for a meaningful and transformative 18 months together.
We will be highlighting many of the transformative learning experiences and outstanding initiatives happening across the University of Hawai‘i Community College system as we visit a new campus each month, beginning in January 2019. In the meantime, please check out the rest of our new site or follow us on social media.
Mahalo for your interest! |