Kilohana: The Academic Success Center

Kilohana's mission is to support the learning and retention of all UH Hilo students by fostering the development of independent, self-motivated learners through subject-specific support and academic skills development. This is accomplished by building a network with other units on campus so that faculty and the other members of the campus community are aware of, and utilize effectively, the full spectrum of services that support success.

Kilohana tutors work from four locations on campus. These are the Writing Center in LRC 123 (first floor of the Mookini Library), the Science Center in STB 117, the Math Center in CH 5, and Computer Science tutoring in CH 11B.

All of our tutors are UH Hilo students selected for their academic achievement and dedication to helping others succeed. Additionally, all Kilohana peer tutors complete a rigorous training program.

Director’s Welcome

In the Hawaiian language, Kilohana means the top layer of fabric for bedding.  This top layer was beautifully decorated kapa, the fabric used before imported materials were introduced to the islands.  Over time, the word came to mean superior, best, or excellent, as only the Kilohana was decorated; all the other layers had no dye or decoration.  Kilohana can also mean “high point” or lookout.  At first, the two definitions may seem somewhat unrelated, but they are actually closely related: the first definition is an intellectual (mental) high point; the other is a literal (physical) high point.  Kilohana: The Academic Success Center is all about the relationship between those two points: to reach intellectual excellence, we have to do some real, physical work (anyone who has studied all night for an exam or drafted and re-drafted a term paper knows what hard work it is).  Though we all may have individual definitions of excellence, none of us can get there, mentally or physically, without the right tools for the job.

Kilohana is where UH Hilo students can turn when they are ready to climb to their own personal high point.  Whether you want to improve your grades, learn to study smarter (not harder), or take your academic work to the next level, we are here to provide the tools you need to meet that goal.  Whatever you are working toward, I encourage you to use all resources available to you—and there are many on this campus.  I look forward to helping you make the connections you need to reach the high point of your academic career; after all, from there your future is visible!