Programs

Academic Support Campus Development Community Outreach A Gathering Place PIHEC Poster

Recognizing that under-represented students are sometimes marginalized on college campuses, the Pacific Islander Student Center at UH Hilo encourages and supports the achievements and contributions of Pacific Islanders on campus and in the surrounding community.

Pacific Islander Higher Education Conference (PIHEC)

PIHEC is a 2-day conference at the University of Hawaii at Hilo to address the challenges & provide solutions for supporting Pacific islanders in Hawaii. The first day(Friday, February 8, 2013) is a Leadership Summit for educators and community leaders to address the challenges of supporting the unique needs of Pacific islanders in Hawaii. The next day (Saturday, February 9, 2013) is College Day dedicated to bringing Pacific islanders in local high schools and their parents to participate in a series of activities that are aimed at empowering, inspiring, and informing them of  opportunities in Hawaii-based colleges and other resources in the community. Visit the official website: www.pacificstudents.org>>

Pacific Islander Summer Bridge

Pacific islander students who have been accepted to UH Hilo will participate in an intensive residential bridge program on campus prior to the start of the fall orientation week each year. The program will be designed to introduce first-year students to college-level expectations for writing, mathematics, critical inquiry, study skills/strategies, different learning and teaching styles, and campus resources, as well as to encourage help seeking behaviors which many minority students lack. It also promotes social and academic integration of Pacific island students into the campus community and build connections with faculty, staff and peers. More>>

Pacific Speaker Series

A series of distinguished guest speakers from throughout the Pacific islands who will help educate, inform, and inspire the UH Hilo community on matters of importance to the region and its citizens.

Fall 2012

Daren KamaliDaren Kamali, performance poet, author, and youth worker is the first speaker in our Pacific Speaker Series for the 2012-2013 academic year. In addition to speaking in several classes at UH Hilo, Daren will perform at UCB 100 at noon on October 12, 2012 for the public.

Daren is the Fulbright–Creative New Zealand Writer-in-Residence at the Center for Pacific Island Studies at UH Mānoa. He has recently released his first bilingual (English and Fijian) collection of poetry, songs, and short stories entitledTakes, Poems and Songs from the Underwater World. The book, with an accompanying compact disc, takes readers on a journey from Oceania’s underwater world to its landscapes.

Daren’s debut album,Immigrant Story (2000), and EP album, Keep it Real(2005), share his personal experiences migrating to Aotearoa/New Zealand from Fiji in 1992. Daren infuses his Fijian and Wallis and Futunan heritage with poetry and creative writing by including chants, songs, and oral traditions. Much of his work is inspired and influenced by his experiences and upbringing in Fiji and in Aotearoa/New Zealand.

October 12, 2012
12:00 - 1:30 pm
UCB 100

Spring 2012

Jacquelyn Lewis-HarrisJacquelyn Lewis-Harris, Director of the Connecting Human Origins & Cultural Diversity Program at the University of Missouri-St. Louis. The Festival of the Pacific Arts is held every four years in a Pacific nation. Delegations from more than 27 countries present the best of their cultures to several thousand people over a three week period. This talk will cover the presenter's 29-year involvement in preparing Papua New Guinean delegated attendees, organizing contemporary art exhibits and panel discussions for six of the festivals. She will also discuss the contesting of cultural art forms by national delegations and the resulting synergy.

Festival of the Pacific Arts: Entertainment or Cultural Content?
Wednesday, February 29, 2012, 2:00-3:30 pm
Campus Center Room 307 (Pacific Islander Student Center)

Workshop Series

A series of leadership development workshops offered by the Pacific Islander Student Center in partnership with other entities on and off campus designed to develop conscientious, competent, and compassionate Pacific island students at UH Hilo.

Coconut Chats

Opportunities throughout the year for Pacific Islander students, faculty, staff to come together during lunch (noon - 1:00 pm) and listen to short informal talks on topics of mutual interest. All coconut chats are held at the Pacific Islander Student Center, Campus Center 307.

  • March 5, 2013, How to Prepare for the Pre-Pharmacy Program at UH Hilo (Susan Welch and Rachel Loo, UH Hilo Pre-Pharmacy Program Advisers)
  • March 8, 2013, College of Micronesia: Internship & Job Opportunities, Rencelly Moses (Director, Human Resources, College of Micronesa)

Job Training

Training for Pacific islander students who wish to be considered for one of the 46 student positions in various departments on campus funded the Pacific Islander Student Center's AANAPISI grant.

  • August 22: Job Training Workshop, 6:30 - 7:30 pm, PISC
  • August 24: Job Training Workshop, 12:30 - 1:30 pm, PISC
  • August 28: Job Training Workshop, 4:00 - 5:00 pm, PISC
  • August 30: Job Training Workshop, 6:30 - 7:30 pm, PISC
  • September 10: Job Training Workshop, 12:30 - 1:30 pmC

Professional Development Certificate

The PISC supports the fact that internships are key to job success for college graduates. In partnership with the UH Hilo Office of Applied Learning Experiences (ALEX), the PISC encourages Pacific Islander students to participate in internships to enhance your job prospect. In a recent poll of organizations from 20 industries 75% of employers said they prefer to hire candidates with relevant work experience, while only 4% said that experience doesn't factor into their decision. In the same poll 42% of 2011 college hires came from organizations' own internship programs.

Add the Professional Development Certificate to your resume!

To receive the Professional Development Certificate students must register and participate in all these steps:

  • Step 1: Resume Writing Workshop (October 25, UCB 127, 6:30 pm) - Dinner provided by Enterprise Rent A Car
  • Step 2: Interviewing Skills Workshop (November 7, UCB 127, 6:30 pm) - Dinner provided by AXA Financial
  • Step 3: Internship Fair (November 15, Campus Center Dining Room, 6:00 pm) 20 + employers are expected for the internship fair. A student ID, resume and professional dress are required for admission.

Register Now!
For more information and to register, go to facebook.com/UHHiloALEX, click on ‘Events’ and join each of the steps identified above. Admission to Steps 1 and 2 is limited to the first 75 who join. Become a fan of the page (‘Like’) for future updates on internship opportunities and ALEX events.

 

Pacific Mentors

A program to connect current Pacific island students to a Pacific island professional in the student's field of study and interest. The goal is provide an opportunity for UHH's alumni to mentor students. More>>

Island Time

Island Time imageAn informal social gathering every 1st Friday of the month, 5:30 - 6:30pm at the Pacific Islander Student Center co-hosted by one of the seven Pacific Islander student organizations at UH Hilo. The featured student organization officers will introduce the club's mission and share some aspects of the culture including but not limited to food, traditions, or ceremonies.

Spring 2013

  • Friday, February 8, 2013 - Tupulaga O Samoa Mo A Taeao
  • Friday, March 8, 2013 - Waab Student Organization
  • Friday, April 5, 2013 - Marshallese Iakwe Club

Fall 2013

  • Friday, September 6, 2013 - HELP Symposium during the day, Island Time hosted by all Pacific Islander student organizations to welcome our newest Pacific Islander students.
  • Friday, October 4, 2013 - Kosrae Hilo Organization
  • Friday, November 8, 2013 - Pohnpei Kaselehlie Club

Spring 2014

  • February 7, 2014 - Chuukese Student Association
  • March 7, 2014 - Ngelekel Belau
  • April 4, 2014 - Rematau (???)