An anthropology student at the University of Hawai‘i at Hilo has marked a milestone for the university’s Keaholoa STEM Scholars Program.

Hilo born and raised Bethany Okamoto is the first second-generation Keaholoa scholar in the program, following in the footsteps of her mother, Michelle Correia, who was in the program 20 years ago. UH Hilo’s Keaholoa STEM Scholars Program is federally supported, designed to increase the number of Native Hawaiians and other minorities in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics, commonly called STEM.

“We are excited to welcome our very first second-generation Keaholoa scholar into the spring 2023 cohort,” says Keala Campbell, the program’s coordinator. “Bethany shared that due to her mother’s positive experience and encouragement, she decided to apply.”

Alumna Correia, who hails from Nā‘ālehu and graduated from UH Hilo in 2006 with a bachelor of science in chemistry, is now a high school chemistry teacher at Kamehameha Schools Hawai‘i campus in Kea‘au, Hawai‘i Island.

UH Hilo’s Keaholoa program was established in 2002 by Professor Emerita Sonia Juvik, retired professor of geography, and Professor of Biology Rebecca Ostertag. Juvik says the original grant was called “Hawaiian values in the sciences: Advancing a new paradigm for STEM education.”

Read more at UH Hilo Stories