Kamaile Gusman graduated from the Hawai‘i Community College – Pālamanui Culinary Arts program in 2021 and has quickly gained a foothold in the local culinary industry. The connections she made and skills she learned in the Culinary Arts program helped her land a job as a pastry cook at the Kūki‘o Beach and Golf Club even before she graduated, and that’s where she continues to work today.
When Sally Ancheta walked onto the Hawai'i Community College campus to join a job readiness training program in 1992, she had no idea how big a step it was. But as it turned out, it was the start of a transition out of poverty and domestic abuse into a thriving higher education journey, family and career.
Jeremy Gambing is ready for more. Gambing has always had a passion for travel and people, so the hospitality industry has been a good fit for him, and he has worked at a major resort in Kona for about seven years. He has been in the same job position, however, and he wants to expand his opportunities and options.
Andrew Hasegawa worked in tourism. He worked in various roles for one of the telescopes on Mauna Kea. Those were good jobs that provided solid experience, but he hit a “plateau,” as he described it, and knew he needed more education if he wanted to advance in his career.
“I thought I really needed that next step, and that’s kind of how I started looking at Hawai‘i Community College,” Hasegawa said recently.
We interviewed Allegra Petras, who returned to college after two decades away from higher education and enrolled in the Hawai'i CC Accounting program. She talked about the experience of returning to college and being a Hawai'i CC student. The interview has been edited for length and clarity.
Kealaka'i “Ala” Matsumoto, a 2011 Hawai‘i Community College graduate, is enrolled at the Iowa State University College of Veterinary Medicine, one of the most prestigious vet schools in the country.
Matsumoto’s journey to this point surprises even him at times. He went from an underachieving high school student to doctoral candidate; from Hilo, Hawai'i to Ames, Iowa; from an academic and career path in social services to one in veterinary medicine.
Anya Tagawa fondly recalls the most thrilling moments of her career in natural resource conservation, like rappelling into lava tubes to access rare plants that had thrived in the shelter of the tube. Or blazing trails and flying by helicopter to far-flung places in Kohala to search for rare plants.
“It’s an exciting field,” Tagawa said recently. “It’s been an exciting life, for sure.”
Hawai‘i Community College Alumni & ‘Ohana is pleased to announce that nominations for the Alumni of the Year Award are now open. The award, established in 2017, recognizes Hawai‘i CC alumni and former students who have made major contributions to their professions, vocations, and/or communities.
ANNUAL THEME
A decades old promise has turned into a donation to the Hawai'i Community College Learning Center.
Chanh Chi, who was a tutor at the Learning Center 25 years ago, recently made a generous donation of $6,000 to establish a Learning Center enrichment fund. On Tuesday, July 30, 2019 Chi and his family returned to the Learning Center and spent time with the current tutors, faculty, staff and administrators of Hawai'i CC.
UPDATED: Nominations Due December 31.
Hawai‘i Community College Alumni & ‘Ohana is pleased to announce that nominations for the Alumni of the Year Award are now open. The award, established in 2017, recognizes Hawai‘i CC alumni and former students who have made major contributions to their professions, vocations, and/or communities.
ANNUAL THEME