Jul 16, 2014 | Education
In reflecting on how young people are encouraged to tell stories in Akaku’s Youth Broadband Education and Awareness Mentoring program, Akaku Education Director Kat Tracy pointed to the Apple computer company founder and visionary Steve Jobs. Jobs “envisioned putting the tools to create stories on devices that we carry with us, in essence, to democratize the media,” she said. “Pew Reports indicate that up to 89 percent of the public own smart devices with video capability, outnumbering ownership of desktop computers. That is how we are encouraged to use the technology to tell stories, by owning it. But, owning it alone won’t be enough, we need training on how to effectively, and responsibly, use those tools.”
Tracy said STEM (science, technology, engineering and math) “embraces technology, and in video what sits between your idea or message is technology. It is the bridge you must cross to share your story.” Akaku’s youth education and mentoring program received a grant from the Maui Economic Development Board’s Ke Alahele Education Fund. “MEDB demonstrates a true intention of supporting STEM education and training for Maui Nui youth through support of numerous innovative initiatives. I feel like we stand among giants! This support also enables us to be good community partners, as well as create new ones.”
Tracy said the grant was instrumental in allowing Akaku to expand its mobile journalism program, Project YBEAM, to Molokai through purchase of additional equipment and support for curriculum training of its part-time Molokai educational coordinator. “Seeing the launch projects there and the enthusiasm from the youth and public there really solidifies that this expansion will be well served,” she said. Tracy said Akaku’s students continue to speak about learning how to interview people for stories and how that builds their self-confidence. MEDB established the Ke Alahele Education Fund to power up STEM Education in Maui County. This year’s Ke Alahele Education Dinner and Auction will be held Aug. 23 at the Grand Wailea Resort. For more information, call 875-2300, or visit www.medb.org
Jul 9, 2014 | Education
HNu Photonics is reinforcing its growing reputation as a leading high technology company in Hawaii. Recently, the Maui-based company was selected by the Biotech International Organization for its “Buzz of BIO” Award for “Technologies of Tomorrow.” HNu received 1,921 online votes en route to winning the award for its cutting-edge technology designed for use aboard the International Space Station, according to Dan O’Connell, the CEO of HNu Photonics. O’Connell said the “Buzz of BIO” award is a testament to the tremendous support his company receives from Maui’s business and technology community.
“This award is a demonstration of Hawaii’s commitment to community and partnership,” he said. “This award is a win for all of us, and we hope to bring attention to Hawaii.” In 2013, the HNu-nanoPOINT Division exhibited its patented microfluidic system in the state-supported Hawaii Pavilion at the BIO conference in Chicago. Executives from the Center for Advancement of Science in Space “were overwhelmed by the capabilities of our technology and discussions ensued,” he said. “CASIS is NASA’s sole manager of the International Space Station U.S. National Laboratory. The mission of CASIS is to maximize use of this unparalleled platform for innovation, which can benefit all humankind and inspire a new generation to look to the stars.”
HNu-nanoPOINT was eventually selected to deliver two fully space-ready microfluidic systems to NASA – one for deployment aboard the International Space Station and the other for astronaut training, he said. Designed with stem-cell studies in mind, the microfluidics system is “a multipurpose in-vivo platform, where cell maintenance and reagent delivery are automated and cells imaged with varying time-course options viewed remotely through a wireless connection at the researchers’ convenience.” Calling it a “laboratory-on-a-chip platform,” O’Connell said it “incorporates the size and durability characteristics that make it ideal for space-based deployments such as onboard the International Space Station. Its miniaturized and automated sub-components … are uniquely designed for space-based applications and are capable of many other biological analyses in microgravity conditions in addition to stem cell research.” HNu has a long-standing relationship with MEDB, covering a broad spectrum of entrepreneurial ventures and renewable energy projects. Most recently, Hnu is responsible for the design and installation of another photovoltaic system at MEDB’s center.
Jul 2, 2014 | Education
Driven by her love for math and desire to give back to the community, 17-year-old Jasmine Doan founded the Maui Math Circle. She completed the first year of the project with the support of Maui Economic Development Board’s Women in Technology Project; her school, Seabury Hall; and the new Puu Kukui Elementary School in Wailuku, where the community service program is held. It works like this: Middle and high school students like Doan and her peers get together once a month to teach advanced math concepts and problem solving skills to 3rd, 4th- and 5th-graders during after-school hours. There are as many as 15 volunteers matched up with 50 to 75 younger students.
Doan describes the project as a math enrichment, not a tutoring session. “It’s supposed to be for students who really want to learn more about advanced math. We try to make it fun and encourage the students to be creative in how they approach math,” she said. Doan has long enjoyed math, having finished Advanced Placement Calculus in the 6th grade. She hopes to work either as a computer science engineer or an entrepreneur, like her parents, Jason and Shirley Doan of Kahului. “I just love math. I think a lot of people don’t see that math is such a creative process,” she said. “I like how it’s kind of like a puzzle.”
Heading into her senior year, Doan serves as a competitor and coach for middle and high school-aged students in a variety of math competitions. As captain of her school’s math team, Doan spearheaded a win in state competition this past May. Maui Math Circle is on summer break and will return in September when Doan will serve on an advisory board with the goal of continuing the project even after she leaves the island for college.
For more information, visit: https://www.sites.google.com/site/mauimathcircle808/home or https://www.facebook.com/MauiMathCircle
Jun 25, 2014 | Community, Environment, Sustainability
A new brewery is nearing completion in Kihei. Owned and operated by husband and wife, Garrett and Melanie Marrero, Maui Brewing Co.’s newest venture represents a response to their business’ growing demand. The Marreros founded their company almost 10 years ago and today operate a seven-barrel brewpub in Kahana and a 25-barrel production brewery and canning facility in Lahaina. Come this fall, Maui Brewing Co. will close its Lahaina brewery and open a new 42,000-square-foot facility in Kihei on 5.3 acres in the Maui Research & Technology Park, right next to Maui Economic Development Board’s offices.
“Our business is very multi-faceted,” Garrett Marrero said. “What we have shown and demonstrated is that you can be a successful manufacturing business in Hawaii,” Marrero said. The company’s BrewPub in Lahaina will remain open and together with the new brewery in Kihei, Maui Brewing Co.’s staff will grow from 59 employees today to approximately 140 when the brewery and a new Kihei brewpub opens. “When you manufacture a product truly local, our entire community succeeds,” he said. Aside from the brewery, the Kihei location will also house a distillery, a tasting room and eventually a BrewPub. “People want to support local. They want to support something that’s authentic to the islands,” Morrero said as he explained Maui Brewing Co.’s success. Maui Brewing Co. beers are sold in 11 states and four countries.
Maui Brewing Co. describes itself as a “truly Hawaiian brewery.” The company has been recognized as Hawaii’s No. 1 craft beer producer since 2005. Beers are packaged in eco-friendly materials with cans manufactured on Oahu and designed by local Maui artists. The cans, according to Maui Brewing Co., have the added bonus of better protecting the beer from both light and oxygen damage which can compromise the taste. A unique, recyclable plastic carrying device is used to hold the cans. The spent grain from beer production is donated to local ranchers for cattle feed and composting.
Jun 18, 2014 | Environment, Sustainability
Baldwin High School student Chelsea Kau got up close and personal with marine life on a recent Maui Youth Alliance excursion to visit the Waihee Beach Park with Department of Land and Natural Resources staff and learn about ocean safety. The best part of the visit “was when I got to cut a hole in a fish to feel for the cavity in its belly, and then suture the fish,” the 15-year-old Wailuku resident said.
Kau said she gained an appreciation of the impact humans are having on the ocean and its sea life. Overfishing may be one of the biggest problems contributing to fewer fish in the ocean, she said. “But, it’s also because of these other land factors such as sewage pumps and humans stepping on the coral reefs, etcetera. But the only thing that can be controlled right now, is the overfishing.” Kau, who has participated in the Youth Alliance for two years, advocated for diving and fishing for subsistence only. “That’s the way it should be, because you don’t need 10 or 15 fish for a family of three or four,” she said. “Take what you need.” After visiting marine resource officials, Kau said she believes shark attacks are “more than likely” caused by debris that has floated to the Hawaiian Islands from the earthquake and tsunami that devastated Japan on March 11, 2011.
Kau said she believes ocean safety is a challenge: “It’s ‘something you can’t control’ as ‘Mother Nature is unpredictable.’ But because we have lifeguards and all of the land emergency services, they’re saving the lives of people who don’t know our currents and tides,” she said. Youth Alliance members attend monthly events during the school year to explore and gain a greater understanding of key components in the Maui community. The Maui Economic Development Board coordinates the group’s gatherings.
Jun 11, 2014 | Education
A Ke Alahele Education Fund grant for Montessori School of Maui was intended to support its engineering and robotics programs plus help provide a practical learning environment for students to enhance their skills in science, technology, engineering and math or STEM. But it went beyond that, according to Thomas Daubert, the school’s director of development. “In its first year, our after-school Robotics and Engineering studios have provided a fun learning environment for up to 16 students each session,” he said. “The students came away with increased skill development and a new way to perceive themselves and the physical world around them,” Daubert said.
At Montessori, students work in teams to learn the mechanics of simple machines, basic electronic circuits, polarity, magnetism and more. Jason Verkaart, the Robotics studio coordinator, is also a parent of a student at the school. Each session culminates in a fun competitive race or game using the vehicles and systems constructed throughout a course. “Our students have become very excited about seeing the physical application of math, engineering and science coursework and have personally experienced the enthusiasm of a parent working within his profession,” Daubert said.
Daubert said the program was a good fit for a Montessori school with its strong emphasis on hands-on, experiential learning. “As a Montessori school, on a daily basis, we work to develop the interests of each unique student through practical collaborative work, which is the basis for a successful Robotics program. This is a great fit for our school, and we look forward to finding even greater connective points between this after-school studio and our core curriculum activities in the coming year.” MEDB established the Ke Alahele Education Fund to power up STEM Education in Maui County. This year’s Ke Alahele Education Fund Dinner and Auction will be held Aug. 23 at the Grand Wailea Resort. Call 875-2300, or www.medb.org
Jun 4, 2014 | Small Business
For more than 60 years, Ben Franklin Crafts has carved out its niche in Maui County’s business landscape with a simple guiding principle – top flight customer service. “Everything we do is somehow linked to satisfying our customers externally as well as internally,” said Carrera Catugal, Ben Franklin’s Assistant Store Manager at the Queen Kaahumanu Center. “That includes everything from simply bringing in local products to creating an enjoyable work environment for our employees and an enjoyable shopping environment for our customers.”
The first Ben Franklin store opened in 1951 in Kahului, but its roots go back further than that, Catugal said. It began as a modest dry goods store in Kahului, the K. Kamitaki store, owned by Shikano Kamitaki. The store transformed into the Kahului Dry Goods Store, run by Kamitaki’s children, Tadami and Matsuko (Mizoguchi). Today, Ben Franklin Crafts is committed to serving local crafters, Catugal said. The store organizes a semi-annual craft fair and provides local crafters the opportunity to sell hand-made craft products in the store. Catugal said it’s a source of pride for Ben Franklin employees that “we not only have customers who visit our location, sometimes daily as part of their livelihood, but that we can in turn provide a venue that allows crafting to be a viable lifestyle.”
She credits Ben Franklin’s success to “the freedom that we have as a business to engage our community outside the walls of our store.” She cited the store’s craft fair and its participation in Maui Economic Development Board’s STEM Conference. This year, the Ben Franklin team held sessions for approximately 150 students who learned about science through the use of everyday household items. “We are sending the message that we are not just another business with a bottom line, we are an active member of a growing community.” Catugal said she’s upbeat about the prospects for Maui’s economy. “When organizations like MEDB partner with the businesses that service Maui County, I feel that Maui’s economy will prosper and that even in times of hardship as a nation, we here on Maui will have stability,” she said.
May 21, 2014 | Innovation
The Maui Economic Development Board is continuing to honor the legacy of the late U.S. Senator Daniel Inouye with an award program in his name. “Senator Inouye was a visionary who saw how important it is to affirm and invest in our students, the future of Hawaii,” said MEDB President and CEO Jeanne Skog. First presented in 2013, the Daniel K. Inouye Innovation Award advances Senator Inouye’s dream of empowering students who demonstrate an innovative use of STEM tools and capabilities to serve and improve our community.
Deadline for award applications is July 15. The winning project will be one that is ‘outside the box,’ but nevertheless has a practical function and value to the community. Last year’s first honoree was a STEM project conceived and produced by King Kekaulike students Lotus Chen and Sierra Harrell. Using GPS technology and practical applications of math and science, the students mapped out roads leading to and from their school campus. Then, they marked areas that needed crosswalks and sidewalks and took note of troublesome spots where motorists might lose sight of pedestrians. They shared their geospatial map with state and county officials, and their work resulted in Governor Neil Abercrombie releasing nearly $1 million for the Maui County Old Haleakala Highway Sidewalk project.
“Dan would have been pleased that these students worked on a project to potentially save lives,” said his widow, Irene Hirano Inouye. “He was always delighted to see the talented and articulate students display their science, technology, engineering and math projects.” The award will be presented at the annual Ke Alahele Education Fund dinner on August 23 at the Grand Wailea Resort & Spa. All Maui County middle and high school students are eligible to submit applications. Students need not be in a STEMworks lab to be considered. Each team must have a teacher adviser who will need to sign the project application. For more information on how to enter, or to make reservations for the Ke Alahele dinner and auction, visit: www.medb.org
May 20, 2014 | Small Business
Facebook’s Small Business Boost is coming to Maui! with special guest speaker, Senator Brian Schatz
Through a special partnership with local business organizations, the Maui Economic Development Board (MEDB) and Facebook invite you to join experts from Facebook’s Small Business Team as they share best practices, success stories, and strategies for how to grow, manage, and understand your small business identity on Facebook. There are over one billion people on Facebook. Learn how to reach the right audience for your business and turn them into loyal customers.
Location: The King Kamehameha Golf Club (Waikapu Ballroom, 2500 Honoapiilani Hwy) in Wailuku.
Date: Sunday, May 25th.
Time: 4:00 Checkin & Networking 4:30 – 6:00pm Presentation
This is a FREE event!
Register for the event
May 14, 2014 | Education
Kualapu’u School teacher Susan Forbes began her Ke Alahele Education Fund grant project with a goal – field a competitive robotics team. It was a building year at the Molokai K-6 charter school and this year the students were not ready to compete. The hope is that soon the returning students will have enough foundational knowledge to handle the robotics materials and that program hours can be expanded to give students enough time to complete their projects, Forbes said.
While she was unable to immediately field a competitive robotics team, Forbes was able to adapt how she trains the students. “I no longer ‘train’ the students individually,” she said. “Instead, I train one student at a time, with the expectation that the student will go on to train another student and so on. This works well and results in students becoming better listeners and observers during the initial teaching,” Forbes explained. All the team members, except two, were exposed to robotics for the first time this school year, Forbes said. “At the end of the year, all participating students learned how to build, program and operate a robot. In addition, the problem-solving format of the challenges promoted perseverance, higher-order thinking, and teamwork – since difficult problems are best tasked out to groups. The students also learned “how to work with one another and to develop their own values and character,” Forbes said.
STEM education incorporates knowledge of science, math and technology with creativity in design and engineering, she said. And, by incorporating the components into one, “student engagement and learning are enhanced.” Forbes said schools should support education in science, technology, engineering and math “not only so that their students see the connection between problems, ideas and solutions/products, but also that their students are better prepared for the types of careers that await them.” MEDB established the Ke Alahele Education Fund to power up STEM Education in Maui County. This year’s Ke Alahele Education Fund Dinner and Auction will be held August 23 at the Grand Wailea Resort. Call 875-2300, or go to www.medb.org.
