Kamehameha School Career Day Draws Variety of Exhibitors

MBB exhibit representatives and MBBers Luana O’Hare and Nicole Fisher with Priscilla Mikell (the KS Maui Career Day’s organizer and MBB member). MBB photo.

More than 60 exhibitors participated in the Kamehameha Schools Maui Career Day in Kulamalu at the end of November.

In addition to the exhibitors, 62 professionals from the community spoke to 125 middle school and 450 high school students, sharing information and advice about their respective careers, including members of Maui Business Brainstormers, a nonprofit think tank created to help local entrepreneurs.

Students gathered information as part of the five-hour event, which promoted active learning and the opportunity to link classrooms to careers and workplaces.

Organizer Priscilla Cabanilla Mikell and her team recruited a wide and diverse array of career day speakers, including representatives from the island’s police fire departments; the medical, computer and environmental management fields; and professionals from local businesses, local unions and county agencies.

Three MBB members teamed up for the opportunity to share relevant and interesting information about potential career paths.

“I am glad MBB accepted the invitation,” said MBB member Luana O’Hare, who helped at the MBB exhibit. “Meeting with many smart and sharp-minded kids was a rewarding experience. It refreshed my hopes and my kokua for those kids. They are the present representing the future of our Aloha State.”

“I enjoyed the Kamehameha Schools Maui Career Day because the event had such wide variety of vendors available to give these fine young adults the opportunity to explore their options,” said MBB member and Social Media Marketing Consultant & Trainer Nicole Fisher, who also helped at the MBB exhibit. “The middle school students were engaging and in conversation and the high school students blew me away with their real interest in making the right moves for their future. It was awesome!”

Web developer and MBB organizer Grace Fung was also invited to exhibit. 
At her table, she offered the students an opportunity to build a mock website on a real content management system (CMS) cloud platform offered by her business.

“They can play with it at home,” said Fung. “The goal is giving them an opportunity to explore and learn what it takes to have a friendly, functional and quality built website with all the bells and whistles. Kids learn fast. If they like the experience, it can be part of their career choice; otherwise, they will know in advance that it would be more productive and much wiser if hiring someone else for the job.”

Other MBB members were also at the event, each representing their organization at the exhibit.

“I was so pleased for the opportunity to present Hawai‘i Small Business Development Centers, introduce our no-cost small business counseling and inspire awareness that starting your own small business is a viable and vibrant career option,” said Wayne Wong, Hawai‘i Small Business Development Center director and an MBB member. “We highlighted a dozen examples of successful business startups by youth still in their teens that opened a lot of student eyes to the potential of being an entrepreneur! As a Kamehameha High School (Kapalama) alumnus, I was proud to share my career experiences with the up and coming generations.”

MBB member Doreen Pua Canto, the current president of the Maui Native Hawaiian Chamber of Commerce, was also impressed with the event and the visitors at her table.

“Events like this one encourage also our kakou to use their best discernment,” said Canto. “Our participation in the 2015 KSBE Career Day is pono and our kokua for the present and future of the academic community as our mission as a chamber is to promote and sustain our Hawaiian culture, nurturing a strong community of Hawaiian values and to enhance opportunities for success in business and education.”

Career Day organizer Mikell expressed deep appreciation to the nearly 200 community volunteers who participated in the career day as speakers and/or exhibitors.

“Results from an online evaluation completed by students at the end of the day were highly positive,”Mikell said. “Students were pleased and appreciated the chance to learn about the many career options available to them and for the opportunity to speak to individuals who work in these career fields. It was also a great networking opportunity for both the students and exhibitors alike.”

For more information about KSBE Maui and career day, email [email protected].

For more information about MBB, go online.

KS Maui High School students entering at the exhibit. MBB photo.

KS Maui Sophomore Harley Delator showing her first stamp gotten from the MBB table. MBB photo.

KS Maui students talking to Nicole Fisher at the MBB table. MBB photo.

KS Maui students taking notes at the MBB table. MBB photo.

KS Maui students talking to web developer and MBB organizer Grace Fung. MBB photo.

KS Maui Students talking to Hawai‘i Small Business Development Center Director Wayne Wong. MBB photo.

Doreen Pua Canto (MNHCoC’s president) and Teri Gorman Freitas (MNHCoC’s vice president) and the KSBE Maui students filling forms at the Maui Native Hawaiian Chamber of Commerce’s table. MBB photo.

MBB exhibit representatives and MBBers Luana O’Hare and Nicole Fisher with Priscilla Mikell (the KS Maui Career Day’s organizer and MBB member). MBB photo.

KS Maui 2015 Career Day mahalo note. MBB photo.