Largest intern cohort in STEMworks program history completes summer internships

This summer, the Maui Economic Development Board’s (MEDB) STEMworks program welcomed its largest cohort of interns to date. A total of 89 high school and college students from across the state participated—64 in the STEMworks Innovation Internship program, and 25 in the Maui County Agriculture Business and Technology program. 

Aiming to help students build technical and professional skills while encouraging them to explore Hawaiʻi-based STEM (science, technology, engineering, and math) careers, STEMworks partnered with 42 Hawaiʻi-based companies to find placements and industry mentors for all participating interns, including 43 interns on Oʻahu, 22 on Maui, 12 on Molokaʻi, 5 on Hawaiʻi Island, 4 on Lānaʻi, and 3 on Kauaʻi.

By offering competitive stipends to compensate students for the 20-30 hours of work per week they contribute to their host companies, STEMworks is able to place many of its interns with small businesses and non-profits that may not otherwise be able to offer paid internships. The Innovation Internships this summer endured a 6-week period.

“Watching our STEMworks innovation interns tackle real-world challenges with fresh eyes and boundless creativity has been one of the most rewarding experiences of my career,” said Katie Taladay, MEDB’s director of workforce development. “This program isn’t just about learning STEM skills; it’s about discovering the innovators within themselves.”

Among the many sectors MEDB supports, healthcare remained a top priority. Ariel Ramos, a University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa student, was one of five STEMworks Innovation interns placed with the John A. Burns School of Medicine’s XRCore Labs. Ramos worked on 3D-imaging projects for medical education, learning to sculpt cadaver images for educational purposes.

“I gained technical skills that I can apply to my own modeling project that will help me build my portfolio,” Ramos said.

Engineering and computer science were also key focus areas for STEMworks this year. Maui High School sophomore Toby Naumov interned with VisSidus Technologies, a Maui-based satellite company. Naumov’s work in engineering contributed solutions to tracking and detecting objects in space, including asteroid tracking and preventing collisions between satellites and space debris.

For Maui County in particular, the Agriculture Business and Technology Internship program targets a growing need for agricultural education and career pathways, while also showing students that there is more to agriculture than farming and ranching.

One agriculture mentor, Korey Harris, co-owner and co-founder of Simple Roots, a regenerative farm in Makawao, worked with King Kekaulike High School Tyson Kongsil. The student intern shadowed Harris to learn about chicken care, hen house construction and regenerative farming practices that benefit the community.

“It’s great for the younger generation to be working in any aspect of the agricultural field,” said Harris. “It teaches about hard work, patience, and, most importantly, gratefulness.”

STEMworks’ summer internship programs are made possible thanks to grant funding from the County of Maui and the State of Hawai‘i. STEMworks partnered with the following host companies this summer:

• /’gīdens/
• ‘Āina Pulapula
• Bayer Molokaʻi
• Blue Startups
• EO Solutions
• Geolabs, Inc.
• Grow Some Good
• Hale Makua Health Services
• HATCH
• Hawai‘i Department of Education
• Hawai‘i Greens Freight Farm
• Hawai‘i Innovation Lab
• Hawai‘i Pacific University
• Hawai‘i Science and Technology Museum
• HOSA Future Health Professionals Alumni & Professional Association Hawai‘i
• Interstel Technologies
• Kauaʻi Sea Farms
• Kīpuka Lānaʻi Farms
• Kumu Ola Farms
• Kupu Place Aquaponics
• Lānaʻi City Bar & Grill
• Last Wave Co
• M&F Services
• Maui Gold
• Maui Soil & Water Conservation District
• The Missing Piece App
• Molokaʻi Land Trust
• Molokaʻi Livestock Cooperative
• Native Nursery
• Nohoʻana Farm
• Pacific Hybreed
• Purdy’s Natural Macadamia Nut Farm
• Pu‘u O Hōkū Ranch
• RAI Hawai‘i
• Resilient Moment
• RUSHwahine
• Simple Roots
• University of Hawai‘i Institute for Astronomy
• Unrulr
• VisSidus Technologies, Inc.
• Waiahole Nursery & Garden Center
• University of Hawai‘i JABSOM, XRcore Labs

Profiles of all the STEMworks summer 2024 interns and information about upcoming STEMworks programs can be found on STEMworks’ Facebook and Instagram.