Learning to Share Our Stories
Written by Amber Manini
it is said that everyone has a story. No matter where we have gone in life, where we live, or what we do, we all have a story to tell. There is a reason why they say the older you get the more you have to give. Our parents, grandparents, teachers and counselors all have the upper hand. What is the upper hand you may ask? The answer is simply experience.
Every year UH Hilo brings Deans of it's colleges to prospective students on the island of Oahu. Meet the Deans, as the event has been titled, provides the opportunity for prospective students to engage with the UH Hilo campus on their home island.
Launched eight years ago, Meet the Deans was created by Daryle Masanda, a former employee at the UH Hilo admissions office, who is now the Director of Student Services at the UH Hilo Daniel K. Inouye College of Pharmacy. Maile Sing, one of UH Hiloʻs Admissions Counselors based on the island of Oahu now runs the Meet the Deans event. As a counselor who takes part in numerous recruitment events and high school visits for students on the island of Oahu, Sing added her own perspective on the event this year.
Dean of the College of Arts and Sciences Randy Hirokawa speaking to prospective UH Hilo students at the UH Hilo Admissions Meet the Deans event on Oahu. Photo taken by reporter, Amber Manini.
“This year, I restructured the format of the time prior to the start of the formal program of college presentations. The new format included the addition of information stations that attendees could visit to find out more about each academic college. There was also a general information table as well. The stations seemed to help the deans and our vice chancellor of student affairs identify what each attendee seemed to be specifically seeking information about. The attendees also engaged in much more individual interaction with the deans and vice chancellor than had occurred in the past,” said Sing.
Also a part of the Meet the Deans event included a segment where students were introduced to the ALEX program and were shown some of the articles from the ALEXOnline magazine. Told from a student perspective, an admissions student assistant who is also a reporter for the ALEX program explained to prospective students some of the current applied learning experiences on campus.
Laakea Manini, a current senior at Kamehameha Schools was just one of the prospective students to attend the Meet the Deans event. “I wanted to attend the event because i believed it would clear up any questions I had and shed some light on new things that might interest me. I thought it would be a good experience to meet the deans and it would give me more direct information. During the event, each of the deans went over what their program covered, what is required for the programs, what types of fields you can go into, and opportunities that you would have during your time as a student andwhen you graduate. This helped me because it was easy to understand the deans in person. and even when i had questions they were right in the room for me to ask,” said Manini.
When asked about applied learning, Manini describes his definition of applied learning to be “hands on learning” in which you are able to learn from your experiences outside of the typical classroom. “I feel that the applied learning aspect in UH Hilo will help me a lot at a college level. This is because I personally learn much better when I can practice material physically rather than learning about how to do it through a textbook,” said Manini.
As Maile Sing describes, “The deans definitely highlight applied learning in their presentations, because applied learning if often recognized as one of the strengths of our university. Many prospective students even approach me at college fairs, etc, and share they they have heard that UH Hilo is a place where they would be able to learn “hands-on”. Students are intentionally looking for applied learning opportunities, even while they are still in high school. Applied learning helps students to gain valuable experience in their field, while also giving meaning to their academic studies. Prospective students benefit from finding out, in advance, which institutions are committed to providing these types of learning opportunities.”
Experience helps to provide us with a better understanding of the world around us. As UH Hilo shares their stories with other students, we can in turn learn from each other through our experiences and the stories told. Share your experiences with the world around you. Share with family members your experiences in school and provide others with an applied learning experience through the art of storytelling. As they say word of mouth is sometimes the fastest way news travels.
