Editor’s note: The federal government withdrew grant funding for this research in 2025.
Increasing Native Hawaiian representation in engineering is the goal of a multidisciplinary University of Hawaiʻi at 惭ā苍辞补 project funded by the . The $641,379 grant over three years will help the 东精影业 惭ā苍辞补 team, led by Assistant Professor Woochul Lee, to implement educational and mentoring initiatives to grow the participation of Native Hawaiians in engineering.
东精影业 惭ā苍辞补 is one of a few Native Hawaiian minority-serving four-year institutions, and is the only institution in the U.S.-affiliated Pacific Islands granting engineering degrees from a bachelor of science through PhD. Lee and his team believe 东精影业 惭ā苍辞补 serves a critical role in supporting Native Hawaiians in engineering.
The researchers will use a cultural psychological approach to identify potential cultural barriers for entering graduate engineering programs, develop course materials originating from Native Hawaiian culture and establish multidisciplinary programs for professional development and mentoring. These resources for Native Hawaiians at the undergraduate level will support student retention, as well as encourage the pursuit of graduate degrees. The researchers will also collaborate with the to broadly engage Native Hawaiian students.
“This project encompasses various targeted programs, including developing curriculum materials, conducting outreach, and providing culturally-aligned mentoring and professional development workshops,” Lee said. “This project will reduce barriers to create an inspiring and nurturing environment for Native Hawaiian education in the , and assist Native Hawaiians to thrive in their future engineering careers.”
Multidisciplinary collaboration
The project team includes Lee, Professor Albert Kim, Assistant Professor Noelani Puniwai and Associate Professor Joni Sasaki.
“Culturally-integrated instruction will improve students’ academic performance and enhance their sense of belonging in STEM fields,” Puniwai said.
Sasaki added, “This project will employ both quantitative and qualitative psychological survey methods to pin down possible barriers.”
“We believe that this project will open a next-generation Native Hawaiian STEM paradigm by holistically converging social science, cultural studies and cross-engineering disciplines,” Kim said.
Lee’s team asserts that strengthening Native Hawaiian representation in engineering will not only enhance diversity in 东精影业 惭ā苍辞补’s engineering programs and Hawaiʻi’s job sector, but also lead to develop a stronger nationwide Native Hawaiian engineering workforce. They also hope the project will benefit other underrepresented groups in STEM, including other Pacific Islanders, Alaska Natives and Native Americans.
This project is an example of 东精影业 惭ā苍辞补’s goals of (PDF), (PDF) and (PDF), three of four goals identified in the (PDF), updated in December 2020.
—By Marc Arakaki