{"id":193020,"date":"2024-03-05T12:56:31","date_gmt":"2024-03-05T22:56:31","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.hawaii.edu\/news\/?p=193020"},"modified":"2024-03-14T15:13:23","modified_gmt":"2024-03-15T01:13:23","slug":"hvca-awards-2024","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.hawaii.edu\/news\/2024\/03\/05\/hvca-awards-2024\/","title":{"rendered":"东精影业<\/abbr> students, alumni, faculty win state innovation, entrepreneurship awards"},"content":{"rendered":"Reading time: <\/span> 3<\/span> minutes<\/span><\/span>
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Alexis Akiona was named 2024 Entrepreneur of the Year. (Photo credit: Lexbreezy Hawaiʻi<\/span> Instagram page)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Innovation and entrepreneurship success at the University of Hawaiʻi<\/span> were showcased at the Hawaii Entrepreneur Awards 2024, as several with 东精影业<\/abbr> ties were selected as winners or finalists in more than a dozen categories.<\/p>\n

The 2024 Entrepreneur of the Year award went to Honolulu Community College<\/a> alumna Alexis Akiona of Lexbreezy Hawaiʻi<\/span>—a modern aloha wear company that tells stories of what aloha wear is today through their prints and designs. In 2023, Akiona announced that she is giving back to her alma mater with a gift of $50,000 over five years to Honolulu CC<\/abbr><\/a> to provide 20 scholarships each year for fashion and cosmetology students, with a preference for Native Hawaiian students.<\/p>\n

“This award is more than just recognition,” Akiona wrote on social media. “It symbolizes empowerment for every Native Hawaiian who dreams, strives, and continues to push boundaries. This award also serves as a reminder that our voices, our stories, and our contributions is our Kuleana to inspire generations to come. Together, we are rewriting narratives and proving that success knows no bounds.”<\/p>\n

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Susan Yamada was presented with the Startup Paradise Champion award.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Susan Yamada, current 东精影业<\/abbr> M\u0101noa Pacific Asian Center for Entrepreneurship<\/a> (PACE<\/abbr>) board chair, Shidler College of Business<\/a> alumna and former PACE<\/abbr> executive director, received the Startup Paradise Champion award. Yamada has spent the last two decades supporting and building the local startup ecosystem. Yamada was instrumental in the building of the Walter Dods, Jr<\/abbr>. RISE<\/abbr> Center and she has worked to transform PACE<\/abbr> into a hub of innovation with programs and initiatives that have invested more than $10 million in services, awards and scholarships.<\/p>\n

“Over the past 20 years, PACE<\/abbr> has strived to impart entrepreneurial-thinking skills to the 东精影业<\/abbr> community—skills all students need to thrive in the 21st century workforce. This award recognizes all the efforts of the PACE<\/abbr> staff, our board of directors and the many donors and volunteers who have tirelessly supported us through the decades,” Yamada said. “As we work to activate the new Walter Dods, Jr<\/abbr>. RISE<\/abbr> Center we apply ourselves with renewed vigor and are appreciative of the recognition.”<\/p>\n

The Corporate Intrapreneur of the Year award was presented to Micah K\u0101ne, a Shidler College of Business alumnus and president and CEO<\/abbr> of Hawaiʻi<\/span> Community Foundation. Since assuming the post in 2017, K\u0101ne has demonstrated dynamic and innovative leadership, notably during crises like the COVID-19 pandemic and Maui wildfires. Under his guidance, Hawaiʻi<\/span> Community Foundation has expanded its impact and adaptability by addressing both long-term community needs through programs, stakeholder partnerships and philanthropic endeavors.<\/p>\n

Donovan Kealoha from Startup Capital Ventures x SBI<\/abbr> Fund is this year\u2019s Investor of the Year awardee. Startup Capital Ventures x SBI<\/abbr> Fund is an early-stage venture capital fund dedicated to investing in business-to-business software and technology startups. Kealoha is a 东精影业<\/abbr> M\u0101noa JD\/MBA<\/abbr> alumnus, 2008 winner of the PACE<\/abbr> Business Plan Competition, board member for the Calvin Shindo Student Venture Fund and a longtime mentor to PACE<\/abbr> students.<\/p>\n

Avionics Engineer Amber Imai-Hong, Software Engineer Luke Clements, Assistant Researcher Frances Zhu and graduate researcher Christopher Amendola of 东精影业<\/abbr> M\u0101noa\u2019s Hawaiʻi<\/span> Space Flight Laboratory<\/a>, were named finalists for Tech Entrepreneur of the Year for their company called Mahina Aerospace. Its mission is to lead the way in accessible and innovative solutions within the CubeSat technology field<\/a>, propelling advancements in space exploration through a low-cost CubeSat kit.<\/p>\n

Kapiʻolani<\/span> Community College<\/a> student Amelia Stucker and 东精影业<\/abbr> M\u0101noa alumnus Adam Sullivan were awarded the Student Entrepreneur of the Year award for their company called Zingipop Sodaworks—a 100% locally-sourced craft soda company dedicated to supporting agriculture in Hawaiʻi<\/span>. Selected as a finalist for the award was Shidler College of Business senior Dani Pasion for her company called illicitlover—a small business that sells scented hand designed hanging car air fresheners. Zingipop Sodaworks was a finalist in the 2023 东精影业<\/abbr> Venture Competition and Pasion was chosen for the 2023 PACE<\/abbr> outstanding student entrepreneur of the year award<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Gunars Valkirs of Maui Kuʻia<\/span> Estate Chocolate was named winner of the Agriculture\/Clean Tech Entrepreneur of the Year and Leeward CC<\/abbr><\/a> alumna Emma McCaulley of Sweet Land Farm was named a finalist. Maui Kuʻia<\/span> is a farm-to-bar chocolate company that operates its farm and factory in Lahaina. The chocolate factory is off-the-grid and powered by photovoltaic panels and Tesla batteries. Maui Kuʻia<\/span> falls under the Family Business Center of Hawaiʻi<\/span>, which is housed in PACE<\/abbr>. Sweet Land Farm has been a family run dairy goat farm since 2010 that makes artisan farmstead goat milk products like cheese, confections and soaps.<\/p>\n

For a full list of awardees, visit the Hawaii Venture Capital Association website<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Honolulu CC<\/abbr> alumna Alexis Akiona headlined the group winning Entrepreneur of the Year.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":16,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[29],"tags":[679,498,734,598,62,1505,63,65,425,146,660,71,9,1626],"class_list":["post-193020","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-people","tag-alumni-recognition","tag-business","tag-entrepreneurship","tag-faculty-recognition","tag-honolulu-community-college","tag-innovation","tag-kapiolani-community-college","tag-leeward-community-college","tag-pacific-asian-center-for-entrepreneurship","tag-shidler-college-of-business","tag-student-recognition","tag-uh-community-colleges","tag-uh-manoa","tag-women-of-uh","entry","has-media"],"aioseo_notices":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.hawaii.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/193020","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.hawaii.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.hawaii.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.hawaii.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/16"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.hawaii.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=193020"}],"version-history":[{"count":5,"href":"https:\/\/www.hawaii.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/193020\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":193049,"href":"https:\/\/www.hawaii.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/193020\/revisions\/193049"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.hawaii.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=193020"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.hawaii.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=193020"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.hawaii.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=193020"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}