STEMworks Quarterly Updates
Ke Alahele Fundraiser on August 23
Join us for the MEDB Ke Alahele Education Fund Dinner on August 23, 2025, at the Hyatt Regency Maui Resort in Kā‘anapali. The evening kicks off with a reception and silent auction at 4:30 p.m., followed by dinner at 6:00 p.m. This event provides an opportunity for our community to come together, celebrate the continued resilience in the West Maui community, and champion the STEM educational initiatives critical to the future prosperity of Maui Nui. Proceeds from the evening will support MEDB’s STEM programs, helping students from kindergarten to career develop the skills to thrive and contribute to a resilient Maui.
Special room rates for guests are available at the Hyatt Regency Maui Resort, or a complimentary shuttle from Central Maui and back is available (reservation required). For more information, visit medbpathways.org.
Healthcare Career Exploration Events
In April, STEMworks partnered with Maui Health and Kaiser Permanente to offer 4 healthcare career exploration days for 217 middle and high school students. The medical professionals leading the activities introduced the students to a wide variety of specialties, including emergency medicine, surgery, cardiology, radiology, orthopedics, and obstetrics. From practicing CPR to seeing a living human heart using ultrasound technology, the students were able to engage in fun and educational activities while learning about the critical skills and technologies used in each specialty. Thanks to the success of the events this spring, plans are already underway for more healthcare exploration events in October 2025 and March 2026.
Agriculture Business and Technology Interns
This summer, STEMworks has a cohort of 19 agriculture interns placed with 15 host companies across Maui County, with 11 of the interns on Molokai and 8 on Maui Island. From processing livestock to farming pineapple to learning about land management techniques, the interns are being introduced to a wide variety of agriculture career pathways with something for each student's unique interests and skills.
They will finish the 6-week paid program in July. Join us for a virtual internship showcase on July 22 to learn more about their exciting work! Register for the event here: http://bit.ly/Summer25AgInternShowcase
Innovation Internship Program
With the largest cohort of innovation interns in the program's history, STEMworks has placed 105 high school and college students with 42 host companies across the state this summer for 6 weeks of paid work-based learning. Focusing on a wide range of STEM skills, including GIS, AI, engineering, aquaculture, creative media, healthcare, and aerospace technology, the interns will work on projects with their mentors while also receiving support and professional development from STEMworks staff and other STEM industry experts.
Code.org Teacher Training
As Code.org's Hawaii regional partner, STEMworks has been busy this summer training computer science teachers in preparation for the upcoming school year. In June, 9 Hawaiʻi high school teachers traveled to Alaska for a computer science workshop with 5 Alaska teachers, including teachers from rural areas with primarily Native Alaskan students. After returning from Alaska, we've offered additional workshops for elementary and middle school computer science teachers as well as a workshop on Code.org's brand new curriculum, AI Foundations, which blends core computer science concepts with AI, data science, and cybersecurity. In total, STEMworks has trained 28 Hawaiʻi teachers in computer science this summer across all grade levels.
Summer Camps
Camp Kauwela, a three-day camp that highlights the connections between STEM and Hawaiian knowledge and culture, welcomed 20 local middle school students to the Kihei Tech Park during the first week of June. The campers got to meet many of the scientists and engineers working for companies in Kihei, including Privateer, Pacific Disaster Center, ʻĀina Archeology, and Alpha Construction. The students also got to visit the summit of Haleakalā to learn about astronomy from experts with the UH Institute for Astronomy, the National Solar Observatory, Las Cumbres Observatory, the National Park Service, and ʻOhana Kilo Hōkū. On the final day of camp, students travelled to Maui's west side for activities led by the Ritz-Carlton's team of Hawaiian culture experts.
Our STEMworks AFTERschool (SWAS) program also offered summer activities in June, with a robotics camp and two media camps at Maui Waena Intermediate and 10 different STEM camps at Pukalani Elementary, including camps on robotics, art and design, engineering, coding, and 3D printing. In total, 167 students participated in our SWAS summer camps this year. If you have a child in any of our participating SWAS schools (Iao Intermediate, Kalama Intermediate, Kaunakakai Elementary, Lokelani Intermediate, Maui Waena Intermediate, Molokai Middle, Princess Nāhiʻenaʻena Elementary, and Pukalani Elementary), don't forget to ask their teacher about how to sign up for SWAS in August!