2015 Hawai’i Community College graduates. Hawai’i CC file photo.
Hawai’i Community College’s Manono campus will celebrate its 75th anniversary with its Spring 2016 graduating class, while Hawai’i CC-Pālamanui celebrates the conclusion to its first year.
Hilo’s graduation ceremony will take place on Friday, May 13, followed by Kona’s ceremony on Saturday, May 14.
In East Hawai’i, the commencement ceremony will be held at the Edith Kanaka’ole Multi-Purpose Stadium from 7 p.m. to 9 p.m. Doors will open to the public at 6 p.m.
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The West Hawai’i commencement ceremony will be held at the Hawai’i CC-Pālamanui campus in North Kona at 4 p.m. Doors will open to the public at 6 p.m. A cake and punch reception will follow.
Tickets are not required to either ceremony.
Hawai’i CC was founded in 1941 as the Hawai’i Vocational School with five programs and 183 students. Since, the college has grown, offering degrees and certificates in 26 programs and has about 3,000 students.
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The graduation ceremony in Hilo will feature the presentation of a special kāhili, or feather standard, constructed by Hawai‘i CC faculty, staff, and students in honor of the 75th anniversary.
Between the two campuses, Hawai‘i CC will award 995 degrees and certificates for Summer 2015, Fall 2015, and Spring 2016.
The student speaker at the Hilo commencement will be Denae Aulelei Hulali Pai. She will receive degrees in Hawaiʻi Life Styles Hula and Hawaiian Studies. Pai was born into a fishing family and raised in Honokōhauʻiki. She attended Kula Kaiapuni ʻo Kona from first grade and then graduated from the Hawaiian Immersion School Ke Kula ‘o Ehunuikaimalino in 2009.
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The keynote speaker in East Hawai‘i is Dr. Lehua Mark Veincent, known affectionately by many as “Kumu Lehua.” Dr. Veincent is on the vanguard of Hawaiian language and cultural education.
At Hawai‘i CC-Pālamanui, the student speaker will be Ian Shortridge, a Hawaiian Studies major who is also a member of the Hawai‘i CC’s Alpha Psi Epsilon Chapter of the Phi Theta Kappa International Honor Society. He earned his Liberal Arts associate degree in Spring 2015, and this spring, he will complete his Hawaiian Studies associate degree.
The keynote speaker at Pālamanui will be Matthew Lynch, the first Coordinator of the Sustainability Program for the 10-campus University of Hawai‘i system.
The University of Hawai’i at Hilo commencement ceremony will be held on Saturday, May 14 at 9 a.m.
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