National Transfer Student Week culminated last week at Kauaʻi Community College with a community Transfer Fair attended, highlighting opportunities for students to continue their education and earn bachelor’s degrees while remaining on Kauaʻi.
Centered on the theme “Charting Your Huakaʻi — The Kaʻao Voyage,” the event welcomed more than 70 attendees who embarked on a journey to explore their educational options.
Participants received maps guiding them through their journey, exploring activities and stations where they could connect with representatives from 4-year University of Hawaiʻi campuses; learn about online, in-person and hybrid bachelor’s degree programs; and hear firsthand experiences from current transfer students and alumni.
The fair also featured opportunities to create custom T-shirts in the Distance Education classroom, now known as LINK, as well as enjoy lunch and live music and capture memories at a photo booth.
Among the students welcoming attendees was Malia Hoʻokano, a business student at University of Hawaiʻi-West Oʻahu who transferred from Kauaʻi Community College after earning an associate degree in liberal arts.
Hoʻokano is an example of how students can pursue a bachelor’s degree online while remaining on Kauaʻi and balancing work and school. She works at Kauaʻi Community College while maintaining a full-time course schedule through the West Oʻahu online program.
“When I first started school, I didnʻt have any transportation; I was in a remote location, and I pretty much started with nothing, and now here I am,” Hoʻokano said.
She might not have had the opportunity to continue her education without the flexibility of online learning.
The University’s distance education opportunities are making bachelor’s degree pathways more accessible to Kauaʻi residents.
University Center Education Specialist Rhonda Liu reported that 199 Kauaʻi Community College students enrolled in 60 different University of Hawaiʻi distance education programs during the 2025-26 academic year, and 42 students transferred from Kauaʻi into University of Hawaiʻi distance education programs.
“Starting at Kauaʻi Community College is an affordable option,” Liu said. “It prepares students to transfer smoothly to a bachelor’s degree, with online UH bachelor’s degree pathways available while students remain on Kauaʻi.”
For other students, transferring means combining the affordability and convenience of completing coursework locally with the opportunity to pursue specialized programs at another campus.
Leah Guerrero, a liberal arts student at Kauaʻi Community College, plans to transfer to University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa’s Dental Hygiene program. She appreciates being able to complete prerequisite courses on Kauaʻi before transferring, helping her save money along the way.
“Having the transfer fair here at Kauaʻi [Community College] allows students to see their different options and what they might take for their pathway when they do transfer, and I think itʻs really cool that not everything has to be online, but we can meet in-person with these programs,” Guerrero said.
This year marked the first time Kauaʻi Community College expanded its National Transfer Student Week activities beyond the Transfer Fair itself.
Additional activities included a kick-off event, campus spirit activities and a talk-story gathering with current distance education students. During the gathering, students and employees had the opportunity to learn the traditional Hawaiian art of string figures, known as hei.
The week’s activities highlighted the many pathways available to Kauaʻi students and reinforced that beginning at Kauaʻi Community College does not mean limiting future educational opportunities.
Whether students choose an online bachelor’s degree, in-person program or hybrid pathway, they can find opportunities to continue their education and pursue their goals.
Students made custom t-shirts while exploring the distance education classroom, now known as LINK. (Courtesy Photo: Kauaʻi Community College)- Students learned hei at a transfer student mixer earlier in the week. (Courtesy Photo: Kauaʻi Community College)
