Our Project in Hawaii's Intertidal (OPIHI) is a year-long undergraduate research program that immerses students in authentic intertidal and subtidal research experiences. OPIHI utilizes a unique nested structure that allows for the scaling of both research and undergraduate mentoring and facilitates collaborations. A large quantity of scientifically rigorous data is collected from challenging environments in a comparatively short amount of time—while maintaining the structures needed to support novice scientists through the complete scientific process. OPIHI's goals include (1) to collaborate with researchers and community groups engaged in the study and management of Hawai‘i’s coastal ecosystems, (2) to mentor the next generation of community ecologists by engaging them in authentic, place-based research, and (3) to increase knowledge of the intertidal and shallow coastal ecosystem by using student data in scientific products.