Graduate Student Research Symposium 2026

This study proposes to explore the role of Indigenous knowledge in fostering personal empowerment and success among Hawaiian Students at Brigham Young University-Hawaiʻi. Using a qualitative narrative research design, the study will examine how graduates and students perceive the impact of the Hawaiian Studies curriculum on their professional development. Drawing on personal positionality as a former underachieving student turned professor, the research highlights the significance of ʻike within a modern university setting, hoping to transform educational practices by prioritizing Indigenous ways of knowing and learning.