{"id":234118,"date":"2026-05-12T13:59:43","date_gmt":"2026-05-12T23:59:43","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.hawaii.edu\/news\/?p=234118"},"modified":"2026-05-12T13:59:43","modified_gmt":"2026-05-12T23:59:43","slug":"kapiolani-cc-surf-2026","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.hawaii.edu\/news\/2026\/05\/12\/kapiolani-cc-surf-2026\/","title":{"rendered":"Undergraduate research soars at Kapiʻolani CC<\/abbr> SURF<\/abbr> 2026"},"content":{"rendered":"Reading time: <\/span> 2<\/span> minutes<\/span><\/span>
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SURF<\/abbr> 2026 at Kapiʻolani<\/span> CC<\/abbr>.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Kapiʻolani<\/span> Community College\u2019s 2026 Student Undergraduate Research Fair (SURF<\/abbr>)<\/a>, held May 4\u20136, brought together more than 750 attendees. SURF<\/abbr> 2026 featured 350 students delivering more than 230 presentations across disciplines such as healthcare, Native Hawaiian studies, sustainability and STEM<\/abbr>, highlighting undergraduate research and creative works.<\/p>\n

“Presenting at SURF<\/abbr> gave me the opportunity to show others how research broadens your perspective and helps you build your own framework for approaching complex problems,” said Kapiʻolani<\/span> CC<\/abbr> Natural Science major Sophia Kihei. “I was able to socialize and connect with others from different disciplines and gain insights I wouldn’t have developed without this event.”<\/p>\n

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More than 230 undergraduate presentations spanning nearly every academic discipline.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

She added that SURF<\/abbr> helped her to earn scholarships and led her to present at national conferences.<\/p>\n

Developing kuleana<\/h2>\n

According to Chancellor Misaki Takabayashi, SURF<\/abbr> also reflects Kapiʻolani<\/span> CC<\/abbr>\u2019s strength as a Hawaiian place of learning.<\/p>\n

“We are proud to see students across disciplines developing the confidence, critical thinking and sense of kuleana (responsibility) needed to contribute meaningfully to their communities, Hawaiʻi,<\/span> and the world,” Takabayashi said. “As we establish the Māunulau<\/span> Office of Experiential Learning and Workforce Development, Kapiʻolani<\/span> CC<\/abbr> is also intentionally strengthening the connection between experiential learning and workforce preparation, ensuring students can translate these meaningful academic experiences into future career and community impact.”<\/p>\n

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Early college students from Radford High School presented their research at Kapiʻolani<\/span> CC<\/abbr>‘s SURF<\/abbr>.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

The research fair has become one of Kapiʻolani<\/span> CC<\/abbr>\u2019s signature academic events, helping students build professional skills while opening pathways to internships, scholarships, transfer opportunities and conference presentations.<\/p>\n

“SURF<\/abbr> demonstrates that undergraduate research can happen across every discipline and at every stage of a student\u2019s academic journey,” said Director of Undergraduate Research Experiences Li-Anne Delavega. “Students gain confidence in their ideas, strengthen communication and critical thinking skills, and discover their values and strengths and how they want to contribute to their communities.”<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Student research experiences strengthen critical thinking for real-world application.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":16,"featured_media":234128,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[25],"tags":[63,1579,71,1450],"class_list":["post-234118","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-academic-news","tag-kapiolani-community-college","tag-research","tag-uh-community-colleges","tag-undergraduate","entry","has-media"],"aioseo_notices":[],"aioseo_head":"\n\t\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t