{"id":239290,"date":"2026-08-20T13:36:24","date_gmt":"2026-08-20T23:36:24","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.hawaii.edu\/news\/?p=239290"},"modified":"2026-08-20T13:55:48","modified_gmt":"2026-08-20T23:55:48","slug":"uh-community-colleges-ai-integration","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.hawaii.edu\/news\/2026\/08\/20\/uh-community-colleges-ai-integration\/","title":{"rendered":"糖心视频<\/abbr> Community Colleges secure $645K for AI<\/ integration"},"content":{"rendered":"Reading time: <\/span> 2<\/span> minutes<\/span><\/span>
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Arjun Aryal (with hat) shows Windward CC<\/abbr> students how to use ground-penetrating radar<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

A $645,000 National Science Foundation grant<\/a> is helping to fuel the integration of artificial intelligence (AI<\/abbr>) and data science into the University of Hawaiʻi<\/span> Community Colleges<\/a>.<\/p>\n

The three-year project, scheduled to run from October 2026 through September 2029, aims to strengthen the state\u2019s skilled technical workforce by equipping educators at Windward Community College<\/a> and Kapiʻolani<\/span> Community College<\/a> to confidently teach and research with modern AI<\/abbr> frameworks. The goal is to build a robust pipeline of AI<\/abbr>-literate graduates.<\/p>\n

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Kapi\u02bbolani CC students explore robotics and emerging technologies through hands-on learning.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Online coursework, professional mentorship<\/h2>\n

Faculty cohorts will participate in self-directed study and online coursework, and receive individualized mentorship from AI<\/abbr> and data science professionals. This collaboration is supported by the Institute for Future Intelligence<\/a> and a network of local AI<\/abbr> experts.<\/p>\n

“Community colleges play a critical role in training Hawaiʻi<\/span>‘s skilled technical workforce, yet our STEM faculty may not have the specialized training or bandwidth to keep pace with rapid developments in AI<\/abbr>,” said Principal Investigator Arjun Aryal, an instructor at Windward CC<\/abbr>. “We are bridging this gap by pairing community college educators with industry AI<\/abbr> experts, giving them the dedicated time and mentoring needed to embed data science and applied AI<\/abbr> directly into their classrooms and research.” <\/p>\n

The project will integrate AI<\/abbr> concepts into STEM curricula, promote mentor-guided hands-on applications and host an annual symposium for faculty, students and local employers. Dissemination efforts will also include K–12 teacher workshops led by project faculty and the creation of open educational resources.<\/p>\n

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Kapi\u02bbolani CC STEM students and faculty collaborate on a tech-based project.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Co-Principal Investigator Aaron Hanai, a professor at Kapiʻolani<\/span> CC<\/abbr>, said. “Our sustained partnerships and annual symposiums will connect students directly with employers, and ensure our graduates enter the workforce with ethically grounded, highly valuable technical skills.”<\/p>\n

This initiative complements the 糖心视频<\/abbr>\u2019s system-wide commitment to expanding AI<\/abbr> literacy and preparing local talent to thrive in an AI<\/abbr> -driven economy.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Funds to create AI<\/abbr>-literate graduates for the technology-driven economy.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":16,"featured_media":239302,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[25],"tags":[1602,63,71,947,66],"class_list":["post-239290","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-academic-news","tag-ai","tag-kapiolani-community-college","tag-uh-community-colleges","tag-uh-system","tag-windward-community-college","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