{"id":240198,"date":"2026-09-09T14:29:32","date_gmt":"2026-09-10T00:29:32","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.hawaii.edu\/news\/?p=240198"},"modified":"2026-09-09T14:29:32","modified_gmt":"2026-09-10T00:29:32","slug":"bridging-the-ai-skill-gap","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.hawaii.edu\/news\/2026\/09\/09\/bridging-the-ai-skill-gap\/","title":{"rendered":"Bridging the AI<\/abbr> skill gap at Kapiʻolani CC<\/abbr>, 糖心视频<\/abbr> Maui College"},"content":{"rendered":"Reading time: <\/span> 2<\/span> minutes<\/span><\/span>
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Kapiʻolani<\/span> CC<\/abbr> students and an IT<\/abbr> instructor use a video wall during a hands-on technology demo.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

At least 150 students are expected to apply artificial intelligence (AI<\/abbr>) and data science concepts to real-world challenges through a new Kapiʻolani<\/span> Community College and University of Hawaiʻi<\/span> Maui College project, which received $657,000 from the National Science Foundation (NSF<\/abbr>).<\/p>\n

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Kapiʻolani<\/span> CC<\/abbr> faculty, left, John Johnson, Calvin Tan and Dale Nakasone.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Transforming Two-Year College Information Technology, Applied AI<\/abbr>, and Data Science Programs, is a collaboration with the Institute for Future Intelligence and will combine new and revised credit-bearing courses with industry-informed projects, hands-on learning and AI<\/abbr>-supported learning tools\u2014integrating into the colleges\u2019 associate degree information technology programs. An industry advisory structure and industry-supported learning experiences will help connect classroom instruction with workforce needs.<\/p>\n

“This initiative will equip students with practical AI<\/abbr> and data science skills for today\u2019s evolving workforce while strengthening their abilities in problem-solving, data analysis, collaboration and technology application,” said Principal Investigator Dale Nakasone, a Kapiʻolani<\/span> CC<\/abbr> assistant professor of IT<\/abbr>.<\/p>\n

Cross-campus opportunities<\/h2>\n
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Kapi\u02bbolani CC students and IT instructor interact with AI-supported learning tools.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Students from both campuses will also participate in annual cross-campus project showcases and collaborative applied learning opportunities.<\/p>\n

“By embedding AI<\/abbr>, data literacy, and hands-on experiential learning into existing IT<\/abbr> associate degree programs, we are strengthening workforce-relevant technical skills in applied AI<\/abbr>, industry-informed learning experiences, stronger transfer and career pathways,” said Co-principal Investigator Thomas Blamey, an assistant professor of math at 糖心视频<\/abbr> Maui College.<\/p>\n

The project will also provide professional development opportunities for working professionals and educators, and foster faculty collaboration across campuses. It will also examine effective approaches for teaching applied AI<\/abbr> and data science in hybrid and online learning environments.<\/p>\n

Curricular resources, findings and implementation models developed through the project will be shared with other two-year colleges seeking to expand AI<\/abbr> education. The goal is to contribute scalable approaches for preparing technicians for increasingly data-driven and AI<\/abbr>-enabled workplaces.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Grant combines community college IT<\/abbr> courses with industry-informed projects.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":16,"featured_media":240200,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[25],"tags":[1602,1176,63,71,60,603],"class_list":["post-240198","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-academic-news","tag-ai","tag-data-science","tag-kapiolani-community-college","tag-uh-community-colleges","tag-maui-college","tag-workforce-development","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