BYU–Hawaii News

If given the chance to travel to an island in the South Pacific, most would immediately think of it as a vacation. For students majoring in biology, however, it was anything but a holiday. Read Full Story

President H. Ross Workman, the President of the Laie temple, began his devotional address with the story of a young man preparing to graduate. President Workman’s August 16th devotional was entitled, “They Rejected the Heavenly Gift, Would You?’ The young man wanted a sports car for his graduation present. When his graduation day came, he was expecting the present because of his father’s wealth. He opened a small box and saw a bible. He rejected the gift from his father and was angry with him because he did not get what he wanted. He had not seen his father for many years and had a family of his own. His father passed away and he went back to the house. He saw the Bible that he had been given and noticed that Matthew 7:11 had been highlighted. A key to the sports car he had asked for then fell out of the Bible. He had rejected the gift that he had wanted without knowing it. He had felt a tremendous amount of regret because he had also rejected his father. Read Full Story

Ronald L. Johnson’s August devotional was entitled, "What Part Will You Play on The Stage of Life?" Johnson, and his wife are service volunteers at BYU–Hawaii. He began his devotional by speaking about the peace that Christ brings to people’s lives. He said, “The gospel of Christ is the gospel of peace.” Read Full Story

Students are following the prophecy to “establish peace internationally,” given by David O. McKay, as the enrollment for the International Peace Building Certificate (IPB) increases. Students of all majors are looking for ways to further build peace, and this certification is preparing them for that. Read Full Story

Students crowded into the McKay Auditorium for Elder Richard Draper’s talk, entitled, "My Five Top Least Favorite Scriptures and What They Teach Me." The July 26 devotional was so full in the auditorium that more than 200 students had to watch from the Aloha Center Ballroom since the Cannon Activities Center is closed for renovations. Draper is a service missionary who teaches Religion on the BYU-Hawaii campus. Draper taught for 22 years at the BYU Provo Department of Ancient Scripture. He is the author of 7 books and over a hundred articles. Read Full Story

A group of BYU–Hawaii students spent a recent Saturday morning playing games with and getting to know residents of a local assistant living community. The event, organized by BYU–Hawaii Student Association (BYUHSA), brought a large group of students to the Ponds at Punaluu for a morning of bingo, a talent show and visiting. With more than 25 students showing up on a Saturday morning in the summer term, the activity was considered a success. Read Full Story

The skies were clear, the water was calm, the crew was ready, and it was time. The 57-foot, nine-ton traditional Hawaiian voyaging canoe Iosepa was put to sea once again, to fulfill its purpose as a floating classroom on May 2, 2011, amongst a crowd of community members, students, faculty and others. Read Full Story

Elder Jerry Wilson’s devotional entitled, “The Character of God,” focused on the characteristics of Heavenly Father and the “Lectures on Faith.” Elder Wilson began his July 5th devotional by advising students to, “be careful of what you allow in your knowledge bases, from the world…Please know that you have plenty of examples of those who sought advanced degrees all the while deepening their faith in God in the process.” Read Full Story

Adding practical experience to classroom learning is a critical feature to a total education at BYU–Hawaii. In a genuine effort to reach this ideal, the Political Science Department and gracious supporters of Brigham Young University-Hawaii offered political science majors a chance to intern with various government offices and ministries of the Cook Islands, part of BYU–Hawaii’s target area. Students gained experience while participating government offices received quality work, building key relationships for further learning and employment opportunities in the future. Read Full Story

A piece of paper taped to the far wall of the BYU–Hawaii University Archives office can easily be overlooked upon entering. To the senior missionary couples and students who have been working tirelessly since 2007, however, the small printed scripture on this paper encompasses their motivation for spending hundreds of tedious hours scanning, cropping, and sorting thousands of records. The scripture urges, "Brethren, shall we not go on in so great a cause?" (D&C 128:22). The great cause in which these individuals are taking part includes digitizing almost 120,000 labor records documenting the migration of each Filipino that came to work on the Hawaiian sugar plantations during the early 1900s. The digital collection makes it possible for users to access information such as name, age, gender, date of arrival and/or departure, and plantation assignment on workers and their dependents, according to the collection description. Read Full Story