President John S.K. Kauwe III
Thank you, Kelly, and thank you, Brent. Thanks to all of you for the work that you’ve done on aligning our curriculum with the direction of the Board of Trustees and allowing us to serve our students effectively and again, aloha.
I want to share with you again how grateful I am for your love and prayers on our behalf. Kelly said, “Welcome Home,” and for the record I’ve been here the whole time. I spent 5 weeks in Utah getting radiation treatments, but other than that we’ve been home. But I’ll tell you that when Elder Ronald Rasband put me on the injured reserve, he was pretty clear that I shouldn’t just show up at a devotional or anything at all. I was benched pretty hard. I’ll tell you that if we take that analogy further, I was in the training room, working as hard as I could to get back with you and cheering for you every single step of the way. So, we’re just really, really grateful to be back. President Nelson has challenged us to "seek and expect miracles",[1] and that’s exactly what my family has done and what you have all done on our behalf, and we have experienced the blessing of following that prophetic counsel over and over and over.
I know better now that our Heavenly Father is truly bound when we do what He says,[2] and that He does answer the prayers of His children. In His own time and way, but we do get beautiful answers.[3]
Many of you have asked, “President, how are you? How are you feeling?” And I’m going to take a little bit of time to just give you an update on that. But, first of all, if you ask me that in person, I might respond to you and say, “Well, how comfortable are you talking about my bowel movements?” And that might end the conversation. I’m feeling quite good, quite strong. I’m exercising. I’m able to work hard throughout the day. But, the radiation side effects are still with me so there are some challenges. That’s basically the quick update. So, that’s kind of everything I can do to give you an update on how I’ve been doing.
So, it has been a little while since we shared a formal update, and it probably will be a little bit more time until we do that as well.
I have been feeling a little better each day, so I’m grateful to share that with you. In the last weeks, I see significant improvement that I’ve been wanting to see for months. So, that’s great as well. We recently got the last round of tests back from the first big screening and everything came back with no evidence of disease. We’re continuing to be in good shape there.
Once again, I know that the process of healing and getting back to you has been facilitated by the faith and prayers of you and many others, and I’m so grateful for that.
Today, I’ve asked Advancement Vice President Brooke Peterson share some of the incredible work that’s taking place in Career Services at BYU–Hawaii over the last year and a half.
Now, this work is closely connected to our mission to prepare disciples of Jesus Christ who will live and lead in the Asian Rim.[4] Career preparation is not separate from our mission, it’s central to it. In fact, the last time we had our Executive Committee here on campus together, we received very clear direction for the entire university that we focus on improving our career placement. Helping our students develop all the skills they need, to apply their education in meaningful ways, and become leaders who will bless their families, their communities, and the Church through that career placement. It’s a focus.
Brooke is going to talk to you a bit about how Career Services has been working closely with you, the faculty, to enhance the opportunities we have for our students to have a great internship and career opportunities. She is going to invite you to consider how each of you can expand on those efforts, so that all of our students have career placement as they graduate. I’ll now turn the time over to Brooke.
Brooke Peterson
Sisters and Brothers, aloha!
I’m grateful for the opportunity to share some of the remarkable work Career Services has accomplished in partnership with so many of you here today. Together, we are truly preparing students to live and lead in Oceania and the Asian Rim.[5]
As President Kauwe mentioned during this morning’s Ohana Meeting, one of our university goals is to have 100% positive career placement.[6] This means helping every student move into upwardly mobile employment, graduate school, or a position of meaningful leadership in their homes.
Reaching this goal will require all of us. Career preparation does not happen in silos or during a student’s final semester. It happens every day in your classrooms and labs, through academic exploration and research projects, and in mentoring relationships and student employment. Career Services helps extend this essential preparation into professional experiences, connections to internships, graduate school, and meaningful employment.
In early 2025, the Executive Committee counseled BYU–Hawaii to focus more intentionally on career placement and to consider hosting both area- and major-specific career conferences. Over the past 18 months, our faculty and Career Services have worked together to act on this counsel.
The early results are very encouraging.
2026 year-to-date compared to 2024, total internships are up nearly 30%.
And less than 20% of that increase comes from on-campus internships, which means more of our students are gaining experience with organizations and employers beyond the university.
We’re also seeing significant growth in internships throughout Asia and the Pacific. In 2024, the Yamagata Fund supported 93 student internships. This fund covers travel to and from students’ internship destination within Asia and the Pacific and a modest living stipend. So far this year, the Yamagata Fund has supported 146 student internships in 22 countries.
A 57% increase, with four months still to go.
These internship opportunities are helping students gain more than just work experience. They are building confidence, professional relationships, and a clearer vision of how their education can bless their families, communities, and the global Church — both now and in the future.
Last fall, Career Services partnered with the Philippines area presidency to host the first area-specific Career Conference.
During that time, more than 100 one-on-one interviews with 12 leading executives from companies in the Philippines took place. The conference resulted in multiple internship offers and a memorandum of understanding with a major organization within the Philippines.
One participating company, 917 Ventures, hired three BYU–Hawaii students that participated in the career fair with amazing opportunities in human resources, business management, and information technology.
These internships were a direct result of a focused partnership between the university, employers, and our students.
After the conference, one Filipino student shared, “I am speechless. I am not afraid of going home now.”
This perfectly captures the purpose of this work. We want students to see and know that they can live and lead in Asia and the Pacific prepared, confident, and capable of making meaningful contributions. We never want our students to fear returning home to the poverty that they may have left before coming to BYU–Hawaii — but to lead their families and their communities out of it.
In June, we hosted the Pacific Area Career Conference with Elder Taniela B. Wakolo of the Pacific Area presidency.
And this October, we’ll bring together organizations from Asia and Asia North. I would ask you to please encourage your students to participate. It is a meaningful experience that will change their lives. And if you can help us identify any organizations, alumni, or professionals we should consider building relationships with that will benefit our students, we would love to hear from you.
The Career Services team is also prepared to visit your classes. These visits can help students understand the many resources available to them, prepare for upcoming conferences, identify internships, and connect their academic learning with future opportunities.
We have seen the impact of this new approach in several academic programs already.
Earlier this year, Career Services and the Construction & Facilities Management program hosted the Managing Director of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints Meetinghouse and Facilities Division, or MFD, and JLL’s international CEO for a luncheon with more than 100 CFM students.
As a result of this luncheon and our partnership with MFD, five students participated in internships in Hong Kong, India, Papua New Guinea, and the Philippines. One of those students is Christian Tanicala from the Philippines.
Christian said this about his experience: “What I appreciate most is that I’m not just learning about Facilities Management in a classroom or a textbook—I’m seeing how it actually works in the field. I’m learning to look at buildings differently, to pay attention to the details, and to understand the systems behind them, and recognize how proper facilities management impacts the people who use these spaces every day.”[7]
Career Services worked with the Faculty of Sciences, and the Summer Premed Research Internship organization — founded by two BYU Alumni — to provide meaningful hands-on experiences for five students planning to attend medical school. The organization paired students with expert clinicians, physicians, and researchers affiliated with the University of Hawaii, the University of Utah, Dartmouth, Harvard, and American Samoa Department of Health.
Across campus, faculty are helping our students:
- participate in mentored research and scientific discoveries
- submit proposals to industry conferences and case competitions.
- participate in program-specific business trips that lead to internships.
- engage in unique experiences beyond the classroom.
- and create online career expos aimed at connecting students from a specific geography to real opportunities.
Your efforts are changing the trajectory of our students’ lives. Thank you.
As a campus ohana, we’ve been challenged to think deeply about how we can prepare students to live and lead in Oceania and the Asian Rim.[8] Academic learning is essential, but students also need experience, mentorship, and the confidence to apply what they have learned.
Together, we can help every BYU–Hawaii student leave with more than just a degree. By offering a meaningful capstone experience, we can prepare them with the confidence and relationships they need in order to live and lead throughout Oceania and the Asian Rim — successfully.[9]
As we look ahead, I invite each of you to continue working closely with Career Services.
Please invite us into your classes. Encourage your students to use our resources. And when you identify alumni, employers, or professionals who could hire, mentor, or host one of our students, please help us open that door.
Your relationships and influence have already opened many, many doors of opportunity for our students.
Thank you for all that you do to support our students, and your continued partnership in this important work.
I know that Jesus Christ stands beside us as we work, and He will help us. I would like to leave you with a short video highlighting some of our students and alumni, Genuine Gold, living and leading in Oceania and the Asian Rim.[10]
VIDEO
President John S.K. Kauwe III
Thank you, Brooke, and thank you to your team for putting that together. I hope this video reminds us that while these goals and these numbers are important, our goal of 100% placement, they’re really about ministering to the one. And I’m certain that you recognized those students. It’s one of the beautiful things about this campus. It’s that you know your students, you know their names, you know what their weaknesses and strengths are and you know how to prepare them for their future.
So, I just want to encourage you to continue to see how wonderful the fruits of your efforts are and consider how you can each time you invite Career Services into your classroom, or into your mentored research space, that you can encourage your students to pursue opportunities, share a professional connections, expand their vision, lift their sights, their view of who they are and who they can become so they can see what they can achieve through their education and through the blessing of being at BYU–Hawaii.
So, as faculty here, you have a sacred stewardship. You know this. Your employment was specifically approved by the First Presidency of the Church. You have been entrusted with the education, spiritual and secular, of this rising generation. I am so grateful for the care and effort that you make in this stewardship. Each of you is hired to elevate the reach and the impact of this institution to fulfill prophecies that are associated with this place and with our students. It is a blessing each day to see how effective you already are in accomplishing this great work. It is a blessing to do everything I can to facilitate your success as we work together unified to accomplish God's will.
I share my testimony that this university was established under the direction of our Heavenly Father and our Savior, Jesus Christ. It is a sacred place where His work is accomplished for His beloved children. I have a testimony of our Heavenly Father and our Savior, Jesus Christ, Their love for you and Their love for our students. I express my love and gratitude for them and for you. In the name of Jesus Christ, amen.
Notes:
[1] Russell M. Nelson, “The Power of Spiritual Momentum,” Liahona, May 2022, 100
[2] Doctrine and Covenants 82:10
[3] Dieter F. Uchtdorf, “Continue in Patience,” Ensign or Liahona, May 2010, 58
[4] Brigham Young University–Hawaii Mission Statement
[5] Brigham Young University–Hawaii Mission Statement
[6] John S.K. Kauwe III, “Ohana Meeting Address,” [Brigham Young University–Hawaii meeting, August 28, 2026], speeches.byuh.edu
[7] Eli Samuel Holmes, “BYU–Hawaii Students Gain Real-World Experience Through Meetinghouse Facilities Department Internships," [Brigham Young University–Hawaii news, September 15, 2026], news.byuh.edu
[8] Brigham Young University–Hawaii Mission Statement
[9] Brigham Young University–Hawaii Mission Statement
[10] Brigham Young University–Hawaii Mission Statement