For those out there that saw my story, I hope that I made a strong connection with them.

I can tell that I am not the same sort of person that I was four years ago.

I'm grateful that like, you guys do provide this and you guys have this opportunity because now I have things that like, I could say that like, ‘Oh, I did this like in high school, and like, it was a part of this thing, and it was really cool because a lot of people saw it.’ Like, like – I'm gonna tell people about this.

[orchestral music] I just want to be someone that people can rely on, and like, just be like the first person people think of.

Like, oh, I need help with this.

Like, ‘I know Izzy.’ Like, ‘Izzy can help me.

I know Izzy knows.’ Like, I want to be that person.

My name is Izzy Rodriguez, and I just graduated from James Campbell High School.

I started doing all of this in middle school, and at that time, I was just looking for clubs to join, and like, things to do, and so I joined the Media Club at ‘Ewa Makai.

At ‘Ewa Makai at the time, our program was very serious about it, and then that was my thing for, like, the rest of as far as I can remember.

You remember that you did a student reflection for us?

Here, take a look at this. Oh!

Hit play on it.

Oh, I don't want.

Oh, I don't want to.

Ooh, ooh, I don't want to watch it.

Wait, aw.Hi, my name is Isabella Rodriguez from ‘Ewa Makai Middle School, coming to you from my home during the Coronavirus pandemic.

Dang, that was like in quarantine.

I was locked away.

This experience has taught me how to be responsible.

For example, I clean the floors, I wipe down counters, I cook my own food.

You know, basic chores and responsibilitie like, I felt like that was when like, all of like the momentum I built up doing all of this kind of stopped, and then it was kind of slow, so I was like, trying to keep it going.

And then, when my teacher offered me to do that, I was like, "This is my chance to like, have something to do."

So, I'm glad I kept that momentum going for myself.

I can't believe you guys made me look at that again.

[Laughs] I think in middle school it really dawned on me that like this could be a career for me.

And then in high school, my pathway into continuing that was through the academy system, and so I joined the Creative Media Academy because they had a pathway.

But the different academies, they're kind of shaped for like a career path.

So like, we have Academy of Creative Media, Health Sciences, and Business, and all that jazz.

And then you pick a pathway in the academy.

So, like, mine was like film and TV production.

We had a class, and one of like, our projects was to like, make a video for a Challenge.

Sometimes the smallest actions can have the biggest impact, but for Corey Major, a science teacher at James Campbell High School, allowing students to stay in his classroom during lunch isn't a small action at all.

I don't think it's a necessarily like, small action, but I think it like, helps with the sense of belonging.

It helps kids feel like they have a place where they can be.

I do know that like, some kids probably don't have any teachers that like, let them sit in their room for lunch, so they kind of feel lost and stuff.

And that's never like, a good feeling.

That's not like what I want for any of the kids here.

By opening his doors, Major creates more than just a space to eat, he creates a sense of belonging for his students.

I actually was really happy with how it turned out.

Whenever we do projects like this, I always like, I'm always afraid that like oh I, like, missed something or like, "I could have done this and that would have made it so much better."

And I probably did have thoughts like that when I was editing it.

But once you have something, it's like, oh, I was able to make something out of this.

I think I just gotta learn to trust myself more because you know, being able to just kind of be okay with the decisions you do make about certain things makes it a lot easier.

It's just a stressful experience, but I don't want it to be a stressful experience because I, I enjoy it, so I want it to be fun.

In the end, a supportive school culture isn't built by grand gestures; it's shaped by small, everyday moments of kindness, inclusion, and connection.

This is Izzy Rodriguez from James Campbell High School for HIKI NŌ, on PBS Hawai‘i.

As like, someone who wants to do this in the future and be in this setting, I'm grateful that like, you guys do provide this and you guys have this opportunity because now I have things that like, I could say that like, ‘Oh, I did this like in high school and like it was a part of this thing and it was really cool because a lot of people saw it.’ Like, I'm gonna tell people about this in college.

Like, I'm gonna be like, ‘Yeah, guess what I did.’ For most of her time in high school theater, Ayana Blazer worked behind the curtain.

She joined James Campbell High School's drama club in her junior year as stage manager for their production of Frozen.

But this year, Ayana took a leap.

I really enjoyed watching the actors, and I just felt like I wanted to be a part of that.

She auditioned for this year's production of Shrek the Musical and landed the role of Pinocchio.

It was a bold move and a brand-new beginning.

In the fall, I'm going to Chapman University, and I'll be majoring in creative producing.

I think producers go far too unnoticed, especially in like, the community of like, filmmakers, like my age and like, just now it's like oh, everyone wants to be a director.

Everyone wants to be a cinematographer.

Everyone wants to hold the camera, but nobody really wants to do the planning.

No one wants to figure all of that out.

It stresses people out, but like, these are necessary things, like, and even people who just like, have ideas, like people have really good ideas, but then like they do nothing with it.

And I'm like, that's a good idea.

Why, like, why don't we do something like this?

And they're like, ‘I don't know.

It's just a lot of work to get started.’ And I'm like, ‘Well, then let's get started,’ you know.

So, I think people, especially people, just need a little motivation.

Being someone who can do that, like, that sounds very fulfilling to me.

I kind of participated in media because I didn't really want to go into band or chorus.

So, I felt like, oh, let's do media.

Let's give media a try, and I'm glad that I did.

My name is Aaron Hinazumi, and I have just graduated from Kaua‘i High School.

I just started media.

I just like, I liked it when I was like a kid.

I went to Chiefess Kamakahelei Middle School.

The media class was something that I chose, and I guess it was also something that Mr.

Matsunaga chose.

He was able to choose the students that he wanted in the class.

So, thank you, Mr.

Matsunaga, for choosing me.

I appreciate it.

He really taught us like, a lot of, like, technical things, and I guess he was like, the first like, real sort of mentor that a lot of his students had going into media.

And since the first year that I was in his class was like, during COVID, we were kind of on our own.

So, I was like, ‘Oh, I don't know what I'm doing is right or wrong.’ I'm recording this on our campus on September 27, 2021.

I'm participating in a Student Reflection for the HIKI NŌ Triple Crown of Storytelling Challenge with three other teammates, Aaron, Juniper, and Logan.

Looking back, I appreciate what the class has done for me.

Like, I just didn't enjoy it because I was kind of, like, camera shy.

It was tough for the four years that I was in high school.

I just decided to join the media class because I was in Mr.

Matsunaga's class, so okay, yeah, ‘I'll just continue.’ So, Ms.

Aiwohi, she was really good, and she set up this whole, like, list of challenges and projects that I could do.

So, one of the first ones was the – HIKI NŌ’s Fall Challenge.

[ocean wave] Usually, students have weeks to work on projects for HIKI NŌ and lots of help from our teachers and mentors.

But for our challenge competitions, students only get five days to produce their stories.

The prompt for the HIKI NŌ Fall Challenge was Food is Memory.

Like, when I first heard that, I was like, ‘Okay, this is a - I can work with this.

This is like a pretty, this is a pretty nice topic.’ I was just like, driving around with my sister.

Then she was like, "Hey, you should do a story, like, on miki.’ It's called Miki.

It's something that our grandma used to make, so I thought that would be like a really nice way to sort of honor her memory since she passed away in 2020.

After I got the idea, I went to my mom, and she was like, "Yeah, yeah, let's make miki."

Miki has sentimental meaning for me because it's the one dish that my mom and I cooked a lot.

Making miki isn't just about the taste and texture.

It's a way to connect with one another and give something that no one else can give to your family.

It's not a dish that you can get at the restaurants.

It's something that you make homemade.

I wouldn't say that cooking's a labor of love.

I would say cooking is just love.

I felt like, it was just, like, something that I had to do at some point.

I got to spend a lot of time with my mom, and, making it.

It kind of, when I was videoing my mom, it kind of looked like my grandma in a way.

Like, I saw my grandma in my mom when she was making the miki.

I feel like a lot of people could maybe relate to this story, since, I hope, most of us like, have fond memories of food and also family.

When my mom saw it, all like, put together, she got a little bit emotional.

She was kind of crying a little bit.

So, sorry, mom.

Cooking for your family is one of the most rewarding things, and I love to see how they take that – lessons learned from cooking – and do it themselves.

So, it makes me think about when they are older with their families, they'll be able to do the same thing.

This is Aaron Hinazumi from Kaua‘i High School for HIKI NŌ on PBS Hawai‘i.

After experiencing the Fall Challenge, I was super excited to do the Spring Challenge.

This one kind of scared me a little more.

If you're having problems, the answer is ‘go surf.’ This year, surfing was added to the list of sports for high school participation on Kaua‘i.

Like, in comparison to the miki video, I had everything at home.

Like, I could, I guess, essentially film however much I needed.

For the surfing video, you have to go when they're actually, they're actually like out on the water, which isn't too often.

I like to surf because it's fun, and I love the ocean.

My uncle, Chris Burkhardt, he taught me when I was little.

Yeah, I always surf with him now.

I started surfing when I was about like five years old, and I just did it ever since.

So, I'm continuing that right now.

A lot of the projects that I did this year was either by myself or just like, with a friend or my sister, whenever they were free.

Being in a group, you divide all the responsibilities, and you have a lot of help.

Doing media alone, I guess it gave me control of, I guess how I want the story to sort of look and sound.

It gave me like, a lot, like a lot, a lot of experience, especially doing things that maybe I'm not too comfortable with.

This is pretty historical, and it's the first ever surf team, and it's cool to be able to do my sport.

My goal was to get a team in the water and develop a good, a good kind of like, team vibe, and we accomplished that.

So, we feel good about the season.

It's really rewarding.

It's been awesome to work with the athletes and train with them and share the, you know, the joy and importance of the ocean.

Interviewing other people, it was definitely —it was definitely, yeah, it was a bit hard.

Yeah, shy and shy don't really mix too well when you're trying to talk and stuff.

We are all wishing the Red Raiders surf team good luck in their future competitions.

This is Aaron Hinazumi from Kaua‘i High School for HIKI NŌ on PBS Hawai‘i.

I do feel proud about myself looking back on the journey that I've taken.

I do think that doing all this media has prepared me for college.

I will be going to Creighton University, and I'll be pursuing accounting.

And I think, like after I've done all these videos, I would like to do media on the side in the future for sure.

I can tell that I am not the same sort of person that I was four years ago.

If I have a chance to do it again, I think I would, because it changed me.

It changed me to be more confident.

So, my name is Van Anh Nguyen, and I just graduated from Hilo High School.

I actually moved here since 2018.

That was when I was still in fifth grade and was 10 years old, and I only had like, one year knowledge of English at that time, like, just basic vocabs, and I wouldn't know, like, how to put words together, how to make sentences, none of that.

I didn't know what the teacher was saying, so I would read the room.

I would try to read the room, look at people's faces to look at their facial expression.

But it's like, very long time ago, but it really got me scared to this day.

KVIKS Media is a media club in Hilo High School.

I actually got introduced into KVIKS Media by my cousin, who just kept telling me to like, "Oh, come join the KVIKS Club."

At first, when I joined the club, I thought everybody is serious.

Like, oh, they are so good at doing certain stuff that I'm sure they are very, like, strict and serious.

And then when they ask me to bring them certain stuff while they set up, I would be confused.

I don't know their name.

I don't know where they're located.

Like, I'm freaking out.

Like, I don't – I wouldn't know.

I didn't know.

I did not know anything.

So, I'm like, very scared to interact with them, but seeing them having fun, it encouraged me to just like, calm down, chill, have fun with my team too, and try to like, build up the courage to like, improve myself.

So, that's how I built my courage.

The first HIKI NŌ project that I joined was the 2025 Winter Challenge.

Luke is our club head advisor.

At first, when Luke offered me to like, join, I was contemplating about it.

I was like, I low key want to join, but like, I don't know how to, like, be helpful for my team.

But I ended up accepting it anyways, because Luke taught us to like, take the opportunity when they're there.

In the middle of Liliʻuokalani Gardens in Hilo, Hawai‘i, lies Waihonua, a five-acre pond led by freshwater springs and seawater.

It hosts a sensitive ecosystem, but throughout the centuries, toxic matter and sediment has settled to the bottom of the pond, disturbing the plants and animals within.

I learned a lot actually.

I learned how you're supposed to make, like, a story out of something, and how you could like, interview others.

I actually get to experience being the interviewer.

So, with that accumulation over time, the pond became sick.

It's smelly.

The oxygen level is low.

There would be fish die-offs.

There would be 32 fish dead on one shore of the pond.

An organization of fishpond caretakers on this island called Hui Loko – one of the members mentioned to me having used Genki balls in their pond on the Kohala side.

Genki balls are mud balls made of soil, rice bran, molasses, water, and EM1 solution.

EM1 solution introduces healthy bacteria that can help break down the sludge.

Over 7,000 Genki balls have been made and thrown into the pond by schools and community groups.

The results came back astonishing.

I was actually very surprised that we won second place.

I'm happy that I was able to experience it the first time, but at the same time, I feel like I did not do much for the team.

So, yeah, I didn't feel great about it, and so I was like, thank you, but I don't feel like I deserve it, yeah.

Me, me personally.

I was like, I probably won't ever do this again.

And so, but I surprisingly did.

That's the second time.

That was my second year.

Oh, hi Kai.

How you doing?

I'm good.

See you after class.

Hi, I'm Van Anh Nguyen, a senior at Hilo High School, reporting on February 1, 2026.

And let me tell you something: I was not always like that.

When we got the prompt, Living through Changes, I thought about how like, the changes I made, going from like, Vietnam, to here, and I just like, throw out my ideas to them and be like, "Oh um, well, what about me?"

I used to live in Vietnam and was happy, carefree, and confident.

I was very nervous that the story was going to be about me because being vulnerable is not something that I'm ready to handle, and so, like, I find that opening, being open up to other people is very difficult.

Making friends was hard because I didn't know English well enough to communicate.

I lost my confidence and became shy, so I wasn't able to reach out to others for help.

But then over time I learned English, joined new clubs, and slowly exited my comfort zone.

One other club I joined was the Environmental Agents of Change.

I was starting to regain the confidence that I once had in my own home.

This introduced me to many new people, made new connections, and learned new skills.

Though my English has gotten better, I'm still improving on it, and I'm slowly becoming more comfortable in my new home here in Hawai‘i.

This is Van Anh Nguyen from Hilo High School for HIKI NŌ on PBS Hawai‘i.

My team was super supportive.

At the end, they would be like, "Thank you, Van.

We love you, Van," and I was like, "Oh, thank you."

Yeah, it almost got me teared up because I didn't know that I was being like, so loved.

We have some really incredible, talented young people here, and this is low key my favorite part of the awards.

I found out that I'm receiving a mental health award from Luke.

He was like, "Yo, like, you getting this award!

Congratulations!"

I was like, "What?"

This means a lot to me, my team, my school, and most importantly, my mom.

When we got to the award, when I stepped onto the stage, I was shaking so much.

I was like, "Let's not show anyone that."

Anxiety will always be around me.

And so, I think that's the reason why I got the award.

Like, it's because the anxiety that came with you when you travel to a new country to start a new life.

For those out there that saw my story, I hope that I made a strong connection with them.

I want them to be seen and heard, and I want others to see their struggles and what they went through to become the person they are today.

I'm planning on going to UH Manoa for the Fall.

I'm very nervous about moving here to UH Manoa because, again, it's gonna be like starting over, because, no friends, again.

But because I have the courage now to just like, explore my options and like, make more connections.

I can now kind of easily do that.

If my younger self – seeing me now, they probably will be proud that – because I didn't expect myself to work, to be here, and to work with KVIKS, to work with the TV, and to make this many friends, to being interviewed, and to be a little bit outgoing now.

Yeah, just a bunch of surprises, I think.

[outro music]