The Hawaii native has ventured to UC Irvine’s history department in the hopes of making Hawaiian and Pacific history mainstream. When he began working on his Ph.D. in U.S. history, it marked the first time he’d ever lived outside Hawaii.
Why did you choose UCI for graduate school?
I chose UCI to work with an advisor and a department that are supportive of both my research and career goals. It was important that I could bring something new or unique to my department as well. Second, choosing UCI was an opportunity to live and learn outside of Hawai‘i. This is the first time I have ever lived away from home, and I have already had many valuable experiences.
What advice do you have for prospective graduate students in your field?
As graduate students we are trying to refine our skills in our respective disciplines and fields. Take advantage of the numerous workshops, conferences, and presentations that are happening on campus. You have the ability to pick those which will be most fruitful to your development. Use these events to meet students and faculty from outside of your discipline or even outside of UCI. These relationships are incredibly important!
What are your long term career/academic goals?
My long term career goal is to be a professor within the university system in Hawai‘i. In addition to academia, one of my dreams is to provide educational outreach in the Native Hawaiian community, across all ages. I’d like to create opportunities for Native Hawaiian students to engage with our history, to development the skills necessary to tell our stories, while also encouraging creativity in how they express their knowledge. I also want to ensure scholarly research is more accessible to Native Hawaiians who are outside of academia. My time at UCI over the next years will be invaluable to my long term goals.
What three things do you miss most about Hawaii?
Hawaiian food. There’s a lot of ingredients and foods that cannot be found or replicated outside of Hawai‘i. Our seafood is my favorite, especially poke (not poké, poki, or pokē).
My family and friends. Maybe this should be my number one. From winter break until now has been the longest I’ve ever been away from home. I’m extremely thankful for social media but its definitely not the same.
The land and its elements. There’s nothing like watching the sun rise and set over the ocean, or seeing all the stars on a no-moon night. I also really miss the rain and the humidity. There are too many particular things to list here. I’m really truly grateful to call Hawai‘i my home.
More about Noah: https://news.uci.edu/2018/06/18/no-place-like-home/
UCI History department: https://www.humanities.uci.edu/history/
