2019 Scholarship Recipients

The goal of the HCCNC Scholarship Program is to support student leaders as role models for the Hawai‘i community. The Scholarship Program is aimed at strengthening the pipeline of Bay Area college-bound students and ensuring retention so that more students obtain their degrees. We seek to support qualified kama‘āina, and assist them in making the transition from high school to college, and from Hawai‘i to the mainland.

This year we are pleased to support three outstanding students!  Congratulations to Jada Almoguera, KC Agcaoili, and Keona Blanks recipients of the 2019 HCCNC Scholarship!

Jada Almoguera

Jada Almoguera was born on the Big Island, but spent most of her life growing up on the island of Oʻahu. She is a 2018 graduate of President William McKinley High School and is currently attending the University of San Francisco as a freshman. Since being raised in Hawaiʻi she has developed an adventurous spirit for exploring the land and ocean. From hiking waterfalls to scenic views to canoe paddling to surfing, she has generated a deep love and pride in being island grown. Throughout high school she was an active volunteer at Kulana Hale Elderly Home and has made meaningful relationships with the kupunas. This connection has inspired her to one day give back to the kupunas of Hawaiʻi and become a geriatric physician. In this pursuit, she is studying biology and is on the pre-med track. After completing her education, Jada hopes to one day return to the islands and provide quality care by giving personal and thoughtful treatment.

KC Agcaoili

Keith Christine (KC) Agcaoili is a 2018 graduate of Wallace Rider Farrington High School, located in Honolulu, Hawaiʻi. She will continue her studies at Santa Clara University (SCU) as a sophomore accounting major. Growing up in Kalihi, she learned the importance of engaging with her community and became involved with student government, National Honor Society and Key Club in order to make a difference. Now, KC is part of SCU’s Barkada (Fil-Am club), Chinese Student Association, LEAD Scholars, and the ACE Leadership Program. Despite her busy schedule, KC looks forward to spending time with her friends and visiting her family in Hawaiʻi. After obtaining her degree, KC plans to return to Hawaiʻi and give back to the community that shaped the person she is today through accounting services. KC is grateful for those who have continued to support her as a first-generation college student.

KEONA BLANKS

Keona Blanks is from Ewa Beach, Hawaiʻi. She is a 2019 graduate of James Campbell High School and will be attending Stanford University in the fall. Keona plans to pursue a degree in English and attend law school with a focus on environmental justice. Through her voyages on Hikianalia and her travels to Kahoʻolawe with Nā Kelamoku, the Polynesian Voyaging Society’s youth outreach program, she has developed a profound passion for preservation because of the society’s message of Mālama Honua, which means “to care for our Island Earth.” Throughout high school, Keona was involved in editing her school newspaper and developing community programs for all ages and backgrounds, such as the Junior Youth Spiritual Empowerment Program in which she guides neighborhood teens in serving their community. Ever since she published her first poem in the seventh grade, Keona has been an avid writer, a characteristic which she plans to use to serve Hawaiʻi when she returns. She believes that through writing for local papers and publishing her own novels, she will inspire social change and promote unity in Hawaiʻi.