Public school students are gaining access to career development opportunities, and businesses challenged by Hawaii’s tight labor market are getting a chance to start recruiting local talent early through an online portal known as ClimbHI Bridge, which links educators with local businesses and nonprofits.

The effort is a partnership between Hawaii nonprofit ClimbHI, which was founded in 2009, and the Department of Education, with funding from the Hawaii Executive Collaborative.

At its inception, ClimbHi was founded by President Julie Morikawa to inspire students to finish high school and proceed to post-secondary education or employment by exposing them to future career paths and the steps necessary to achieve those goals.

“My roots in Kohala show me firsthand what it means to be remote and left out, and that’s what drives me today to make sure that we are truly providing economic access to improving social capital that allow our keiki to choose if they want to stay here and not be forced to have to leave,” Morikawa told the Honolulu Star-Advertiser on Tuesday following a brunch to honor some of the hundreds of local businesses and nonprofits that have made the ClimbHI Bridge a success.

Morikawa said she was raised to believe that she needed to leave home to achieve her dreams. She went to Cornell University in New York and worked in Boston until a job helping to launch Expedia in Hawaii finally offered her a chance to come home. She also worked in French Polynesia and Asia.

“Our keiki aren’t exposed to all the wonderful opportunities that are out there. That’s what drove me to start the nonprofit ClimbHI 13 years ago,” she said. “We are growing every year.”

Morikawa said ClimbHI Bridge since its launch in January 2021 already has brought together 57,000 students and 4,000 educators from 190 Hawaii schools statewide. She said ClimbHI is working on adding a student- facing bridge “where they can uncover interests for themselves and learn about career paths.”

ClimbHI expanded again in September by launching Hospitality for Me, a new program to connect schools with an array of resources to enhance education and job readiness for high school students statewide. Morikawa said the initiative aligns with the state Department of Education’s expansion to 13 from six Career and Technical Education Pathways.

Morikawa said Hospitality for Me will build on Climb- HI’s earlier Leadership, Exploration, Inspiration hospitality industry program and other efforts by supporting Hawaii’s public schools when Hospitality, Tourism and Recreation becomes its own pathway in the 2023-2024 academic year.

She said the program also will continue to offer the ClimbHI Service Excellence Certificate curriculum with training from Cornell University.

John De Fries, HTA president and CEO, said in a statement, “When we encourage public-private partnerships to support our local workforce and enhance career and learning opportunities for our keiki, everyone wins.”

Hospitality for Me has directly involved administrators and educators from the Maui, West Hawaii and Campbell-Kapolei complex areas and is actively seeking involvement from other complexes across Hawaii.

Zachary Sheets, principal of Waipahu High School, said all of ClimbHI’s programs have been invaluable as they help connect kids to career pathways, where they can determine whether they have found their passion or if they need to keep looking for a career that they would like better.

“It helps if they know what they want to do,” Sheets said. “They are more focused and more successful.”

Edward Barnabas, Booz Allen Hamilton’s chief tech officer for Indo-Pacific business, said the business has been involved with Climb- Hi’s workforce development efforts for more than two years.

“We do all defense consulting on-island, and with the increased defense budget and funding coming to the Pacific, we can’t fill the demand,” Barnabas said. “We have to look to the mainland and relocate people. But really, we would love to fill most, if not all, the jobs with local people. We need to do a better job exposing defense jobs to students in high school and college.

“The sooner you can demystify some of the career paths for students, the more they feel that they are accessible,” he said. “We also want to start early so that students don’t just see themselves making a living, but as change agents, leaders and disruptors.”

The program has already had a profound impact on Madison Rubio, a junior in McKinley High School’s business academy.

“I’m looking at colleges on the mainland to study animal science, but I definitely plan to come back after college,” Rubio said. “Hawaii needs a lot more help. I want to give back.”

Quyna Nguyen, a business academy student, said the program helped her land a job at 85C Bakery Cafe at Ala Moana Center. She’s hoping that the work experience will help her become an entrepreneur.

To get involved or for additional information, email info@climbhi.org.