Students Discover an Ocean of Possibilities

Honolulu Community College to Host Ocean Hawai‘i Marine Exploration Day

WHAT:  Honolulu Community College (HonCC) in partnership with the Polynesian Voyaging Society (PVS) will host a free public event for students entitled Ocean Hawai‘i Marine Exploration Day in celebration of the college’s 90th Anniversary.

WHEN: Friday, July 16, 2010 • 9:00 a.m. – 2:00 p.m.

WHERE: Honolulu Community College’s Marine Education and Training Center, 10 Sand Island Parkway

WHAT: Students will have a unique opportunity to tour the Hōkūle‘a, learn how traditional canoes were built compared to how they are constructed today, make traditional cordage and learn how to lash or tie the cordage to keep parts of the canoe together, understand how ancient Hawaiians used stars to navigate to their destinations using a mini-planetarium device, paddle 12-person canoes, and much more.

WHY: Honolulu Community College is honoring the well-established partnership with the Polynesian Voyaging Society, which began in 2003. The college will play an important role in the training of over 2,000 people in preparation for the 2012 World Wide Voyage of the Hōkūle‘a led by master navigator and PVS Executive Director, Nainoa Thompson.

The Marine Education and Training Center (METC) is a state-of-the-art training facility ranked as one of the premier training facilities in the United States featuring four large work bays to allow work on vessels up to 45 feet, a concrete pier equipped with two cranes to allow work on vessels in the water, finger piers for removing vessels from the water employing a marine straddle-lift, as well as classroom, laboratory, and office space. HonCC vessel fabrication students were instrumental in the refurbishment of the Hawai‘i Loa, Hōkūle‘a’s sister, melding traditional and modern methods.

In February 1920, Honolulu Community College opened its doors as a Territorial Trade School to 42 students in the buildings of the Old Chinese Hospital in Palama. In honor of this auspicious occasion, Honolulu Community College has planned events throughout the year.