Imagine discovering your passion, only to find that your school does not have an existing club, class, or program that matches it. What would you do? At Sacred Hearts Academy, students are encouraged to find their own ways to explore their interests. With support from teachers and the school community, students are able to create opportunities within the school and seek them beyond campus.
Not every interest will have existing opportunities waiting for you to sign up at school, but that does not mean students have to stop pursuing it. The experiences of students who have created or sought opportunities for themselves show younger students how to take initiative rather than simply waiting for an opportunity to be offered.
Senior Riona Nakase, an aspiring pediatric dentist, shared her experiences exploring her interest in dentistry during the summer. Nakase looked beyond the opportunities already available at the Academy and took the initiative to reach out to professionals in the field. During the summer after her sophomore year, Nakase shadowed a general dentist with a focus on endodontics and periodontics and gained firsthand exposure to that specialty. The following summer, she interned at Pediatric Kahala Dentistry, where she worked alongside the dental team and gained hands-on experience.
Although the Academy does not offer many Career and Technical Student Organizations, such as HOSA and DECA, Nakase’s involvement in the Academy’s Girls Got GRIT program helped her build connections with mentors and professionals. Through those connections, she was introduced to a professional in the dental field, which eventually led to her internship opportunity.
Nakase said the SHA community “emphasized the importance of giving back to our communities and using our abilities to make a difference in the lives of others.” She also credited the guidance of teachers and mentors for making her feel “supported and encouraged” as she pursued opportunities beyond the Academy.
Steffanie Beissel, a religion teacher, senior class dean, and adviser to several student-led clubs, recognizes the variety of opportunities already available at the Academy, including clubs, sports, and service programs. At the same time, she believes students can create opportunities when they find an interest that is not currently represented at the Academy. While there are procedures and practical limitations to starting new programs, Beissel said, “if a student has a genuine interest and is willing to put in the work, I think there are teachers and administrators who are willing to listen and help figure out what is possible.”
Beissel has experienced this firsthand while helping establish the Academy’s high school mock trial team. The process has involved finding interested students, identifying adults who can help, and connecting with the Hawai’i State Bar Association. Beissel has also advised two newly established student clubs this year. Beyond those clubs, she has seen students who create job opportunities for themselves in business, engineering, health care, and entertainment, pursue sports that aren’t offered at the Academy, and bring outside clubs and organizations to campus or create their own.
Beissel believes the all-girls environment gives students space to develop their ideas and take ownership of bringing them to life. She also emphasized the role of teachers and administrators in taking students’ ideas seriously and helping them make it possible.
From internships to activities beyond campus, these students are just a few examples of how SHA students create or seek opportunities for themselves.
When an opportunity is not already offered at the Academy, students can consider how they might create or find one. For some students, this may mean reaching out to professionals or organizations outside of the Academy. For others, it may mean working with teachers and administrators to establish something new on campus.
Ultimately, the goal is not for the Academy to offer every possible opportunity, but to give students the support to pursue the ones that matter to them. As Beissel said, “SHA provides students with a strong foundation of opportunities, and sometimes the most meaningful ones are the opportunities students take the initiative to build for themselves.”
