“What key piece of advice would you give to your HPA senior self?”
“Be kind. Kindness will get you so much farther than almost anything else. Kindness and passion are the two biggest things I think you can take out of HPA into the real world,” shared Teddy Quinn ‘10.
HPA was really the first place where I felt I had community and ʻohana, and I think it was the first place that actually saw me as who I was as an individual, and to be able to have that space at such a young age, I think really set me up for success later on.”
Each January, HPA convenes a panel of graduates to share advice and stories about life after HPA with our seniors. Young Alumni Day is an invaluable opportunity for both our panelists — who benefit from making and maintaining connections here at school and with our tight-knit alum network — and our participants — who get their first taste of the lasting, nurturing power of the alumni network here at HPA.
Our six 2023 panelists, who graduated from HPA between 2003 and 2018, exemplify the creative, resilient, curious, and confident Ka Makani who carry the spirit of this special place with them and go on to contribute to their communities around the world. Each has achieved unique success in a range of professions: Aislinn Carroll ‘18, an intelligence specialist working with the Department of Defense; Dylan Shropshire ‘06, an entrepreneur and organic farmer; Risako Ninomiya ‘13, a graduate student seeking a Master’s of Education at Stanford; Maiah Police ’15, a Staffing Operations Associate at Google; Teddy Quinn ‘10 , a Communications Specialist at the National Labor Relations Board; and Billy Burkey ‘03, a Principal Engineer at SpaceX’s Starlink LEO constellation. While their paths in life are different, they are each connected by their ongoing appreciation and aloha for HPA and what they learned here.
When I first arrived at HPA, I was an international student from Japan. It was my first time communicating in English — I couldn’t speak any English at all — so my classmates and my roommates helped me a lot. And through that, I was really able to connect with people at HPA, and I believe that being able to communicate with people from around the world and embracing different cultures really helped me navigate life after high school.”
Billy Burkey ‘03 — a Carnegie Mellon University graduate who now works for SpaceX Starlink delivering internet service to Central and South America — reminded seniors how amazing their fellow HPA classmates are and how advantageous that can be. While at HPA, Burkey and a group of friends who shared a love for math, science, and engineering started the first robotics team in Hawaiʻi. “At HPA, you have a small community of motivated and enabled people, and I had a really great, strong group of friends who were interested in the same cool things that I was interested in, so it was an incredibly nurturing environment, and as long as you’re focused on doing something productive, you can really do a lot with that.”
HPA Olympics was my favorite. HPA taught me the importance of being able to compete — and Olympics is just one of those things, Song Contest was another. The ability to compete, the desire to win — if you can keep that fire within you, you’ll go great places.
Seniors in the audience asked panelists questions ranging from: “How did your time at HPA help to prepare you for your current career?” to “What do you know now that you wish you knew during your time at HPA?”
Maiah Police ’15 — a third-generation Ka Makani who graduated from Dartmouth College and is now working at Google in Austin, Texas — encouraged seniors to stretch their boundaries. “I think HPA creates this incredibly accepting and comfortable environment where you can test things you like and see what you’re interested in where you’ll still have a ton of support. Immerse yourself into those spaces, then take that mindset with you wherever you go. Jumping into things that make you feel uncomfortable is where you really get a chance to learn, and HPA helps make that space feel safe.”
The panel explained to seniors that it’s okay to experience culture shock, especially coming from a small private school in Hawai’i, and offered up advice ranging from the importance of creating a morning routine to learning how to drive on a multi-lane highway as soon as you get the chance.
HPA creates this incredibly accepting and comfortable environment where you can test things you like and see what you’re interested in where you’ll still have a ton of support. Immerse yourself into those spaces, then take that mindset with you wherever you go.”
Dylan Shropshire ‘06 — a fifth-generation farmer who earned his Bachelor’s degree at Shidler College of Business at the University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa, and the founder and Chief Operating Officer of Big Island Grown — shared what he looks for in an HPA graduate if he were hiring for a position. “Someone with a hunger and eagerness to get better and learn,” Shropshire said before going on to explain that just 1% better every day compounds into success. “You can basically train anyone who is passionate and wants to learn every day and will persevere in hard times,” he explained, encouraging seniors to seek out internship opportunities and not be afraid to try something new.
Boarding was the best part of my experience at HPA. The friendships I made at HPA and the connections. I’m from the Big Island, but I boarded because I was from Hilo, and it was too far to drive every day. My friends from Robertson’s, I visited them either during high school or right after. Even now, when I travel, I reach out to my old boarding friends — guys from Japan, Korea, and Germany — I’ve visited all of them.”
From the back row of the Gates Performing Arts Center, Head of School Fred Wawner swelled with pride watching the Young Alumni Day discussion unfold. “I was blown away by how much they have already achieved on their respective paths, the valuable insight they had to offer their fellow Ka Makani, and the role that HPA played in helping them on their journey. It was so powerful.”
“Being in the audience, not sure of what these bright young minds would share, I felt myself nodding my head, laughing out loud, and my eyes filling with tears as if my own feelings were happily affirming: ‘They get it.’”
They most certainly do.
Every great school needs a network of passionate alumni, families, and friends to reach its full potential and achieve its vision. That support and commitment are beautifully captured in moments like Young Alumni Day — an enriching and inspiring expression of Ka Makani pride and power.
Being able to talk to people who are older than you and ask for mentorship from a young age is a really good skill to learn, and I think that HPA was really instrumental in that.”
If you’re an HPA alum, we want to hear from you! Please stay connected by reaching out to our Alumni Office to share what you’re doing these days and update your contact information at alumni@hpa.edu.