HPU HOSTS, COLLABORATES ON SOUTHWEST AIRLINES R.A.P.I.D. EMPLOYEE RESOURCE GROUP PROJECT

HPU recently hosted a student support project with Southwest Airlines’ R.A.P.I.D. (Resilient Asian & Pacific Islanders Descendants & Allies) Employee Resource Group. The event was coordinated with the help of HPU Trustee and Southwest Senior Vice President & Chief People Officer Elizabeth Bryant, bringing the R.A.P.I.D. team and HPU students together on campus.

In partnership with the HPU Office of Student Life, R.A.P.I.D. members and HPU students met at HPU’s Aloha Tower Marketplace for a professional development networking conversation over lunch and a meaningful hands-on project: assembling Campus Care Kits (practical bundles that help students in times of hardship). The shared effort reflected the values across both organizations that include inclusion, care, and community in action. Southwest Airlines generously provided HPU with funds to help pay for the cost of the kits.

HPU President John Gotanda expressed gratitude for Southwest Airlines collaboration in the successful event, and thanked Bryant for helping make the event a succuss for everyone who was involved in assembling the Campus Care Kits for the HPU community.

Earlier this year, Southwest Airlines supported an HPU spring sports management course trip to Las Vegas, giving HPU students a unique opportunity to explore leadership and innovation in a dynamic setting. Las Vegas is home to HPU’s newest instructional site, a modern facility supporting our Doctor of Occupational Therapy (OTD) and Doctor of Physical Therapy (DPT) programs.

“The activity we are working on today is to help HPU students who have identified that they have run into issues of food security and basic needs. For us at HPU, we want our students to know that we see the problem, and we will help you solve the problem, but in the meantime, we are creating these Campus Care Kits,” said Adam Clark, Ph.D., to a large group of HPU students gathered to assemble the Kits.  

The importance of food security is vital for college students. In 2020, the National Postsecondary Student Aid Study (NPSAS) began tracking food insecurity and homelessness among college students. Data shows that more than four million college students (22.6%) experience food insecurity, with another 2.3 million (11.9%) facing marginal food security. Rates are even higher for Pell Grant recipients (32.6%) and for Native Hawaiian students (31.1%), underscoring the need for targeted support at institutions like HPU.

At HPU, about one in four students qualifies for Pell Grants or need-based aid. These students bring talent and determination, yet financial strain can spill beyond tuition and affect food, housing, transportation, and health care shortages. In Hawaiʻi’s high cost-of-living environment, a small setback can quickly become a barrier and community service events like providing Campus Care Kits can make a big difference. HPU’s basic needs coordinator is another vital campus resource at the University. Housed within the Ho‘oko Scholars Rising program, the coordinator connects students with resources, from the campus food bank to emergency supports, helping students remain stable, focused, and on track to graduate.

A total of 100 Campus Care Kits were assembled at the event for distribution throughout the semester, to students facing unexpected needs. Each kit includes practical essentials like an insulated grocery tote, soap, toothpaste and a toothbrush, a razor, deodorant, toilet paper, and shelf-stable foods, such as canned chicken and microwave rice.