High school students from campuses statewide gathered at Chaminade University in April for a daylong series of hands-on activities aimed at underscoring the role businesses can play in making a positive difference in communities and embracing environmentally-sustainable practices.
Nine high schools participated in this year’s “Business Olympix” on April 25.
Eddie Merc, Ph.D., director of Chaminade’s MBA program, said the annual gathering was first launched in 2023.
Student participants work their way through activity stations that feature a long list of learning themes, including accounting, business analytics, marketing, economics and finance.
In the competition, students also collaborate in teams to tackle a challenge and present a business idea.
“This event promotes the importance of business in our local community as well as awareness of globalization,” Merc said. “It also prepares students to explore business topics for study in college.”
Micah Kalauli, a sophomore at Waiakea High, said the competition solidified his interest in pursuing economics or accounting as a potential career choice.
“I also learned a lot of good life skills, like communication, collaboration, thinking under deadlines and operations management.”
Kaiser High student Logan Leong added that the event helped him see just how critical business is to everyday life.
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“Every decision we make is a transaction between risk and rewards,” he said, adding the group presentation challenged participants to “see flaws in our own thinking.”
Diana Lau, a teacher at Waiakea High, appreciated how engaging the day’s activities were. “I saw my students laughing and I think that’s always a good sign,” she said. “It was also a great way to introduce the campus and the idea of college. Continuous exposure—that’s what we want to do with our students just to let them know there are many options.”
Merc said he’s happy to say the event has grown every year since its launch.
One key takeaway for students is the importance of doing “business for good.”
“That’s the slogan we live by,” Merc said, “and I think today, we witnessed students are really amplifying the importance of sustainability and helping the community with business applications.”