Chaminade University of Honolulu

School of Business and Communication

Entrepreneurial Endeavor

Recent graduate looks to open future businesses

Peterson Boyer’s decision to flee his home country of Haiti wasn’t based on a singular event but a confluence of factors: Political instability and civil unrest. Cratering economy and infrastructure recovery from a devastating earthquake that struck in 2010. Arriving on the shores of southern Florida, the then-25-year-old new emigree enlisted in the Army, eventually rising to the ranks as a logistics specialist and team leader.

“My military experience instilled in me a deep sense of discipline, resilience and commitment to excellence,” says Boyer ’23, during an interview from his Colorado residence. “I used the very same traits to achieve my bachelor’s degree with honors finishing with a 3.71 GPA.”

Ambitious and a fearless leader, Boyer established Enterprise Collision & Auto-body Repair LLC during his senior year at Chaminade and it continues to thrive. Crediting his parents for his business instincts, the 32-year-old entrepreneur also holds a marketing interest in the Rocky Mountain Region, though he was coy to reveal any details.

“When I was a student, I did this incredible marketing internship with Makana (Craig, Director of Chaminade University Online),” Boyer says. “I learned so much. I helped boost brand awareness by developing creative marketing strategies and campaigns. And I helped military personnel understand Chaminade’s online Flex program.”

Boyer’s interest in business stems from his parents’ own experience as retail shop owners in Port-au-Prince, where his mom and dad still maintain their business interest amid the turmoil and gang violence. After seeing his parents struggle with accounting principles and marketing strategies, Boyer decided that in order for him to succeed in establishing his own business, he needed to get his business degree.

After hearing praises about Chaminade from his Sergeant, Boyer decided to look into the University, unsure about the flexibility of the hybrid online classes necessary to obtain a degree in business administration.

“My professors challenged me and I think they prepared me well for the business world,” Boyer says. “(Richard) Kido had a great way of teaching accounting that helped students understand the concepts.”

By developing and improving his skills and having a better grasp of the market, Boyer says he has become a better, more effective leader. “Chaminade is a very good school compared to some of the other programs I looked into,” he adds. “The courses were super intense, but we got some good supporting materials that really helped in my understanding of what it’s like to run your own business.”

Like most non-traditional undergraduate students, Boyer juggled between his responsibility to the Army and his full-time job with an electrical engineer company, Prime Power, in Schofield.  And, of course, he needed to dedicate time to attend his online classes, which required at times for him to come to campus for in-person learning. Despite these challenges, Boyer brought his valuable life experiences, maturity and motivation to his studies.

“Everyone here is so supportive,” Boyer says. “I owe Chaminade because the University empowered me with the spirt of leadership and service. And the way I want to pay Chaminade back is with my success.”

While the odds of succeeding as an entrepreneur can be daunting, many successful entrepreneurs have faced setbacks and failures before achieving success. Learning from mistakes, seeking mentorship and guidance, and being willing to adapt and innovate are essential for increasing the chances of success in the entrepreneurial journey.

“I absolutely think that Chaminade is one of the best schools I could have ever attended,” Boyer says. “I am a better person for it and I am super grateful to be part of the Chaminade family.”

Budget Analyst

Carol An Nacario ’23 to start new position with the Legislature

He had her at pizza. While walking past a classroom at Kieffer Hall, Carol An Nacario was swayed by School of Business and Communication assistant dean, Asoke Datta, Ed.D., to come in for some lunch. Not one to turn down free food — what college student does — Nacario willingly ambled through the door. Only then did she realize that she had just been recruited to enter the Silversword Business Competition.

“I only came in for the pizza,” laughs Nacario ’23, a business administration major. “I knew about the competition, but I had no intention of entering.”

Not only did she enter the competition, but on Nov. 16, she and her team members, Kelsey Sablan ’23, Epifania “Epi” Petelo ’23 and Elizabeth “Liz” Devine ’23, walked away with the grand prize of $1,500 for their “Re-Thread” entrepreneurial concept, which “sews new life into unused fabrics and transforms them into stylish and sustainable pouches.”

“Carol has been a highly driven student who values self-learning and entrepreneurial opportunities for growth in the world of business,” says Assistant Professor and MBA Director Eddie Merc. “This business plan competition event was an ideal opportunity to showcase her passion for teamwork and giving back to the community through service and sustainability efforts. I’m very proud of Carol and her team to represent School of Business and Communication so well at this important entrepreneurial venue.”

Re-Thread members (Elizabeth “Liz” Devine ’23 is missing) from left, Carol An Nacario, Kelsey Sablan and Epifania ‘Epi’ Petelo, won the $1,500 grand prize. The competition’s judges included, from left, David Oyadomari, Dr. Gail Grabowsky, Eric Fujimoto, Sharon Weiner and Hogan program director Dr. Roy Panzarella.

This was just the first victory for Nacario, who will end her collegiate experience on a winning streak. The second has even greater consequences. After seeing a flyer advertising that “The Hawaii State Senate is HIRING,” the Guam native decided to apply for one of the openings.

“I got a call asking me to choose an interview date,” Nacario says. “I chose Nov. 2 and a couple of weeks later, I found out I was hired, and I received an offer letter signed by Hawaii State Senator Donovan Dela Cruz, the Chair of the Senate Committee on Ways and Means.”

Starting in January, Nacario will be a budget analyst with the powerful Senate Committee on Ways and Means (WAM), which oversees programs relating to overall state financing policies, including revenue enhancement, taxation, other revenues, and cash and debt management; statewide implementation of planning, programming, budgeting and evaluation; and government structure and finance.

“The day before the interview, I approached Dr. Merc for some advice about what to expect,” Nacario recounts. “He told me to relax, and to be prepared to be asked about my strengths and weaknesses.”

Nacario also summoned the STAR method—a lesson that she had learned from visiting assistant professor, Pamela Estell, Ph.D.—which is an interview technique that gives interviewees a straightforward format they can use to tell a story by laying out the Situation, Task, Action and Result.

“I was very nervous at first,” Nacario says. “They asked me a lot of questions about budgets and if I had ever worked on government budgeting. I had mentioned VLOOKUP, which is an Excel function that I learned from Shari Young (Director of Finance & Operations for Make-A-Wish Hawaii) during my internship, and they were impressed.”

For the 21-year-old Chamorro, the opportunities afforded to her by Chaminade almost never happened. She was initially enrolled to attend the University of Guam until a close friend convinced her to apply to Chaminade. Two weeks before the start of classes in Guam, Nacario finally received an acceptance letter from Chaminade University.

“For some reason, the letter was delayed and it was never delivered when it should have been,” Nacario recalls. “It was the year of COVID and I had to quickly make a decision.”

She made the right one. As she finishes her final exams and celebrates her 22nd birthday on Dec. 16, Nacario reflects back on her four years at Chaminade with a wide smile on her face.

“When I came to Hawaii, I had never been to any other mainland state,” Nacario says. “I don’t think I would have grown in Guam, like I have here. I was an introvert and intimidated with titles, but now I am able to work in a professional environment, like the State Legislature.”

Hogan Speaker Series

Panelists share their insights into entrepreneurship

What guides you? How do you find mentors? How do you overcome failure? What advice would you give your younger self?

These questions and many more were posed to three diverse and accomplished community leaders who served as panelists during the Hogan Entrepreneurial Leadership Program speaker series on Nov. 15 in a packed Keifer Hall Room 9. Panelists Haelee Tallett ’18, Shane Hanson ’16 and Julie Morikawa navigated the questions with ease and decorum, freely sharing their personal and professional experiences with students, alumni and faculty, all eager to soak in knowledge and insight. 

Tallett is the founder, owner and lead designer of Ocean Creations, which she started as an online business and now has several brick-and mortar-locations. Alumnus Shane Hanson is founder and owner of Freedom Fiduciaries. Morikawa, a hospitality industry executive, is the president of non-profit ClimbHi, which creates bridges between high school and college students from education to career paths, and is dedicated to workforce development in Hawaii.

Hogan program director Roy Panzarella opened the discussion by asking the panel, “What is your ‘Why?’” or “Why do what you do?” 

Hanson shared that being an entrepreneur is something innate, that he would rather work 80 hours for himself than 40 hours for another corporation. He also shared that he came to Chaminade to play basketball and eventually participated in a competiton in which student groups created their own products and marketing plans. The fulfilling and exciting experience has remained with him and sparked his entrepreneurial spirit. 

Being an entrepreneur is more important than being a jewelry designer to Hallett. While her company’s product is jewelry, what really motivates her is bringing a sense of confidence and beautiful design to customers who wear or give jewelry as gifts. Jewelry is the means to achieving that goal of the entrepreneurial journey of ideation to product to customer satisfaction. 

When asked how to create sustainable products that are not as profitable, Morikawa replied, “Why do they have to be separate, sustainability and profitablity?” She described a federal grant that ClimbHi recently received that involves partnering with local environmental and sustainability-focused organizations to maintain and improve an important ahupuaʻa (land division) on Oʻahu.

The 90-minute panel discussion served its purpose. The community leaders on the panel thoughtfully answered questions. Students respectfully asked questions. And all left the room with an understanding and insight into how following one’s dream is what it takes to be fulfilled and to have a meaningful impact.

The next Hogan Program speaker will be Gary Hogan on Wednesday, Nov. 29 from 6 to 7:30 p.m. in Kiefer Hall Room 9. Hogan is the CEO of Hogan Hospitality Group and Hawaiian Hotels & Resorts, as well as CEO and Board Chair of Pleasant Travel Service. 

Enterprising Minds

Teams to compete in Silversword Business Competition

Game on! In a Shark Tank-like competition, teams of students will compete in an entrepreneurial 18-week contest, vying for the grand prize of $2,000. The catch: the product or the service must have some element of sustainability.  

“Your idea has to address any of the CIFAL Center’s 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDG),” explained Asoke Datta, EdD, School of Business and Communication’s Assistant Dean, outlining the competition’s rules. “It has to be profitable, not just in terms of revenue, but for the greater good of society.”  

Without revealing too much about her strategy, Carol Nacario ’23, a senior in the School of Business and Communication, is concerned with all the “waste” that she sees around her. The environment, like many in her generation—led by Greta Thunberg and the Sunrise Movement, a youth-led political organization urging increased attention to climate change—is an issue that needs to be kept in the forefront of people’s minds.  

Students participating in the Silversword Business Competition include, from left, Peyton Haleamau, Michalla Burtado, Alyssa Torres (kneeling), Emma Rosales and Carol Nacario.

“Deciding on a final project will be the most difficult challenge,” shared Nacario with other students who attended Day 1 of the competition. “My target audience will be the campus.”  

Academic competitions play an essential part in learning for students. Participation offers a hands-on opportunity for students to apply the knowledge and principles they have gained in the classroom and apply it to real-work situations. These competitions foster such skills as leadership, teamwork and communication. They can also be a great way to make new connections and friends.  

School of Business and Communication interim dean, Dr. Annette Santos, issued her first challenge to the students: recruit others to join their teams. “It can be a team of two to five students,” said Santos via a live video feed from Guam. “However, at least one of the team members has to be from the School of Business and Communication.”  

A business major, Peyton Haleamau ’25, convinced second year forensics science majors, Emma Rosales ’25 and Michalla “Meeks” Butardo ’25, to be on her team. Having never taken a business course, Rosales and Butardo consider their lack of entrepreneurial savvy as their major challenge.  

“We’ll be here as advisors and mentors,” marketing lecturer Wera Panow-Loui, MBA, told the students. “Last year, I opened my house up to a team of students who were producing jewelry out of microplastics reclaimed from the beach and in the ocean. And I also fed them.”  

Datta suggested to find team members who are in different disciplines, from art and interior design to nursing and data analytics. “You want a wider perspective than just business,” he said. “That’s what entrepreneurs do—they get creative. And, if they fail, what they learn from that failure determines how they succeed the next time.”

Each team will be given $250 seed money to use at its discretion. The School of Business and Communication’s Advisory Board members, who are providing the funding for the seed money, will also be available as mentors.  

When the competition was launched in 2021, the plan was to have students open and manage a pop-up concession on campus. Because COVID-19 was still a factor, another approach was decided: the School invited students to participate in a business competition that would allow them to show off their creativity, their ability to work with others and their aptitude in everything from marketing to accounting and customer service.  

“Think of this competition as an incubator of ideas,” said Dr. Eduard Merc, who is Chaminade’s MBA director. “You’ll have the chance to work alongside your professors and the opportunity for experiential learning that goes beyond theory.”  

Students’ final presentation will take place on Nov. 16. Each team will be assessed by sales/revenue, social media likes and shares, and their profit-and-lost statement.  

“And your business must align with the sustainable approach,” Santos emphasized. “In developing your business plan, take into account these considerations: 1) Identify future needs; 2) Identify technology to serve that need; and 3) How will you deliver the need, through what channels of distribution?”  

Their time starts now!    

One Year MBA: Smart Track to a Degree

Mia Vallero, MBA ’23, visited Nara, Japan four years ago. She remembers seeing the deer at Nara Park, and how playful and eager they were to be fed crackers by visitors. This past August, she returned to the same prefecture but this time the trip was part of the Chaminade University One Year MBA degree program, and she noticed the deer were not as lively as she remembered.

“It forced me to reflect on the tourism industry in Japan and in Hawaii,” Vallero ruminates. “I’m glad I had the opportunity to think twice about the use of wildlife for tourism and entertainment.”

Thinking deeply about business practices, culture, and economic impact and sustainability are all part of Chaminade’s One Year MBA program of which Vallero entered in the fall of 2022. The recent trip to Japan was one of the final segments of the program, as she traveled with eight fellow MBA candidates, her professor Dr. Caryn Callahan, and the Interim Dean of the School of Business and Communication Dr. Annette Santos. 

Considered the messengers of the gods, Nara's over 1000 deer have become a symbol of the city and have even been designated as a natural treasure.
Considered the messengers of the gods, Nara’s over 1000 deer have become a symbol of the city and have even been designated as a natural treasure.

A customer service manager at Aloha Freight Forwarders, Vallero enrolled in the One Year MBA program for the experience and skills she would gain to expand opportunities for her future. 

Likewise for fellow MBA candidate Joshua McDonough who earned his bachelor’s degree from Boston University. Both Vallero and McDonough belong to the second cohort of the One Year MBA program, which they will complete this September 2023. The first cohort of students entered in the fall of 2021 and earned their MBAs in September 2022. A third cohort will begin this September 2023 and will conclude in September 2024. All graduates have the option to participate in Chaminade’s commencement ceremony the following May of their program completion.

As an executive program designed for people who have work experience, the One Year MBA program provides valuable resources, credentials, and professional and practical classroom and real world exposure to its graduate students. In-person classes held every other Saturday on campus are supplemented by online course work and travel abroad, which is largely sponsored by Chaminade. The first cohort traveled to New Zealand and the international destination for the third cohort is yet to be determined. 

“Through this MBA program, I look to broaden my business perspective, grow my professional network and enhance my leadership, communication and critical thinking skills,” McDonough says.

On the recent trip to Japan, MBA candidates visited such businesses and organizations as  the Luxottica eyeglass frame factory, the Masunaga Optical Company, Daiko Advertising and Asahi Beer Suita Brewery. They also attended a baseball game at Koshien Stadium and enjoyed a private meeting with Kazuhiro Tanabe, a director of the stadium. 

Visiting the eyeglass and optical companies was particularly relevant since students were tasked to study the industry in preparation for their trip to Japan. They compared the operations of two different manufacturers, with one based in Milan, Italy—but has a presence in Japan— and the other based in Japan. They researched how a progressive, modern approach differs from a more traditional business model, and how they market, manufacture and distribute their products. 

MBA candidates got to visit the Megane Museum, where visitors learn about the history of glasses, and the more than 200 steps involved in making a pair.
MBA candidates got to visit the Megane Museum, where visitors learn about the history of glasses, and the more than 200 steps involved in making a pair.

“There’s nothing like getting students out into the field,” says Dr. Caryn Callahan, who has been teaching the One Year MBA program since its inception. “You can read textbooks and study in the classroom, but by traveling abroad we were able to meet with the presidents of companies, and were greeted warmly by high-level management. The students had researched the companies, and they were well prepared before going into these meetings”

Dr. Annette Santos agrees and recognizes the valuable experience students received by seeing Japanese business cultures through a western lens, learning about the diversification of industries, and understanding the differences and similarities between eastern and western ways of conducting business.” 

“Each curated tour, visits to manufacturing companies, meetings with heads of organizations was a professional and personal growth opportunity for our students,” Santos says. “Students  asked very good questions, such as, ‘What is it like to be a leader?’ as well as  about production and supply chain. It was really nice to see the students’ critical-thinking capacity, as reflected by the questions they asked the leaders.”

On September 16, the School of Business and Communication will hold a banquet for the graduating One Year MBA class, as well as for the new cohort of students entering the program to begin their 12 month journey, which will also conclude with international travel.

“Our international study trips transform students’ understanding of business and provide a wonderful opportunity of exposure to other cultures and local business practices,” says Dr. Eduard Merc, who is Chaminade’s MBA director. “Additionally, the academic trip gives participants a comprehensive overview of trends in business and an in-depth view into companies currently operating in the Asia Pacific region. 

“At the School of Business and Communication, we believe in the importance of our students seeing firsthand the strategies that international businesses have pursued to take part in the explosive growth of Asia, and how these companies effectively adapt to the ever-changing business, social, and political landscapes in which they operate,” Merc adds. “This supplements their MBA classroom learning in significant ways by learning directly from business leaders.”

The banquet will be bittersweet for the outgoing students whose lives for the past year were filled with the collegiality of their close-knit class. Now as alumni, they belong to Chaminade’s global network. And like many of his fellow MBA ’23 graduates, Ethan Dayton had a vision for what he hoped to accomplish a year ago when he started the curriculum. 

“My goal at the end of this program is to have amassed new knowledge,” wrote Dayton, a year ago, “and skills that expand my career path options.” 

Indeed, by all accounts, his and the entire cohort’s goals were beyond achieved.