In 2017-2018 the University of Hawai‘i Community Design Center (UHCDC) worked with the University of Hawai‘i Community Colleges (UHCC) to produce a proof of concept (POC) program and design for a Center for Workforce Excellence, to house UHCC classroom and administrative spaces, DOE offices, and Wahiawā State Library functions. In 2021, the state appropriated $42 million for the planning, design, and construction of the project, which will be managed by DOE. The update to the project included revisiting the proof of concept programs and designs to reflect recent discussions involving an expanded program, new partners, and design revisions based on the feedback generated from the original proof of concept design study.

Client: State of Hawaiʻi Department of Education
Project Supervisor: Kevin Miyamura, AIA
Project Staff: Rebecca Denzer
Project Team: Christopher Gaydosh, Elliot Lazo
Melise Nekoba, Khoa Nguyen, Mike Poscablo, Valerie Ribao
Project date: Summer 2017-2018, Spring 2022.