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Alumni Bubba Au, a recent political science graduate and only child from Maui, said his parents taught him to be “stubborn in a good way.” “Sometimes you gotta put your foot down for what you believe is right in spite of what others may say,” said Au of his parents’ teachings growing up. Just a little over half Hawaiian, he also listed Chinese, French, German, and Portuguese as part of his conglomerate cultural heritage. Au attended the same high school his parents did—Kamehameha Schools—a private school designed to foster a greater knowledge among native Hawaiian students of their Hawaiian ancestry. “Everyone there was Hawaiian in some form. If you were to ask you'd say, ‘Well, they don't look Hawaiian,’ but they were,” said Au. “I've come to associate Hawaii with the gospel. Even though we don't look the same, act the same, talk the same, in spite of that, we’re still the same. We’re still one people regardless of all the eccentricities history has impressed upon time. In spite of all the identities we take upon ourselves, we are still one in some form.” His last two years at Kamehameha Schools set in motion a love for film and editing, because he chose the Arts and Communications Academy at the school as his emphasis. Currently, Au interns at BYU-Hawaii’s Media Production Services, where he worked during the majority of his university schooling. Through his time working there, Au said he has filmed devotionals, live broadcasts, Seasider basketball games, been tackled by basketball players in the process, and learned how to handle complicated, expensive equipment. “I enjoy it because it helps you understand how constructed our world is,” said Au. “Everything we see comes from a perspective, all sorts of different things. There's always a specific point of view. And in political science, too. I learned in my major that a lot of things are artificially constructed.” Troy Smith, professor of Political Science, and one of Au’s teachers, said upon meeting Au, he thought he was shy, but through more interaction discovered him to be intelligent and very thoughtful. “I admired his intelligence, his steadiness. Bubba is someone you can rely on. He’s quiet, he doesn’t need a lot of attention, but you give him an assignment, and he takes care of it,” Smith stated. “Get to know him. He is a great guy.” Political science was a choice, Au said, highly motivated by its lack of mathematical curriculum—or at least that was his reasoning behind the initial decision. But after reading, taking the classes, and having the opportunity to spend a week in Washington, D.C., he came to understand that it’s “complicated to try and understand humanity.” Au said he found life in D.C. to be a very fast-paced, different way of life, and enjoyed being able to interact with legislators and political science students from other BYU schools. “Politics in general is difficult to understand because there are so many things going on,” said Au. “At its most basic level, it deals with the concerns and needs of people, and when you have a country with over 300 million people, it’s difficult to satisfy everyone.” Going to D.C. was one opportunity BYUH offered him, but another was a 3-month trip teaching English in Thailand. “I learned I can’t be quick to judge a situation or circumstance,” said Au, who described living with a family in a small village with dirt roads, in a house that wasn’t fully constructed and sleeping with bed nets, using squat toilets and water that, despite being drinkable, appeared slightly yellowish. “Despite all those difficulties, they had satellite TV, a fridge, a government health clinic just down the road, and basic Wi-Fi that you had to huddle close to for it to work. In spite of all these difficulties, they lived happy lives. It made me feel more grateful for what I have, having been born in a first-world country. I learned that I can tolerate a lot more than I thought I could.” Au had difficulties of his own and admitted the past decade has been the hardest 10 years of his life. “A month and a half before graduating high school, my mother suffered a stroke,” said Au. “And this is my mother, my mother who is knowledgeable and faithful –so to see her slowly degrade over the years has been very sad.” Both of Au’s parents are living in care facilities back in Maui. His father is a retired veteran. Au joked about how his parents, despite always teaching him to be a good person, also taught him through example what not to do. He said he learned to “magnify the best in them, but stay away from the bad parts.” “In whatever difficulties I’ve encountered in my life,” he continued, “they have always shown me the deepest devotion and love, and I'll always appreciate them for that, as much as any child would hope to.” Au said his parents transferring him to Kamehameha Schools in 3rd grade was their way of teaching him appreciation for his culture. “It helped to establish the lineage I come from,” said Au. “It’s a very special culture. I come from a culture that explored the Pacific Ocean. It was the world’s largest expanse of ocean, and they explored it. I hail from that culture. They were highly intelligent in what they were capable of. They used advanced astrological navigation in their sea voyaging and constructed great works of architecture.” Au said he looks to the future, hoping to attend graduate school in the mainland but said it can sometimes be daunting to think about. “It has been difficult and it continues to be difficult,” said Au, “because it’s getting out of the house and trying to figure out what kind of person you are, and realizing you got a long way to go. And every day is different. But in spite of all this, I can still be content.” Uploaded Feb. 4, 2016

Decorating a rental or dorm room can be a struggle with limitations on space, practicality, and a lack of inspiration. However, BYU-Hawaii has resources to help students decorate their rooms with a little creativity. The Copy Center has a die-cut machine that can punch out paper graphics. The images that can be cut include people, animals, holiday themed figures, and many others. Brinley Fox, a sophomore in exercise sports science from California, and part of the Copy Center staff, said, “You have to use our paper to use the die-cut machine. We also have pre-made cutouts. You get 20 images for a dollar.” Erin Akinaka, a senior history major from California, commented, “I like to make my own art. I use drawings I’ve done in class or collages I’ve made from magazines.” The Copy Center supplies a box of free magazines, old books, and pictures that can be used for collages, decorating, and even school projects. Hannah Packard, a senior in EXS from California, said, “I cut out letters from magazines and write out words or quotes for my walls. It looks really cool and I like being creative with the pictures I cut up.” Fox said, “You can use any of the paper cutters and magazines for free. You can use glue sticks, scissors, crayons, markers, all kind of stuff for free here at the Copy Center.” The lamination machine allows students to preserve the artwork or posters they create. The Copy Center can also print out posters and pictures in 8.5” x 11”, 8.5” x 14”, and 11” x 17”. Packard said, “My friend gave me a poster she printed at the Copy Center. It looked so cool and it was in color.” One single-sided color print costs $1.15 for an 8.5” x 11”, $1.75 for 8.5” x 14”, and $2.30 for 11” x 17”. “It makes it difficult and takes us a while to figure out the format when international students use the metric system,” said Sandy Sproat, a senior in social work and a Media Lab assistant, when speaking of students who have brought preformatted images to the Copy Center. The Copy Center is a resource for students to create art and designs to decorate their rooms, but there are other ways to be creative. Akinaka said, “I like going to garage sales and getting paintings and art from them. What I mostly have in my house are things people have given me—photos or drawings they did. It’s like a memory thing.”

Miley Cyrus remains loose and at large in the media, leaving little to remind us of her innocent Disney Channel beginning. Miley Cyrus is not the only child star to change over the years. Stars from students’ younger Disney days when they watched “Even Stevens,” “That’s So Raven,” and “Lizzie McGuire,” are in fact still living, breathing, and (as far as anyone can tell) sane. The name of Louis Stevens should ring a bell when it comes to “Even Stevens.” A rounder and less scruffy Shia LaBeouf played the character of Louis, a rabble-rousing boy with a knack for getting in trouble at school and annoying his older sister, Christy Carlson Romano. She later voiced Kim in Disney’s “Kim Possible” and was married in Dec. 2013. Since “Even Stevens,” LaBeouf has starred in movies like "Transformers," "Disturbia," "Eagle Eye," and the fourth installment of "Indiana Jones." Although LaBeouf has starred in these movies, he is no longer popular, according to his Twitter account where he posted, “I’m not famous anymore.” LaBeouf’s tweet was an attempt to get people to stop paying attention to him, which unintentionally gave rise to public and comedic backlash.Conan O’Brien used LaBeouf’s tweet as a punch line in his clip of “Animals React to Shia LeBeouf’s Retirement.”Many child stars have made a mess of their fame, but Raven Symone, who starred in “That’s So Raven” (2003-2007,) managed to keep herself under the radar and respected. “It’s cool that she’s kind of off the grid and not a mess. That isn’t the case with most Disney stars. You have to respect it when people don’t get too stoked on their fame and glory,” said Mariah Hunt, senior in ICS from California. Hunt went said she was appreciative of present-day Raven-Symoné’s relatively low profile and good sense.Raven-Symoné is currently 28 years old and in Aug. 2013 confirmed buzzing rumors about her homosexuality.Raven Symone’s sexual orientation and personal life has been kept quiet, keeping it a “private matter,” but Hilary Duff’s personal life is out in the open. Another child star from the Disney show “Lizzie McGuire,” Duff has stayed relatively well known in the acting world since her Disney career. She starred in “A Cinderella Story,” with Chad Michael Murray, “The Perfect Man,” “Raise Your Voice,” and “Cheaper By the Dozen.” She also landed a role in season three of the drama series, “Gossip Girl.”Duff’s latest personal life headlines were on ABC News which read Aaron Carter, spurred on by the recent amicable divorce from her hockey-player husband Mike Comrie, is pining for Duff and isn’t afraid to let it show. The article states, “The 26-year-old musician re-tweeted a photo of Hilary Duff, also 26, along with the caption: ‘Hilary Duff is flawless.’ Carter said in an old interview that he and Duff began dating on his thirteenth birthday.” Duff and Comrie agreed to co-parent their son and said they are intent on remaining good friends.

The Copy Center, located in the Joseph F. Smith Library, has been a reliable resource, say students and community members alike, when it comes to putting together spot-on presentations.“I love and adore the Copy Center. This place is fabulous,” said Pat Hunt, BYU alumnae and longtime Laie resident on a customer survey giving positive feedback about the center. Among the center’s many services that include binding, lamination, assorted colored paper, display boards, and even a fax service, the center has a media development center.Maria Fonoimoana-Feagai, who manages the Copy Center, said there have been a couple presentations produced by the Copy Center that have gone on to national competitions. One instance was when a mother and her daughter worked in the center on a display board for History Day.“I saw [the daughter] at church and she ran up to me and gave me a big hug. ‘We won! We won! We won!” said Fonoimoana-Feagai.The Copy Center’s services are not limited to creating post board presentations. The center is more than capable in helping those who want to make ideal exhibits that aren’t limited to card board.“We do so much more than copies. We do lamination, projects, and study groups come in here,” Fonoimoana-Feagai said. “It’s a place to come and be creative.”In February, the Copy Center promoted itself by letting students make free Valentine’s cards. Students who came to the Copy Center to make cards were unaware of the center’s whereabouts.“We had a promotional thing where students could come in and make their own Valentine’s Day cards. Several people said, ‘I didn’t even know this place was here. I would’ve come here sooner. I didn’t know you could do [things] here,’” Fonoimoana-Feagai said.There has been talk of changing the location of the center’s entrance. Currently, it’s tucked away in the corner of the library, two lefts from the main lobby. It would have cost $10,000 to make the necessary renovations for a more pronounced entrance. “I have an art background and I always like to make suggestions. I can evaluate what their topic is and think about what colors would present it best that would make it eye-catching, but appropriate,” said Fonoimoana-Feagai. Employees who work at the center can assist students on how to better make presentations from small critiques to color schemes. “I think the most rewarding thing is that we are definitely a family,” said Honu Lindsey, a freshmen majoring in biology from Waimea, Hawaii.

While most BYU-Hawaii students were enjoying sunshine in Hawaii, a group of students from the Polynesian Cultural Center were performing the hula in the snow in the 64th Sapporo Snow Festival in Hokkaido, Japan. J. Alan Walker was the leader of the promotional entertainment team for PCC. He said, “The performers actually performed their first show in bare feet [on ice]. That was more of a painful memory than a fun one…. The performers further improvised by wearing normal socks covered with a plastic bag and thermal socks on top of that. It kept their feet warm.” Walker said dancing in front of the snow sculptures of Maruko, a Japanese well-known animation character, was a remarkable experience. “We performed three times a day, on a snow stage outdoors, in the underground walkway stage, and also for the Hokkaido Prefectural government leaders at the Hokkaido Prefectural Government Office in Sapporo.” Walker said local television and newspapers covered the on-ice-hula performances. “The thought of hula dancers in the snow was very unique and attractive to the media and general consumers,” he said. The PCC promotional entertainment team was sponsored by JTB Hawaii, Hawaii Tourism Japan, and Hawaiian Airlines to visit Japan to promote Hawaii and the new direct Hawaiian Airlines flight between Sapporo and Honolulu. Team members included six student dancers, PCC Theater Directors Ellen Gay and Dela Rosa, and the Musician & Sound recording/arranging Specialist Milton Kaka. Walker said PCC has other performances planned for the future including the three-time World Fire Knife Champion David Galeai of Laie. The PCC has also been invited to perform at the 2013 Odaiba Hawaii Festival in Tokyo, Japan, with a 15-man promotional team in late April and early May. Rani Anandan, an anthropology senior from American Samoa as well as a performer in Ali’i Luau at PCC, said dancing in bare feet is not easy, but “as a dancer, I wouldn’t mind or worry about the natural condition. Dancing with the spirit is more important. It is a cultural pride to dance regardless the natural condition.” Miki Mateo, a senior in ICS from Japan, said, “Although the weather was cool, I could see a warm spirit surrounding the dancers.” When she saw the performers’ photos on Facebook, she said she was impressed by their attitude. “The dancers were smiling the whole time and it was awesome. I know Hokkaido is a very cold place.” The Sapporo Snow Festival is one of Japan’s largest winter events and attracts about 2 million people to see the snow statues and ice sculptures every winter, says the festival’s website.

With a power outage, a record kickoff return, a blink-and-you'll-miss-it scoring flurry and the biggest goal-line stand of Ray Lewis' long career, the Baltimore Ravens' 34-31 victory over the San Francisco 49ers on Feb. 3 was a popular topic of conversation across BYU-Hawaii campus and the various social media networks. The game had a slow first half, as the Ravens steamrolled San Francisco to a 21-6 lead. When Jacoby Jones returned the opening kick of the second half 108 yards for another Baltimore touchdown, most folks at home headed for the kitchen, happy to have seen Beyonce's Destiny's Child reunion and leaving their TVs on just so they could see the commercials. Then the power went out. And the game's entire atmosphere changed. “I liked when the lights went out because it gave me a chance to get some laundry done. I’m not a typical super bowl watcher but because of the peer pressure of people here at school I decided to go and watch it anyway. I’m from San Francisco so I was behind the 49ers but I don’t have a strong preference.” Said Aaron Tracy, a junior in IT from San Francisco, who watched most intently during the second half of the game as his team made their unexpected comeback.The 49ers that could only manage two field goals in the first half went on a scoring frenzy, ripping off 23 points in a little over 12 minutes. When they reached the Baltimore 5 yard line just before the two-minute warning, the unprecedented comeback was almost complete.But the Ravens defense stopped quarterback Colin Kaepernick and the 49ers not once, not twice, but three times, forcing them to turn the ball over on downs. Then Baltimore tried to run the clock out. San Francisco wound up with a safety, but did nothing with the final kickoff. The Ravens ran onto the field, the confetti fell and, just like that, it was done. This year’s Super Bowl was hosted in the New Orleans Super Dome, its first hosting since the tragedy of Hurricane Katrina. While the power outage had the potential to embarrass the city, Mayor Mitch Landrieu took the hiccup with a positive stride saying, "The 34 minutes of darkness will never overshadow or outshine the city of New Orleans and how we performed this Super Bowl week." New Orleans plans to bid for an 11th Superbowl in 2018 despite this years setback. And skeptics can rest assured Beyonce’s halftime performance was not to blame as she brought her own generator.

Kristin Bryant signed a publishing contract for her first book days before she was diagnosed with breast cancer. As an LDS wife and mother, the news of her cancer hit her hard, but the experience of writing and publishing her fiction novel, “The Others,” along with defeating cancer, has been a rewarding one. “I don’t regret it. I have some mental toughness because I weathered the storm,” said Bryant.“I love that I went through cancer. Best experience of my life,” Bryant said to a small group of BYU-Hawaii students that went to her event hosted by the English Circle. Bryant spoke to the students about lessons she learned about publishing and life.According to Bryant, pain and discomfort are crucial to becoming excellent at something. “Discomfort is where greatness lives. People are that really, really great at something get there because they were uncomfortable with how things were.” She distilled her wisdom concerning motivation to develop talents into the three topics of discipline, discomfort and endurance. Bryant said her success at writing came with hard work and with God’s help. “Once you show Heavenly Father that you are willing to work hard at something, suddenly he can use you.”Seven Zhang Baysa, a recent graduate of psychology from China, enjoyed Bryant’s presentation. “It touched me to hear about discipline and motivation from someone with that experience. I knew it wasn’t just theory because she had actually gone through something,” she said. Zhang Baysa said her favorite phrase Bryant said was, “There is no growth in the comfort zone, and no comfort in the growth zone.”Bryant learned this when she began writing. The thought “what if people from other worlds came to this one looking for evidence of their savior?” became the inspiration for her book, “The Others.” After a three year process of writing, sending the manuscript to publishers, receiving 20 rejection letters, and re-writing the book, she finally was accepted by Sourced Media Books.” I kept writing and looking for publishers because I felt that this idea came from somewhere other than me, so it clearly needs to be out there,” said Bryant. Writing “was something to look forward to during chemo too,” she said smiling.During those three years of writing and rewriting Bryant went through cancer treatment. “I did not know how to write a book when I started. I’m a lot more confident now,” said Bryant. She was eager to share her newfound knowledge of the publishing world, and stripped many aspiring authors in the audience of their rose-colored glasses. “When you go with a publisher, you have to make sacrifices for the business side of it, and it crushes the artist in you,” she said after explaining how a publisher has near total control over the book once the author signs the contract. Ben Halverson, a junior in English from Arizona, said “I loved her experience she shared with us about writing and developing a story, as well as the things that are often overlooked, like the difficulty of actually getting your book on the shelves and into the hands of readers.”“You don’t go into writing to make money. You do it because you love it, which is why you do anything that’s painful,” she stressed.