Yes. Families, students and young adults on any Hawaiian island can work with a dedicated Blackburn mentor by video. Sessions are scheduled in Hawaii-Aleutian Standard Time, which does not change for daylight saving, so your session time stays put all year. Our team is in Los Angeles, two or three hours ahead depending on the season, which leaves plenty of room for after-school and evening sessions.
An island state, where distance is part of daily life
Hawaii is a chain of islands in the middle of the Pacific, roughly 2,500 miles from the West Coast. Most residents live on Oahu, in and around Honolulu, but families on Maui, Kauai, Hawaii Island, Molokai and Lanai often find that the help they want is on another island or on the mainland. A flight between islands is short but not something anyone does weekly.
That is where video makes sense. A mentor who meets online is equally close to a family in Hilo, a student in Kailua and a young adult in Kihei. Sessions also travel with the person, so they continue when a student leaves for school on the mainland or a family spends the summer with relatives.
How Hawaii makes a living
The state economy rests on a few large pillars, and they shape the options young people see:
- Tourism and hospitality, the largest private sector, with hotel, restaurant and tour jobs on every island.
- The military and federal government, with a major presence on Oahu and many military families who move in and out.
- Health care, education and state government, which employ a large share of professionals.
- Construction, agriculture and small business, including diversified farming that replaced much of the old sugar and pineapple land.
With a high cost of living and a short list of familiar paths, many young adults weigh building a career at home against leaving for the mainland. A mentor helps turn that into a real plan.
School and college in Hawaii, in general terms
Hawaii is unusual in running a single statewide public school system rather than many local districts. Independent and faith-based schools also have a strong presence, especially on Oahu, and plenty of families have experience with both.
After high school, students can stay in the state public university system, with campuses on several islands, or start at one of the community colleges spread across the islands. A large number of graduates head to the mainland for college, which is a bigger move than crossing a state line: new climate, new time zone, no quick weekend trip home. Students also come to Hawaii from the mainland and abroad, and they face the same adjustment in reverse.
What that means at each stage
High school students
Mentors help with weekly planning, homework routines, motivation and the steps toward whatever comes after graduation. A parent or guardian joins the intro call, agrees the goals and gets regular progress updates. See mentoring for high school students.
College students, especially those far from home
A student five time zones from family can struggle quietly for weeks before anyone knows. A mentor meets them by video wherever they study and helps with routines, classes and homesickness. Read homesick in the first year of college and mentoring for college students.
Young adults and professionals
Whether the question is a first job, a move off island, saving toward a place of your own or a career change, young adult mentoring turns it into weekly steps you can actually take.
Pages for areas in Hawaii
Our area page for the state is online mentoring in Honolulu. For anywhere else in Hawaii, start with how online mentoring works, or browse all states on mentoring by state. Families with relatives on the West Coast may also find San Diego or Seattle useful.
How a mentor fits for Hawaii families
Mentors are not tutors, therapists or admissions counselors. They are one steady adult who meets weekly, keeps goals concrete and checks in by text or phone between sessions. With permission, they share progress with family and coordinate with professionals already involved. For a household view, see mentoring for families.
Related
- Online mentoring in Honolulu
- College transition mentoring
- Gap year mentoring
- Online vs in-person mentoring
Common questions
What time zone are sessions in for Hawaii?
Hawaii-Aleutian Standard Time. Hawaii does not observe daylight saving, so Los Angeles is two hours ahead in winter and three hours ahead in summer, and we handle the conversion for you.
Can you work with families on Maui, Kauai or Hawaii Island, not just Oahu?
Yes. Everything is by video, so any island with a reliable connection works the same way.
My child is leaving Hawaii for college on the mainland. Can the mentor keep working with them?
Yes. The mentor can start before the move and keep meeting by video after, scheduled in the student’s new local time, with progress updates to you if the student agrees.
Get started
Want to talk about a student or young adult in Hawaii? Call (888) 305 5422, email contact@blackburnmentoring.com or start with a short assessment. A member of our team reviews every assessment personally and sets up a free intro call.