Best of CASE District VII Award
 

Institution: Mid-Pacific Institute

Title of entry: Coming Home to Mid-Pacific

About this entry: Pre-pandemic, Mid-Pacific Institute would host up to 500 people at its annual Alumni Pā‘ina every July. At the alumni celebration and engagement event, awards were given out, the 50th reunion class was honored, and alum from many other graduating years consecutively held class reunions to rekindle fond memories. Unfortunately, due to the pandemic, the in-person event was canceled in 2020.
Thankfully, Mid-Pacific Institute’s Director of Alumni Relations, Heidi Bow, spearheaded a monumental effort to reengage with alumni again in 2021 and pivoted the in-person Alumni Pā‘ina event into a heartwarming 30-minute video presentation that reached and engaged alumni in Hawaii and around the world.
With beautiful imagery, archival footage, lively interviews and compelling storytelling, Mid-Pacific’s “Coming Home to Mid-Pacific” premiered on Facebook Live on July 31, 2021. The video honored the Alumni of the Year, a graduate with outstanding service to Mid-Pacific, the 50th reunion class, and the Wa‘ahila Award winner, a person closely associated with the school who has excelled in their field of endeavor.
Through the arc of the video, Heidi established a renewed connection between alumni now dispersed around the world and Mid-Pacific, the place they once called home, encouraging them to continue their support for this progressive institution with examples and calls to action to give. By engaging with alumni through this video, Heidi also connected alumni of the past to the current school community, which led to greater philanthropic support, as so many alumni are extremely proud of what the school has become.