Hawaii

Plus, Maryland has brought Internet access to Smith Island; Hawaii has launched a Digital Navigator Program; students in El Paso, Texas, will receive digital and AI skills instruction, and more.

In 2016, Hawaii's governor announced the “Cool Classrooms Initiative" in response to public outcry. Nearly 10 years and more than $120 million later, Hawaii still has no reliable plan to cool its classrooms.

This effort to speed up the Honolulu Department of Planning and Permitting’s ability to process new building permit applications is scheduled to begin next month, city officials say.

From vibe coding to homeschooling to academic support and personalization, artificial intelligence tools are powering new trends and possibilities for both teachers and students in schools across the state.

More than 45,000 residents living in Hawaii’s public housing communities soon will have access to high-speed fiber Internet under a new public-private partnership.

The university approved a five-year contract with EAB Navigate360 and Edify to use various data points to find at-risk students, such as whether they log into their online courses, use library resources or pay tuition on time.

Modernizing the state system will require more than just new technology. The undertaking will include a careful “change management” process to receive input and feedback from Hawaii staffers.

The state Office of Enterprise Technology Services has developed myHawaii, a secure site through which residents can access dozens of agencies and services by signing in just once.

Online crime cost Hawaii residents $55 million last year with people age 60 and over losing more than $18 million, according to the Federal Bureau of Investigation’s 2024 Internet Crime Report.

The university system's students and staff have free access to “AI Essentials,” a five-hour course in the Google Career Certificate program that teaches people to use AI responsibly and effectively.

While cybersecurity remains a high priority for many CIOs, we spoke to technology leaders to understand what other skills are difficult to find when recruiting new talent.

Honolulu's new CIO and director of the Department of Information Technology will officially step in, in January. However, the transition is expected to get underway next month, affording an interval of collaboration.

Plus, Oregon announces more than $100 million in funding for broadband, more states have been awarded federal funding, a new report aims to support nonprofit organizations in their digital equity work, and more.

Plus, Hawaii has launched a broadband mapping initiative, Boston has announced more than $1 million for digital equity, and more.

An 826-ton buoy hooked up at the U.S. Navy's Wave Energy Test Site off the coast of Oahu will be connected to the state's electrical grid by an undersea cable, making a small but important move away from fossil fuels.

Chief Information Officer Christine Sakuda explains how the COVID-19 pandemic highlighted the need to update older technologies, but the state workforce will also need new skills to support modern services.

The amount is in addition to $184,000 awarded to the state last year, on top of $222,000 granted in late 2020 as part of an initiative to protect children from lead in drinking water in Hawaii.

The university will use a grant from the National Science Foundation to improve its hardware and software, as well as train more than 200 undergraduates and 16 graduate students to apply advanced technologies to research.