Kevin Kahuena is in his fourth year at Colorado Mesa University. Pursuing a double major in finance and hospitality management, Kahuena is committed to achieving personal success. He came to CMU as a freshman from O’ahu, Hawaii.
“The first club I joined at Mesa was the Ho’olokahi Polynesian Alliance. It was home away from home for me,” Kahuena said.
Kahuena has mastered the art of expanding outside of the personal comfort zone. He is now the president of the Ho’olokahi Polynesian Alliance, a resident assistant (RA), a senator in the Associated Student Government, a member of Hospitality Management Club and holds a seat on the Fee Allocation Committee.
As a RA on campus, Kahuena explains the challenges of the way residents perceive him initially, but he has been an RA since his freshman year and has learned how wonderful the position is, in addition to how hard it can be.
“The most rewarding aspect would definitely be making a difference in an individual person’s life,” Kahuena said.
Those who know Kahuena speak of his kindness, generosity, supportive character and passion to make other people happy.
“I just don’t understand why people wouldn’t be nice to others. I value relationships in life. What fun is doing things if you have no one to share it with,” Kahuena said. “I always put it into perspective that others may be going through things in their own personal life and why would I not want to brighten their day. I just love helping people.”
In any leadership position, sometimes it is necessary to not be everyone’s favorite person. However, when Kahuena corrects a problem, he phrases it so the person feels supported and appreciated, while also learning from their mistakes.
CMU’s reasonable tuition allows Kahuena to live 3,000 miles away from home, giving him many new learning opportunities.
“CMU’s impact on me? Wow… where to begin. Because of CMU I was able to travel the world and live in Japan while I studied abroad. Because of CMU, I was able to stand in the White House of the United States while attending the Colorado Capital Conference. It was because of CMU that I have attained scholarships, jobs and friendships,” Kahuena said.
“My biggest advice to an incoming freshman is to be adventurous,” Kahuena said. “Do things that you have never tried. This is the time in your life where you can challenge your values and morals and start becoming your own person with the influence of everyone around you.”
