{"id":148993,"date":"2021-10-01T09:57:10","date_gmt":"2021-10-01T19:57:10","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.hawaii.edu\/news\/?p=148993"},"modified":"2024-03-15T22:36:05","modified_gmt":"2024-03-16T08:36:05","slug":"pbn-young-innovator-honorees","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.hawaii.edu\/news\/2021\/10\/01\/pbn-young-innovator-honorees\/","title":{"rendered":"PBN<\/abbr> young innovator honorees are UH<\/abbr> M\u0101noa alumni"},"content":{"rendered":"Reading time: <\/span> 3<\/span> minutes<\/span><\/span>
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Kevin Nguyen<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Four University of Â鶹´«Ã½<\/span> at M\u0101noa<\/a> alumni were featured among the state\u2019s top innovators under the age of 25 by Pacific Business News<\/em><\/a> (PBN<\/abbr>). The publication recognized six young entrepreneurs who are bucking the status quo in various technology sectors.<\/p>\n

Kevin Nguyen<\/h2>\n

A 2019 communication<\/a> graduate with a focus on information technology, Nguyen, 24, is the program assistant for UH<\/abbr> M\u0101noa esports, one of the fastest growing organizations on campus. Under the guidance of Nguyen and Nyle Sky Kauweloa<\/strong>, a communication and information sciences<\/a> PhD<\/abbr> student and head of the UH<\/abbr> M\u0101noa Esports Task Force in the College of Social Sciences<\/a>, more than a dozen students assisted with tournament operations for four summer Overwatch League (OWL<\/abbr>) tournaments and OWL<\/abbr>\u2019s playoffs and grand finals, which were all hosted by UH<\/abbr> M\u0101noa.<\/p>\n

Nguyen says while he has helped propel the esports program into the national spotlight, he still has a lot more he wants to get done.<\/p>\n

“In the collegiate esports program, I want to create a pathway for students to get jobs,” Nguyen said. “We\u2019re slowly getting there—one student got to work at Riot Games<\/em> (a top esports publishing company) and another got to Valve<\/em> (a major video game developer)—but I want to continue doing that. All this does is make me want to work harder. Although I got this award, I want to really prove it.”<\/p>\n

Related UH<\/abbr> News<\/em> stories:<\/p>\n