Hawaiʻi Community College and UH Maui College are teaming up on a one-year certificate that turns students into front-line fixers for the islands’ aging cesspools and strained water systems. The new Onsite Wastewater Treatment Systems Specialist certificate blends hands-on fieldwork with design and sustainability classes so graduates can step straight into real-world projects. The timing is pointed, coming after recent Kona storms showed how failing wastewater systems can send contamination coursing through neighborhoods and coastal waters.
The 23-credit certificate, which can be wrapped up in about a year, mixes classroom instruction in wastewater treatment and construction with experiential learning and a required internship, according to UH Maui College. The program page notes that students work in teams on capstone assessments and produce engineering-style drawings that contractors and homeowners can actually put to use in the field.
Funding and support
The program is backed by the national Workforce for Water effort and grant funding that helps pay student stipends and launch the training, the University of Hawaiʻi reports. Local coverage points out that the National Science Foundation ATE Workforce for Water grant helped underwrite the pilot, and that eligible students may qualify for completion stipends and tuition assistance, Maui News found. The programs are also listed on the state's Eligible Training Provider List, which can allow Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act funds to cover tuition for those who meet the requirements.
Why it matters
The Hawaiʻi Department of Health estimates there are roughly 88,000 cesspools across the state and points to Act 125, passed in 2017, which requires every one of them to be removed or upgraded by 2050. The Department of Health lays out the scope of that deadline, while project coordinators told Maui Now that “entire communities were inundated with hazardous dirty water” during recent storms, a blunt reminder that the islands need more trained workers ready to step in.
Student perspective
“I really enjoy the mix of theoretical and practical information that the course provides,” said student Marina Kukso, who told Maui Now she hopes to join the wastewater industry after finishing the certificate. Program organizers say the curriculum is built with career changers and current tradespeople in mind, giving them credentials that can get them onto cesspool replacement and installation crews quickly.
How to apply
UH Maui College and Hawaiʻi Community College are now enrolling students for a new cohort that begins in August 2026, with financial assistance opportunities available for those who qualify, according to program materials. For course schedules, scholarship details and enrollment help, prospective students can contact Charlotte Cheek at [email protected] or see the UH Maui College and Hawaiʻi Community College program pages.
