In this episode, Marco Ciappelli sits down with Hoala Greevy, founder of Paubox, to discuss a mission-driven initiative aimed at changing the face of the technology industry. What started as a celebratory giveaway of spam musubi for Paubox customers has evolved into the Paubox Kahikina Scholarship, a recurring $1,000 annual grant for Native Hawaiian students pursuing careers in STEM and technology.
In this episode, Marco Ciappelli sits down with Hoala Greevy, founder of Paubox, to discuss a mission-driven initiative aimed at changing the face of the technology industry. What started as a celebratory giveaway of spam musubi for Paubox customers has evolved into the Paubox Kahikina Scholarship, a recurring $1,000 annual grant for Native Hawaiian students pursuing careers in STEM and technology.
Key Highlights: • The Mission: To encourage Native Hawaiians—who are significantly underrepresented in tech and medical fields—to pursue and stay in STEM careers. • The Impact: Since 2019, the scholarship has grown from a single recipient to 62, providing both financial aid and direct access to a professional network. • Beyond the Money: Recipients share their college journeys through annual blog posts or vlogs, creating a community of future leaders. • New Milestones: Hoala discusses the scholarship's recent 501(c)(3) nonprofit status, opening the doors for corporate partnerships and expanded funding.
How to Support or Apply: If you are a Native Hawaiian student pursuing STEM, or if you are interested in donating to the fund, visit the link below: •
Website: https://www.paubox.com/kahikina-stem-scholarship
• Application Deadline: May 31st.
Marco's Website: https://www.marcociappelli.com
ITSPmagazine: https://www.ITSPmagazine.com
Marco Ciappelli: All right, I’m rolling. I’m in an office in San Francisco with my friend Hoala, whom I met at a dinner the other night.
Hoala Greevy: That’s right. A common friend—it’s a small world.
Marco Ciappelli: You were telling me that you started a nonprofit in 2019, and I’m here to hear all about it and share the news. So, first of all, tell me a little bit about you, and then we can jump into the news you want to announce.
Hoala Greevy: Sure. My name is Hoala Greevy, founder of Paubox. We specialize in HIPAA-compliant email security. I built the company in Hawaii and moved it shortly thereafter to San Francisco so we would be taken seriously.
In our first year in business, we had a hundred customers, so I thought it’d be neat to give away a hundred spam musubi and a hundred pairs of socks. Spam musubi is a snack in Hawaii made with rice and spam.
Marco Ciappelli: I’ve never been, so it's on my to-do list.
Hoala Greevy: It’s a cool snack. When we hit 500 customers, we did 500 spam musubi, and by the time we reached a thousand, it was three or four hundred pounds of food. It was getting expensive, and I thought there might be better leverage here to celebrate the opportunity we’ve been given.
So, I created a scholarship out of that, starting with one student in 2019, Nick Wong. It’s a recurring scholarship of $1,000 until the student graduates. Its mission is to encourage Native Hawaiians like myself to pursue careers in STEM or technology. Since 2019, we have grown to 62 recipients, with about 50 still active. We gave away $50,000 in scholarships last year. All we ask is that they stay in school and produce one piece of content per year describing their college journey, like a blog post or a vlog.
Marco Ciappelli: What age do they need to be to get the scholarship?
Hoala Greevy: College age. A lot of applicants are freshmen, but we also have juniors, seniors, and a few pursuing PhDs and Master's degrees. We just let the scholarship keep rolling. Recently, we applied for and were granted 501(c)(3) nonprofit status with the IRS. That came about because corporate entities wanted to donate but needed a tax ID.
Marco Ciappelli: We’re standing here with photos that your dad took, and it looks like you’re very attached to your land. Is the lack of awareness about tech in Hawaii the reason you decided to help?
Hoala Greevy: Native Hawaiians are very underrepresented in STEM. Studies show that while Native Hawaiians make up about 24% of the population in Hawaii, they only represent about 5% of doctors and dentists. It’s exponential underrepresentation in careers that pay really well. We want to encourage kids to take a closer look at technology. There aren’t many Native Hawaiian tech CEOs—I’m one of maybe four to ten in the world.
Marco Ciappelli: That’s impressive. Is your vision for these kids to start their own businesses or find other opportunities in tech once they graduate?
Hoala Greevy: We would very much like to encourage that. A majority of them want to return home and have meaningful careers in Hawaii. For those who want to start a business, we want to be helpful. I even became an angel investor in a startup one of our students started.
The two big ideas behind the scholarship are financial aid and access to our network. If we can plug these recipients into my professional network, we can accelerate their development.
Marco Ciappelli: It’s a chain of goodness—when you help someone, they hopefully do the same for others.
Hoala Greevy: Exactly. I received a scholarship for being a Hawaiian academic, but that scholarship no longer exists, so I thought I should do something about that.
Marco Ciappelli: How can people apply or help grow this?
Hoala Greevy: Visit our website at paubox.com and scroll to the bottom to find the Paubox Kahikina Scholarship, which I named after my Tutu, my grandma. There is a link to apply and another to donate via Stripe. The application period is open until May 31st. If you’re a Native Hawaiian pursuing STEM, we encourage you to apply.
Marco Ciappelli: I really enjoyed meeting you and having dinner. Hopefully, this helps grow the network.
Hoala Greevy: I appreciate it, Marco. Thank you very much.