Adventures in the College Search

At Maui Prep, Academics stand as one of the school’s three foundational pillars, alongside Athletics and the Arts. True to this commitment, the school not only challenges students academically but also supports them in preparing for and gaining admission to colleges that align with their strengths, goals, and interests.

The Maui Prep College Center offers personalized, one-on-one guidance throughout the college search and application process. Students receive tailored support to help them explore options, clarify goals, and build a strong application. Each year, Upper School students engage in a series of structured activities designed to prepare them for the evolving demands of college admissions.

Three Maui Prep alumni share insights from their own college journeys—some looking forward with optimism, others offering perspective with the benefit of hindsight. Together, their experiences highlight the many paths to a "best fit" college and the role Maui Prep played their college admissions goals.

Aiming for the Sky: Samantha Teschler '25

For Samantha “Sam” Teschler ‘25, the path to college wasn't a winding road—it was a focused ascent toward a goal she set years ago. This summer, the recent Maui Prep graduate is headed to the United States Air Force Academy, a destination she began eyeing back in eighth grade.

“I remember we were driving past the Academy when we lived in Colorado,” Sam recalled. “I saw the airplanes and asked my parents what it was. That was it, I was hooked!”

Though she briefly explored other interests, including the FBI and crime scene investigation, aviation remained a steady presence in her imagination and ambition. By the end of her sophomore year, Sam was fully committed to pursuing a future as a military pilot.

As she progressed through Maui Prep’s Upper School, Sam enrolled in classes and activities that would support her application to the US service academies. “The Air Force Academy looks for candidates who are well-rounded, so it’s not being necessarily the best in any specific category, but just doing well across the board.” Sam served in leadership roles in the Student Senate, played tennis for the Pueo and was a fixture on the Maui Prep Performing Arts stage with lead roles in “Bye Bye Birdie” and “The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee.”

What followed was an application journey unlike most. Unlike traditional college admissions, gaining entry to a service academy requires not only academic and extracurricular excellence, but also a congressional nomination and a series of physical, medical, and character assessments.

“It’s a long and layered process,” Sam explained about the application process. “I had to apply for nominations from Hawaii Senators Brian Schatz and Mazie Hirono, and US Representative Jill Tokuda, each with their own interviews and essays. At the same time, I was writing my application essays, training for the physical assessment, and completing medical evaluations.”

Sam ultimately received nominations from all three Hawaii members of Congress and applied to the Air Force Academy, Naval Academy, and West Point, though the Air Force remained her first choice. She was accepted to all three.

Throughout it all, Sam says Maui Prep provided structure, encouragement, and opportunities that shaped her preparation. From academic advising to leadership roles and hands-on passion projects, the school’s focus on individualized college preparation made a difference.

Her participation in year-long passion projects also gave her the freedom to test her interests. “I did a project on crime scene investigation in sophomore year, which was really fun,” she shared. “But it also helped me realize it wasn’t the direction I wanted to go. I pivoted to aviation in junior and senior year, and those projects helped me articulate that passion in my essays.” Her senior capstone project highlighted women in aviation.

Sam’s determination to pursue aviation extended to her college list as well. She applied only to schools that offered aviation or ROTC programs. Her top civilian choice was Baylor University, where she could have earned her commercial pilot’s license by her sophomore year. “But I always knew the Academy was the dream,” she said.

Sam reported for Basic Cadet Training on June 25: six intense weeks designed to test physical and mental endurance. After that, she will begin her academic career, likely majoring in military and strategic studies, a field that combines her love of puzzles and problem-solving with her interest in service and national defense.

Sam’s journey stands as a powerful example of what’s possible when a student identifies a dream early and builds a plan to achieve it with determination, adaptability, and the support of a school community that believes in the pursuit of passion.

A Clemson Man Through and Through: Griffin Gibson ‘20

Griffin Gibson didn’t just choose Clemson—he was built for it. His determination and drive to join the ranks of Clemson alumni in his family was well-known on the Maui Prep campus. 

The Class of 2020 Maui Prep alum had his heart set on the South Carolina university early on, and he backed it up his desire to join the university with action: summer camps, early connections, and a resume tailor-made to stand out. Griffin is proud of his legacy status and Clemson pedigree. “I’m the 13th person in my family to graduate from Clemson,” Gibson says. “If you include second cousins, it’s 26.” Still, the decision to go there wasn’t about pressure. “I didn’t feel forced. If anything, it made me feel connected—to the school, the history. I wasn’t just a kid who toured once.”

That familiarity came from years of visiting campus and attending summer programs. From 8th to 11th grade, Gibson returned to Clemson each summer. “Those camps were huge,” he says. “They helped me understand the culture, and the hope was Clemson would get to know me too.” One summer, he met an admissions counselor who later remembered him—and even connected with Maui Prep’s college counselor before his admission. “Having someone in your corner helps more than you know.” Griffin also enrolled in every AP class the school offered, both to challenge himself and to demonstrate that he could handle the rigorous courses he would encounter in college. 

Like many high schoolers, Gibson toured other schools—Arizona, Baylor, Auburn—but none clicked the way Clemson did. “I walked out of one campus tour five minutes in,” he laughs. “I just knew.”

Griffin fit right into Clemson life. He joined a fraternity his sophomore year, and set his sights on joining Clemson’s athletic media team. He pitched creative ideas to the university’s PR office and athletic department—and both said yes. “Clemson’s been a leader in collegiate media for years. The access and experience I got there was unreal.” That work led to travel with the basketball team during their March Madness run to the Elite Eight in 2024. “Incredible,” he says. “I don’t think I could’ve had that anywhere else.”

Griffin parlayed the media experiences into a videography business, specializing in immersive drone videos that take viewers soaring through hotels, colleges, and even “adult arcades.” Today, Gibson lives just 50 minutes from the Clemson campus, where he’s launched a full-time videography business, specializing in indoor drone flythroughs.

Calling an Audible: Caleb Chumley ‘22

Caleb Chumley ‘22 feels lucky to attend his dream university. Raised in Hawaii, he imagined a future at a school on the West Coast. But in a story that’s part serendipity, part self-discovery, Caleb ended up finding his perfect college match over 4,000 miles away—thanks to one well-timed suggestion.

“Prior to my senior year, a mentor suggested I take a look at Notre Dame,” Caleb said. “I had obviously heard of it, but I didn’t know much beyond the name.” Caleb had not explored many universities beyond the west coast. Proximity, familiarity, and climate are major factors for students who live on Maui. 

At the time, Caleb had already applied to Stanford, but he decided to take a chance on the University of Notre Dame. Caleb and his family made the trek to South Bend, Indiana. The campus tour evoked that “this is where I belong” feeling that every prospective college student hopes for. “Once I set foot on the campus, I realized it was actually a much better fit,” he said. “It was a wake-up call to not have tunnel vision about just one school.”

For Caleb, Notre Dame offered a rare blend of academic rigor, strong athletic culture, and faith-based values—plus a pipeline to a career in finance. “It was everything I was looking for in one package,” he said. “It was really about the people, the programs, everything I was looking for.”

Touring the campus made all the difference. “Visiting gives you a more complete picture of what works and what doesn’t. I thought Santa Clara University might be a good fit, but roaming the campus made it clear it wasn’t. You really can feel the difference when it’s right.” The effort to make the visit also demonstrates to the application committee that the prospective student is serious about gaining admission. 

Students applying to selective schools, especially from regions that do not offer convenient access to the campus must make a case that their application is not for bragging rights. To demonstrate his intent to enroll at Notre Dame, Caleb built rapport with the Notre Dame regional admissions representative, and then followed up after submitting his application. “That kind of thing goes a long way,” he said. “Being able to network and set yourself apart instead of just submitting a cold application is smart.” Caleb also knew his academic record and extracurricular activities would speak for themselves. 

Now thriving at Notre Dame, Caleb is preparing for a career in finance, currently an intern at Goldman Sachs in New York City. “I’m working in the equities group, focusing on small-cap stocks,” he said. “My job is to build reports and communicate with clients. It’s exciting to work with stocks that have more growth potential.” He is hoping to parlay the internship into a career. “The junior year internship is the big one in finance,” he explained. “Once you’re in, the full-time offer is yours to lose.”

As he looks ahead to his final year at Notre Dame, Caleb is welcoming his younger brother Renner ‘25 to campus. “It’s going to feel a bit like Maui Prep again, but at Notre Dame, which is great,” he said. “I’m excited to go to games, see Renner grow into a young man in college. It’s very full circle.”

For students beginning their own college journeys, Caleb offers simple, but solid advice: “Keep your eyes open. Visit as many schools as you can. Be specific about what you want, and don’t just apply to the big names because everyone else is. If I had not been open to exploring something new, I would have missed the best decision I ever made.”