Loyal Kainoa

Student

“People have so many wrong perceptions about this program. To get into Cosmetology requires a huge commitment.”

Through the Internet, recruiters, and its worldwide reputation, SMC has a very long reach. It found Loyal Kainoa on the ‘Big Island’—Hawaii. “I was browsing around on the Internet when I found SMC, and I thought it looked like a really cool school. And it was one of a very few schools I found that offered Cosmetology,” says Loyal. “But it was a very nice woman from the Outreach program who came to Hawaii and recruited me. She actually called me up, which I thought was very different.” So Loyal—who was named after the Hawaiian singer Loyal Garner—headed to ‘the Mainland’ and the shores of Santa Monica.

“I miss my family, but I’ve made so many close friends here that it’s made my whole adjustment really easy,” says Loyal. “And you need that kind of support if you’re in this program at SMC: It’s really not easy. The first two months are incredibly intensive, and you’re up all night doing homework. And then you’re in school every day from 8 to 4:30, which is essentially like having a job. And there is so much that we have to learn,” she continues. “Chemistry, Human Anatomy, Physiology; there’s really no time to do anything else.” But Loyal is convinced that the intensity of her training will pay off big.

“I’d really like to have my own salon, so I’m planning on studying Business soon,” she says. “But all of our teachers and assistants here have worked in salons, and they know the business and all the newest techniques. I feel that—even without a degree—I’m already getting a real education in what this business is all about.”

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