UH Hilo’s baccalaureate degree nursing program has been granted continued accreditation by the National League for Nursing Accreditation Commission. The status is granted through 2015.

The commission commended the program for increasing the number of faculty and faculty compensation, as well as its success in securing external funding.

“Our nursing program is in answer to our state’s professional workforce needs,” says Chancellor Tseng. “With the additional faculty, we can now can graduate more nurses specializing in rural health care.”

The commission also noted that the accreditation demonstrates the nursing program’s interest in being held to the highest national standards of quality in nursing.

In the Honolulu Star-Bulletin (outside news source determines link expiration).

Route to knowledge: A seminar is passing on traditional way-finding methods to future generations

By Gary T. Kubota

Halona Tanner, left, and Kealii Roldan use way-finding skills to chart a sailing course from Hawaii to Tahiti during a recent seminar in Hilo. Photo by Gary T. Kubota.

HILO– Using a Hawaiian star chart, Halona Tanner leaned over a map of the Pacific Ocean and tentatively drew a line for a navigational course from the Big Island southward toward Tahiti.

“I think we’re a bit off,” said Tanner, checking his plotting with his partners.

Tanner, 33, of the Big Island, was one of more than 130 people in Hawaiian sail voyaging groups statewide participating in a seminar that taught native way-finding skills.

The course, called Imi Naauao 2008, is an attempt to merge modern teaching strategies to impart traditional way-finding knowledge to people voyaging on double-hulled sailing canoes.

Without Western tools such as a sextant and chronometer, modern way-finders are using native knowledge of nature including the stars, winds and currents to navigate their way to Pacific islands.

The seminar, sponsored by several organizations including Matson Navigation and the Alexander & Baldwin Foundation, took place Saturday at the University of Hawaii-Hilo’s Imiloa Astronomy Center.

The crews were to receive lessons in Hawaiian crafts and knot tying yesterday, followed by a sail on small double-hulled canoes today.

Chad Baybayan, a native Hawaiian way-finder and principal organizer, said the intent is to give voyagers a quicker route to knowledge and a deeper understanding of their Hawaiian history.

The seminar was also an opportunity for voyaging societies to share way-finding information.

Currently, four deep-sea voyaging canoes are operating in Hawaii, and three are being built or refurbished.

“This is a collaboration of the way-finding community,” Baybayan said.

Baybayan said islanders traditionally learned native way-finding by watching while aboard a voyaging canoe.

He said it took him 30 years and several voyages to feel comfortable enough to be a navigator on a voyage.

Baybayan said attendance of the event has tripled since its start last year, indicating an increasing interest in Hawaiian voyaging and navigation.

Most of the male and female participants were in their 20s and 30s, representing the next generation of native voyagers and potential way-finders.

The crew members might also be among the future voyagers in an around-the-world journey being discussed by the Polynesian Voyaging Society, perhaps by 2011.

Society president Nainoa Thompson said he was encouraged by the turnout.

“This room is powerful,” Thompson told the group.

Thompson said the society was still discussing the idea of an around-the-world voyage, and it would only be possible if young voyagers were behind it.

“This won’t go if young people don’t come,” he said.

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Remarks by Chancellor Rose Tseng
Ho‘oulu Terrace

Aloha and Welcome to the Spring 2008 semester!

Thank you for taking time out of your busy schedules to join us today.

Before I start, I’d like thank faculty and staff for advising our students this semester. I appreciate your dedication and commitment. Your Spirit of Aloha makes UH Hilo a very special place!

Today, I’d like to share some highlights of the university with you.

As background, when I came to UH Hilo in 1998, I surveyed our faculty and staff and the community. Together, we established three major goals: academic excellence, enrollment growth, and resource development.

The most important highlight today is UH Hilo’s commitment to excellence. It’s a commitment to high-quality programs and the best education possible. It’s a commitment to build strong communities, a thriving economy and professional workforce for the 21st century.

Thanks to your vision and hard work, UH Hilo has transformed into a comprehensive university with 36 baccalaureate, six master, and two doctoral degree programs.

Our six master programs are in response to our state’s social, economic and cultural needs. Thanks to your dedication, the programs were approved so we can bring dynamic education to our students.

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Testimony by Rose Tseng
Chancellor of the University of Hawai‘i at Hilo

Presented before the Senate Committee on Education and
The House Committee on Higher Education
January 14, 2008
Hawai‘i State Legislature
Honolulu, Hawai‘i

Aloha. Chair Sakamoto, Chair Chang, Members of the Senate Committee on Education and of the House Committee on Higher Education, I thank you for the opportunity to testify regarding the University of Hawai‘i at Hilo.

On behalf of the University of Hawai‘i at Hilo, I would like, first of all, to express my sincere appreciation to you for your investment in UH Hilo last year. Your support enables us to meet our commitment to offer our students excellent academic opportunities while making significant contributions to the economy and professional workforce on the island of Hawai‘i and throughout the state.

UH Hilo has evolved into a comprehensive university, with 36 baccalaureate and six master degree programs in liberal arts and professional areas. Yet UH Hilo preserves the ambiance of a small private college.

The positive difference is that UH Hilo is committed to being accessible to students of many varied and diverse backgrounds. Many of our students are the first in their families to attend college; many are holding down full-time jobs and raising children at the same time that they are pursuing college degrees; and many are from underserved rural communities of our island and state.

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UH Hilo officials announced today that the Fall 2007 enrollment increase over Fall 2006 is largely due to the inaugural class at the new College of Pharmacy and the increasing percentage of students from Hawai‘i.

Preliminary figures released by the UH system reveal UH Hilo’s enrollment of 3,608 grew by 2.6 percent compared to a year ago. The increase extends enrollment gains spanning 10 years and totaling 38.8 percent, an average of 3.4 percent per year.

But even with these gains, growth is limited in part due to a shortage of housing units, which causes a number of in-state students from other islands to abandon plans to attend the university.

“To maintain this steady rate of growth over an extended period, despite the need for more student housing, speaks volumes about UH Hilo’s overall quality,” says Chancellor Tseng. “This bodes well for the future, because it suggests our rate of growth will increase once we get additional housing.”

Full press release here .

The UH system office reports today that UH Hilo’s opening fall enrollment increased to 3,608, a gain of 91 students, or 2.6 percent, compared to a year ago. The numbers extend a period of growth at UH Hilo dating back to 1997.

“We continue to be very excited with our enrollment growth, which has been consistently increasing over the last few years,” said Chancellor Tseng. “We offer many programs that are unique to UH Hilo, including our College of Pharmacy, which started its inaugural class this fall. Our infrastructure is also steadily increasing and undergoing improvements to handle this growth. All of this is a reflection of the quality of education our students receive at UH Hilo.”

Full press release here .

UH Hilo ties for sixth place among the nation’s liberal arts colleges for ethnic and racial diversity among the student body in the 2008 edition of America’s Best Colleges by U.S. News & World Report. The exclusive rankings, which this year feature some substantial changes in methodology, is published in the magazine’s current issue.

UH Hilo had the highest percentage of Asian Americans among liberal arts colleges in the U.S. at 50 percent. The university, which ranked in the fourth tier overall among liberal arts colleges, is tied with Brigham Young University-Hawai‘i, where the percentage of Asian Americans stood at 40 percent.

“The multicultural makeup of our student body has and continues to be one of the strengths and distinguishing features of UH Hilo,” said Chancellor Rose Tseng. “This diversity is both a tremendous source of pride and a valuable asset in preparing our students to excel in a global society.”

For more information about the rankings and the changes in methodology employed by US News, visit the magazine online at www.usnews.com/colleges .

UH Hilo press release here.

Chancellor Tseng delivers Convocation at Ho‘oulu Terrace. Photo by John Oshima.

Aloha!

Today is the beginning of a new academic year. It’s exciting to welcome newcomers, and reunite with all of you, our university ‘ohana.

This week is busy with orientation activities. Thank you for your time helping students and new faculty. Your spirit of aloha makes UH Hilo a very special place. Before we introduce new members of our ‘ohana, I’d like to share some highlights of our university.

When I came to UH Hilo in 1998, I surveyed our university and local communities and together we made three major goals to achieve our Strategic Plan: 1) academic excellence, 2) enrollment growth, and 3) resource development.

We have all been working hard on all three. Thank you!

Academic excellence is our foundation. You are the best teachers, and your aloha spirit creates a very special learning environment.

Our island inspires the spirit of discovery, and many of our programs make the most of our living laboratory — culture, science, art, and more.

Student and professor collect data at the summit of Hualalai. Photo courtesy of Keaholoa STEM program.

At UH Hilo, we integrate science, culture and technology to prepare students for the 21st-century global economy and society.

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Summer 2007

UH Hilo celebrated 2007 Spring Commencement on May 12. It was a joy to see the support of friends, families and the community for our graduates. Many state and county elected officials also attended to honor our graduates. Keynote speaker was Jack Gifford, a pioneer in the analog microchip industry and founder of Maxim Integrated Products.

Each commencement is more exciting than the last with our growth of enrollment and degree programs. Not long ago, UH Hilo was a small liberal arts campus on a few acres. Now, we are a comprehensive university excelling in liberal arts, professional degrees and applied research with room to grow to 700 acres. We now have five academic colleges and offer 35 baccalaureate degrees, six master degrees and two doctorates.

Our master programs were established in response to the state’s social, economic and cultural issues. The university currently serves over 100 graduate students in the fields of China U.S. Relations; Counseling Psychology; Education; Hawaiian Language and Literature; Indigenous Language, Culture and Education; and Tropical Conservation Biology and Environmental Science.

We just received news that the university’s College of Pharmacy has achieved the first step in the Pharmacy School Accreditation Process. The Accreditation Council for Pharmacy Education has granted the College of Pharmacy Pre-Candidate Status. Our college is the first recognized by the ACPE to offer the Doctor of Pharmacy degree in the State of Hawai‘i. It is expected to enroll an inaugural class of 90 students beginning this fall with 45 students from Hawai‘i and 45 students from the mainland and elsewhere in the world.

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Remarks by Chancellor Rose Tseng
2007 Spring Highlights
Thursday, January 25, 2007
Ho‘oulu Terrace

Aloha and Welcome to the Spring 2007 semester!

Thank you for taking time out of your busy schedules to join us today. Kudos to you for advising and guiding our students as we open spring semester. I know you have been working hard to give our students a successful start. Please know how much I appreciate your dedication and commitment. This is what makes UH Hilo a very special place.

I am pleased to share with you our opening spring enrollment. We increased our count to 3,287, with a gain of 18 students or 0.6%. We are the only campus in the UH system to show steady enrollment increases every spring semester for the past nine years.

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