The number of students from Hawaii is on the rise

by Bret Yager

Hawaii Tribune-Herald

Published: Sunday, September 14, 2008 8:01 AM HST

The University of Hawaii at Hilo added 178 students to its enrollment this year — a 4.9 percent increase that Chancellor Rose Tseng sees as growth “at a steady, sustainable pace.”

Enrollment at the university of 3,786 students has been rising since 1998, bolstered this year by a record freshman class, a 22 percent increase in Native Hawaiians and 90 new students at the College of Pharmacy.

Students are also taking more credits than elsewhere in the 10-campus system, with course loads averaging 12.7 credits, compared to 11.4 credits at the Manoa campus.

The number of students from Hawaii is also on the rise at UHH, due in part to resident-focused recruiting efforts. Students coming to the university from outside Hawaii fell from 35 percent last year to 31.6 percent this year, all part of the plan to focus on local students.

“We still recruit in the Pacific Northwest and California, but we used to recruit on the East Coast and in Colorado. Not anymore,” said Jim Cromwell, UHH director of admissions. “We took that money and put it into local recruiting.”

The university recently hired a Native Hawaiian recruiter on Oahu to go into schools there and on Molokai and Lanai, bolstering ongoing recruitment efforts on the Big Island, Maui and Kauai. Recruiters who visited schools once a year are now making multiple visits to discuss orientation, early registration and system accounts that students must set up to apply to the school.

Freshman applications accepted by the university this fall rose to 1,139, 13 percent more than last year. A total of 548 freshmen actually enrolled, up 8 percent from last year.

“I think we’re starting to see that increase,” Cromwell said. “We’ve had our largest freshman class ever. Our freshman class is almost 30 percent Native Hawaiian. That’s amazing.”

Luoluo Hong, vice chancellor for student affairs, said enrollment and capacity must be balanced, noting that moderate climbs in enrollment are preferable to unbridled growth.

“Every campus has a critical mass at which it can operate most efficiently,” Hong said in a prepared statement. “The one thing we don’t want is for the rate of growth to outstrip our capacity to meet the needs of our students.”

Hong said the campus has limited staff, facilities and money. UHH has an enrollment goal of 5,000 students by 2014.

The university’s ability to get prospective students to campus is hampered by a lack of student housing, with hundreds of applicants on lists each fall for the 620 spaces at the university’s residence halls.

“I’d have had more (freshmen), but I didn’t have the dorms,” Cromwell said. “If you’re a parent and your kid is 17, you’re not going to send them to Hilo if there are no dorms.”

There are 826 Native Hawaiians attending UHH, up 100 from last year.

Link

August 18, 2008

3:00 p.m.

Campus Center Dining Hall

Thank you, Jim. Let me say thank you, Jim, for involving students in hands-on learning in the Geography Department and for your work in faculty governance.

Did you know that a scholarship was endowed in honor of the founders of the Geography Department last spring by a former student, Ron Terry? The scholarship honors Jim Juvik, Sonia Juvik, Jim Kelly, and Jack Healy. Jim and Sonia, your dedication is greatly appreciated.

Aloha!

I’d like to extend a special welcome to Regent Marlene Hapai. Thank you for all you have done for UH Hilo. Marlene was a faculty member here for many years. Many people don’t know she helped us get the ‘Imiloa Astronomy Center started. And now, she’s serving on the UH Board of Regents.

I’d also like to welcome Mr. Eugene Nishimura, president of the Japanese Chamber of Commerce and president/regional manager of Hawaii National Bank.

In addition, Catheran Hashimoto is here. She is Education Committee Chair of the Japanese Chamber of Commerce and East Hawaii Executive Director of the American Cancer Society.

Welcome!

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. Thank you for your time helping students and new faculty and staff.

Today, we’ll be introducing over 70 newcomers, more than ever before. So we “old-timers” will need to reach out more than ever to welcome and integrate new students, faculty and staff into the life of the university.

Your spirit of aloha has made it all possible. I’d like to thank everyone who served on the many search committees we had in the past year.

For the benefit of the new members of our ‘ohana, I’d like to give a brief overview of our university and share a few recent highlights.

Since I came to UH Hilo in 1998, we have been developing from a liberal arts institution into a “comprehensive university” with a more diverse mix of professional and liberal arts programs as well as graduate programs.

We are now much better able to meet the expectations of students as well as the workforce needs of the state of Hawai‘i.

We are trying to boost services and infrastructure to support our students and make this a true comprehensive university. It’s a very exciting time for UH Hilo.

But with it comes growing pains. Change is always hard. I want to sincerely thank you all for bearing the inconvenience. Your patience and understanding will benefit our students in the long run. 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, the sciences, geography, business, and more. There is hardly a field of study that isn’t enriched by our unique island environment.

At the College of Agriculture, Forestry and Natural Resource Management, we have exciting programs that are helping local and international business and economy: aquaculture, horticulture, animal science and more. Last semester, a fundraiser was held at the new covered livestock pavilion and raised about $30,000. The college is moving into studies of food security and sustainable energy.

The College of Arts and Sciences is our largest college and offers degree programs in many, many areas in the Humanities, Social Sciences, and Natural Sciences. With our campus emphasis on using the island as a learning laboratory, our STEM programs have really come into their own. Our programs are educating increasing numbers of students from underserved groups and encouraging them to pursue graduate studies.

At the College Of Business And Economics, I’m very pleased to say that students can now declare a new major in Accounting. The college has also entered into articulation agreements with Hawai‘i Community College and Kapi‘olani Community College. These “Degree Pathways” are crucial efforts to reach out underserved populations and enable student success. Watch for the college’s speaker series in entrepreneurship and economics.

The College of Hawaiian Language offers programs at the bachelor’s, master’s and doctoral level. They’re also deeply involved in language revitalization and immersion education at the K through 12 level. They have their own teacher education program to serve Hawaiian immersion schools.

The College of Pharmacy is rapidly establishing itself. They welcomed their inaugural class of 90 students last fall. And, for this fall’s class, they received over 1,200 applications. We plan to break ground this October for Phase I of their new temporary facilities.

Let me tell you about enrollment. From 1997 to 2007, we’ve had an overall increase in students of 35.4%. Growth was more or less slow and steady. The Fall 2007 headcount of 3,573 was the highest enrollment in the history of our campus. This year, we’re experiencing a spike in enrollment, we don’t know by how much yet. So we should see a record number again. The increase will be mostly in Hawai‘i residents.

Now to the budget. The bad news is, because of economic forces, the entire state of Hawai‘i is subject to budget reductions. We have already received reductions in the amount of $845,000. We’ve been told another reduction is coming, we don’t know how much. At the same time, utility costs have gone way up. This week, the campus-wide Long Range Budget Planning Committee will meet. This committee includes faculty and will help Administrative Affairs with a transparent process. For now, we are drastically slowing down spending. As we get more information, we will let the campus know.

On a happier note, I wanted to share with you the progress on our Student Recreation Center, opening early this Fall semester. It will really improve student life on campus. The facility is state-of-the-art and has received LEED gold-standard certification. There are indoor recreation rooms, an outdoor swimming pool, a snack bar and a lounge. The Board of Regents approved a student fee of $78 per semester to support student wellness programs, intramural events, and other activities. A faculty/staff member plan will be introduced later in the fall.

Many building projects will go forward this year. We really need the space! The Science and Technology Building, Student Services Building, temporary facilities for the College of Pharmacy, and we’re renovating a small astronomical observatory on Mauna Kea to use for instruction. There will also be a number of renovations and upgrades on and around campus.

I ask for your patience with the noise and inconvenience. We are working hard to provide you with adequate space and up-to-date facilities. To address the current space crunch, we’re exploring some off-campus leases.

On accreditation, our last review with WASC a few years ago was very good, and we were accredited for a full 10 years. The WASC team commended us for transforming from liberal arts college to a comprehensive university. We received a special visit from a WASC site team last spring. They were looking at a number of areas: budget and finance, governance and decision making, diversity, assessment of student learning, and the doctoral programs. I want to thank April Komenaka for engaging the whole campus to prepare for this visit and participate in the meetings.

The WASC site team had many commendations for UH Hilo but also a number of concerns and recommendations. The WASC Commission sent us an “action letter” with a set of requirements we must meet. These are reasonable and do-able. WASC will follow up with another special visit in Fall of 2009 to look at our governance structure and the PhD in the College of Hawaiian Language. We have not been censured by WASC, but we have been informed that we are now out of compliance in a number of areas. WASC standards have been steadily growing more rigorous over the past decade. It’s our challenge to develop as a university along with the standards. A lot of people, faculty and administration, will need to work together to meet all requirements set by WASC. I know we will be fully prepared by the time the site team arrives for the next visit.

We have a lot of exciting academic initiatives moving forward this year. New faculty, be sure to attend the New Faculty Orientation sessions Wednesday and Thursday in UCB 127. The Faculty Congress will be laying the groundwork to roll out the new General Education program in Fall of 2009. The new program has been many years in the making, and I’d like to thank the General Education Committee once again for championing this improved program.

A full service Academic Support Center is being developed. To be located downstairs in the library, it will provide supplemental instruction for all students and should open its doors in Fall 2009. The Office of Student Affairs is deeply involved in the planning and implementation of many academic initiatives. Academic Affairs and Student Affairs work closely together for the betterment of our university.

We’ve finally got dual enrollment for Hawai‘i Community College students. This will help them make a seamless transition to UH Hilo.

Student Affairs and Academic Affairs are working closely this year to improve the First Year Experience. We hope the expanded programs will help students feel connected to peers, the faculty, their studies, and the university.

We’ve also requested funds for this for the next biennium, but in the meantime, we’re trying to make improvements with the resources we have.

I want to recognize our athletes’ and their stellar achievements last year. We were thrilled last spring when our UH Hilo athletes won the inaugural Commissioner’s Cup for the Pacific West Conference. I couldn’t be more proud of them! System President David McClain has declared that the first Friday of each month during the academic year will be “UH Athletics Pride Days.”

So we’re encouraging everyone to show their pride by wearing UH Hilo athletics colors (red and white) or logo attire on the first Friday of every month.

And I’m also extremely proud of our faculty. Thank you for all your hard work with grants and research. Faculty are working on major grants from the National Science Foundation, National Institutes of Health, NASA, USDA, and others.

UH Hilo also has a college responsible for outreach and community service, the College Of Continuing Education And Community Service. It offers non-credit courses and serves the entire Big Island. At this time, I’d like to call upon April Komenaka to talk briefly about an important initiative in CCECS.

[…]

HONORING TENURE AND PROMOTION

The awarding of tenure and promotion is the university’s recognition of excellence in teaching, scholarship and service. We honor these faculty members on their past achievements. We also look forward to the future, when we will see how they help shape our university for the better. Please come up and assemble on stage as your names are called. I’d appreciate the audience holding the applause until the end.

For tenure and promotion:

• Todd Belt, Associate Professor of Political Science
• Michele Ebersole, Associate Professor of Education
• Bryan Kim, Professor of Psychology
• The following faculty members have been awarded promotion:
• Kathryn Besio, Associate Professor of Geography
• Peter Mills, Professor of Anthropology
• Cheryl Ramos, Associate Professor of Psychology
• Philippe Binder was also promoted to Professor of Physics. He is on sabbatical in Texas.

The following faculty members have been awarded tenure:

• Philip Castille, our Vice Chancellor for Academic Affairs, was received tenure as Professor of English
• Edward Fisher, the College of Pharmacy’s Professor of Pharmaceutical Sciences
• Drew Martin, Associate Professor of Marketing
• Mark Okamoto, Professor of Pharmacy Practice

A round of applause for everyone receiving tenure and promotion!

Thank you all. You may take your seats.

INTRODUCTION OF NEWCOMERS

Today we are pleased to introduce our newcomers. I’m truly thrilled to say that there are over 70, more than twice as many as last year.

We were successful in arguing for new positions during the last budget round. The campus also worked hard on search committees all last year.

May I ask that the introductions be brief so we have time for everyone?

In the interest of time, I’m asking that each introducer bring their newcomers up to the stage in a group. Each newcomer should step forward to be introduced as his or her name is called.

I will now call upon Debra Fitzsimons, vice chancellor for Administrative Affairs, to make the introductions for her unit.

[…]

Dean Bill Steiner will introduce for the College of Agriculture, Forestry and Natural Resource Management.

[…]

And now, the College of Arts and Sciences. Division Chair, David Miller, will make the introductions for the Humanities Division.

[…]

Rick Castberg, who is the Division Chair for Social Sciences, will introduce the newcomers in his division.

[…]

I’ll now call upon Leon Hallacher, Division Chair for Natural Sciences, to introduce his newcomers.

Moving on to the College of Business and Economics … I’d like to call up Hank Hennesey for Business Administration and Tam Vu for Economics.

[…]

Kalena Silva will make the introductions for the College of Hawaiian Language.

[…]

Dean John Pezzuto will introduce the newcomers from the College of Pharmacy.

[…]

Dean April Komenaka will make the introductions for the College of Continuing Education and Community Service.

[…]

Kathleen Stacey will introduce new Library staff.

[…]

Vice Chancellor Luoluo Hong will introduce for the Office of Student Affairs.

[…]

I’d now like to call upon Ka‘iu Kimura, Associate Director of the ‘Imiloa Astronomy Center of Hawaii, to make her introductions.

[…]

This should conclude our introduction of newcomers. Please speak up if I’ve overlooked anyone.

If not, I’ll move on to the last segment of the program, which recognizes our volunteers.

Our university is fortunate to have volunteers to add a special touch to our campus. Our gardens are beautiful because of the hard work of our retired senior volunteers known as RSVP volunteers. Please join me in recognizing and thanking them.

• Ramon Abong
• Robert Koga
• Harue Kaneshiro
• Carolina Madrid
• George Matsubara
• Philomena Rabago
• Sueno Saruwatari
• Jean Funai

Other volunteers help with many projects. We want to thank you for giving of your time and expertise:

• Chiyono Kinoshita. Chiyono does many different things
• Junko Nowaki also helps in many different areas
• Lynne Shimazu makes our beautiful flower arrangements!

Thank you to all our volunteers!

CLOSING

We have many achievements to celebrate, and we have many challenges ahead. But for now, let’s get to know one another over refreshments.

Please take the time to reach out newcomers and help them integrate into the life of the campus.

Thank you, everyone, for working together to build the best university that truly benefits our diverse students and the entire community. When we all work together, great things can happen!

Have a great fall semester!

Aloha!

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.

Read the rest of this entry »

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.

Read the rest of this entry »

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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