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Category: Announcements

Announcement to UH ‘Ohana: Prepare now for higher than normal hurricane season

May 23, 2019

Forecasters predict this season will have a 70 percent chance of being a higher than normal season with the likelihood of five to eight tropical cyclones in the Central Pacific.

Banner with the words: EMERGENCY PREPAREDNESS BEGINS WITH YOU. Logo graphic of volcanic eruption.

Announcement to University of Hawai‘i ‘Ohana:

The National Weather Service Honolulu Forecast Office today released its annual forecast for the upcoming hurricane season and now is the time to start preparing for the upcoming months.

Forecasters predict this season will have a 70 percent chance of being a higher than normal season with the likelihood of five to eight tropical cyclones in the Central Pacific. These include tropical depressions, tropical storms and hurricanes.

Hurricane season in Hawai‘i occurs roughly between June 1 and November 30.

Last year, Hurricane Lane dumped up to 50 inches of rain and caused damage to parts of Hawaii Island and Maui. UH campuses were forced to close.

The Hawai’i Emergency Management Agency great tips and resources

UH Resources

All members of the UH community are urged to sign up for UH Alert to receive emergency text alerts. If you have already signed up, log in to ensure that contact information is up-to-date.

Notifications affecting UH campuses will be posted on the emergency information web page, as well as on social media:

UH Hilo social media accounts:

Pacific Disaster Center’s Disaster Alert

There is also the Pacific Disaster Center’s Disaster Alert desktop version and an app with updated information.

Be safe!

This message was originally sent via email from the UH System Administration Offices to the UH community.

 

Announcement: New interim dean named for College of Business and Economics

May 20, 2019

Professor of Management Emmeline de Pillis’s experience working with stakeholders and campus programs will be extremely valuable as she leads the college during this interim period.

Aloha UH Hilo ‘Ohana,

Emmeline de Pillis
Emmeline de Pillis

Dr. Emmeline de Pillis, professor of management, has agreed to serve as interim dean of the College of Business and Economics (CoBE) effective June 1, 2019. A search for a permanent dean will begin in late fall or early spring.

A graduate of the University of Southern California with a doctor of philosophy in business administration, Dr. de Pillis joined UH Hilo in 1997 and was promoted to the rank of full professor in 2007. She has served as department chair, director of the Office of Applied Learning Experiences (ALEX), chair of the assurance learning committee, and chair of the CoBE faculty senate. She was a member of the University of Hawai‘i System President’s Emerging Leadership Program in 2014.

Dr. de Pillis has developed working relationships with multiple constituencies on campus and in the community and has served on various boards and committees. Her experience working with internal and external stakeholders and with CoBE and campus programs and initiatives will be extremely valuable as she leads the college during this interim period.

Please join me in welcoming Dr. de Pillis into her new role, and thanking Dr. Tam Vu who served as interim dean of CoBE for the past year and congratulating her on her retirement.

Marcia Sakai
Interim Chancellor, University of Hawai‘i at Hilo

2019-2020 Chancellor’s Scholarship recipients named

May 16, 2019

The competitive award, valued in excess of $29,300, covers four years of tuition for selected students graduating from a Hawai‘i high school.

UH Hilo seal, red lettering University of Hawaii and the state motto.Eleven students from Hawai‘i public and private high schools have been awarded the prestigious 2019-2020 Chancellor’s Scholarship at the University of Hawaiʻi at Hilo.

Recipients

  • Sabina Boo-Riversa, Kea‘au High School
  • Kawailehua Burnz, Kapa‘a High School
  • Nancy Costales, Christian Liberty Academy
  • Taylor Eleola, Hawai‘i Baptist Academy
  • Bree Foster, Kamehameha – Hawai‘i Campus
  • David Freund, Kea‘au High School
  • Joshua Irwin, Waiakea High School
  • Kit Neikirk, Connections Public Charter School
  • Nicole Otsuka, Maui High School
  • Ashley Rynkewicz, Waiakea High School
  • Jaedyn Pavao, Kamehameha – Kapalama Campus

Award

The award, valued in excess of $29,300, covers four years of tuition for students graduating from a Hawai‘i high school who earned either a grade point average of at least 3.5, a combined 1800 SAT (reading, writing, math), or a composite score of 27 on the ACT while demonstrating leadership and/or community service.

Recipients are are required to enroll as full-time students and earn a minimum of 24 credits each academic year. They must also maintain a cumulative GPA of 3.25 and participate in leadership activities and/or community service with other chancellor’s scholars.

Media release

From the Interim Chancellor: Farewell Message to UH Hilo ‘Ohana

May 15, 2019

Effective July 1, 2019, I will return to the College of Business and Economics as a faculty member. I look forward to joining colleagues at the college where I began my tenure at UH Hilo.

Dear UH Hilo ‘Ohana:

UH Hilo seal, red lettering University of Hawaii and the state motto.As we close the end of another academic year and begin enjoying the summer months ahead, I want to thank all of you for doing your part in contributing to another successful year for our students and our university ‘ohana.

The past two years as your interim chancellor provided me with much professional and personal growth. As with everything else, there were challenges and setbacks, but they were all accompanied with opportunities and experiences from which to learn and grow, and for this I am grateful.

Effective July 1, 2019, I will return to the College of Business and Economics as a faculty member. I look forward to joining colleagues at the college where I began my tenure at UH Hilo.

I will also be providing management oversight for the next decade strategic direction setting process for the University of Hawai‘i System. This project will examine demographic, social, cultural, and political trends in the nation and in Hawai‘i and will focus on identifying how the university can better meet the needs of people of the state of Hawai‘i.

It has been a pleasure serving as your interim chancellor. As we move forward, I want to encourage all of you to work together for the common good. We must continue to work hard for the benefit of our students, and we must continue to work together collectively. The University of Hawai‘i at Hilo is a special place, comprised of outstanding, caring people. The value you bring to our university is exemplary.

I wish you my very best. Have a wonderful and productive summer.

Mahalo,
Marcia Sakai

Interim Chancellor’s message concerning the UH Hilo Daniel K. Inouye College of Pharmacy

May 4, 2019

The college will take strong, proactive measures to reduce costs commensurate with an anticipated smaller incoming class for Fall 2019, and perhaps for the next several years.

Aloha UH Hilo ‘Ohana:

Daniel K. Inouye College of Pharmacy University of Hawaii and Hilo sealI write today to inform you of news concerning our Daniel K. Inouye College of Pharmacy (DKICP).

When the Daniel K. Inouye College of Pharmacy opened in 2007 there was a severe shortage of pharmacists in Hawai‘i and a shortage of capacity in pharmacy schools nationwide. DKICP was launched to address these gaps with an innovative financial plan that was based on a strong base of non-resident students who would complement local enrollment and pay a higher tuition rate.

While DKICP continues to serve a unique and vital mission for Hawai‘i and the Pacific, the rapidly changing healthcare environment in Hawai‘i, the Pacific, and the nation has negatively affected enrollment. As a result, DKICP will take strong, proactive measures to reduce costs commensurate with an anticipated smaller incoming class for Fall 2019, and perhaps for the next several years.

At the same time, DKICP will initiate a process of program redesign, consistent with ACPE accreditation, to help reverse the current enrollment decline by attracting more students. This will be complemented with an investment in aggressive, competitive recruitment initiatives, which will be enhanced with the availability of the new state-of-the-art DKICP education and research facility that opens Fall 2019 in our University Park of Science and Technology.

Painful as these measures are today, UH Hilo and DKICP share in the excitement of new opportunities so that we can continue to prepare our students to excel as they participate in and shape the dynamic and challenging field of pharmacy and healthcare in Hawai‘i and beyond.

Mahalo,

Marcia Sakai
Interim Chancellor