Chancellor Irwin with two student workers on Demin Day, April 29, 2026, bringing awareness to sexual assault and a commitment to consent. (Courtesy photo)
Chancellor Bonnie Irwin participated in Denim Day today.
To mark Sexual Assault Awareness Month, the University of Hawaiʻi at Hilo’s Office of Equal Opportunity/Title IX encouraged all in the university community to wear denim today as a symbol against sexual assault and a commitment to consent.
“The work that our OEO/Title IX Office is so important in raising awareness and helping to prevent sexual violence,” says Chancellor Irwin. “I admire the student workers’ dedication to highlighting this important issue and showing up to support survivors.”
Now globally recognized, Denim Day was created in in response to a 1999 ruling from the Italian Supreme Court overturning a rape conviction based on the fact that the victim was wearing tight jeans. The Court ruled that the victim must have helped the perpetrator in removing the jeans, thereby giving consent. As a sign of protest to the ruling, members of the Italian Parliament wore jeans to work.
The UH Hilo community was encouraged to wear denim today as a symbol against sexual assault and a commitment to consent.
The Chancellor’s Scholars cohort with Chancellor Bonnie Irwin for Taco Tuesday, April 28, 2026. (Photo: Randy Hirokawa/UH Hilo)
University of Hawaiʻi at Hilo Chancellor Bonnie D. Irwin hosted the Chancellor’s Scholars’ cohort for Taco Tuesday yesterday.
“I was delighted to join members of all four cohorts of chancellorʻs scholars for Taco Tuesday!” says Chancellor Irwin. “It was great to hear about the future plans of the graduating seniors and to talk-story with the other students who are thriving in their UH Hilo experiences.”
The UH Hilo Chancellor’s Scholarship is a prestigious award created for graduates from Hawaiʻi high schools throughout the state that covers four years of tuition. Each scholar must maintain a 3.25 cumulative grade point average, enroll as a full-time student, and earn 30 credits per year.
The award, valued in excess of $30,000, covers four years of tuition for students graduating from a Hawaiʻi 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.
Administrators also attending the event with Chancellor Irwin were Dean of the College of Arts and Sciences Michael Bitter, Dean of the College of Natural and Health Sciences Simon Kattenhorn, Director of the College of Business and Economics Todd Inouye, and Professor of Communication who serves as Coordinator for the Chancellor’s Scholarship Randy Hirokawa.
Scholars attending the Taco Tuesday event were (seniors graduating next month in red):
The wins mark the third time in conference history a school wins both men’s and women’s golf titles at the PacWest Championships; men bring home fourth in a row.
Chancellor Irwin (center left in white) joins Athletics staff, families, and Vulcan Boosters at the Hilo airport on April 23, 2026, ready to welcome home the teams. (Courtesy photo)
Chancellor Bonnie Irwin joined friends and family at the airport yesterday to welcome home the Vulcan Women’s Golf and Men’s Golf teams and celebrate both teams winning their respective 2026 PacWest Championships.
Women’s Golf won the PacWest Championship claiming the UH Hilo program’s second conference title (2014, 2026), and Men’s Golf won the PacWest Championship marking the fourth in a row awarded to Hilo. The conference championships were held April 22 at Aliante Golf Club, North Las Vegas, Nevada.
In addition, men’s golfer Dylan Bercan claimed his second individual PacWest title.
“It was so much fun to join the group welcoming home our championship-winning athletes!” says Chancellor Bonnie D. Irwin who joined athletics staff, families, and Vulcan Boosters at the Hilo airport yesterday to welcome home the teams. “One of the things that brings student athletes to the UH Hilo campus is the community support they get, and that support extends beyond just cheering them on at home games.”
The wins were nothing short of spectacular, marking the third time in conference history a school won both men’s and women’s golf titles at the PacWest Championships.
“The last time a campus had won both titles the same year was when Hilo won them both in 2014!” notes Chancellor Irwin.
The Hawaiʻi Island Chamber of Commerce featured UH Hilo conservation researchers Steve Doo and Patrick Hart and the College of Natural and Health Sciences Dean Simon Kattenhorn at a “Business After Hours” event held on campus March 5, 2026. (Composite courtesy of the Hawaiʻi Island Chamber of Commerce.)
The Hawaiʻi Island Chamber of Commerce featured two University of Hawaiʻi at Hilo conservation researchers and a college dean at a “Business After Hours” event held on campus March 5th. The event, “Listening to Animals: Mauka to Makai,” celebrated community-based collaborative work made possible through educational partnerships between the university and local organizations.
“I was delighted that UH Hilo was able to host another Chamber after hours event,” says UH Hilo Chancellor Bonnie Irwin who attended the event. “Our faculty do such important work in and with our community, and it is wonderful to have an opportunity to share it beyond those directly involved.”
“Our UH Hilo faculty, staff and students are doing amazing work with community partners to build thriving communities and address problems,” says Mowrer. “But it’s not enough to do the work, it needs to be shared with others to build trust in and understanding of UH Hilo’s commitment to our community.”
“We aren’t just educating students, but working alongside our community members to address complex issues with research and teach students to become engaged citizens who have the skill set and mindset to create positive change,” she adds.
Last year, for the chamber’s ongoing “Business After Hours” series of events, the community-engaged work happening at UH Hilo’s College of Business and Economics was featured. The chamber plans to feature a different UH Hilo college each year.
Chuo University Junko (semi-hardball) baseball head coach Koji Ikeda presents a commemorative scroll to Chancellor Bonnie Irwin commemorating the Chuo University Junko Baseball 2nd Hawaiʻi Expedition, Feb. 26, 2026. (Photo: Spencer Honda/Athletics Dept/UH Hilo)
Chuo University’s junko (semi-hardball) baseball team arrived on Hawaiʻi Island Feb. 26 from Tokyo, Japan, for a pair of exhibition games hosted by the University of Hawaiʻi at Hilo. This was a return trip for the Chuo team after previously visiting in 2017. A planned 2020 visit was canceled due to the pandemic.
Chancellor Bonnie Irwin along with Director of Athletics Patrick Guillen, joined Mayor Kimo Alameda, Honorary Consul General of Japan in Hilo Art Taniguchi, Japanese Chamber of Commerce and Industry of Hawai’i 1st vice president Mitchell Dodo, and Japanese Community Association of Hawai’i president Burt Tsuchiya to welcome the team with a special dinner at the Hawaiʻi Japanese Center.
“The young men from the Chuo baseball team are wonderful ambassadors for their university!” says Chancellor Irwin. “I was honored to welcome them and their coaches to Hilo.”
The players also toured museum exhibits highlighting the history and cultural contributions of Japanese immigrants and Japanese Americans in Hawaiʻi and Hawaiʻi Island.
Photos of team at museum exhibits by Spencer Honda/Athletics Dept/UH Hilo (click/tap for full size)
“Baseball has served as a bridge between our cultures,” says Garett Yukumoto, UH Hilo baseball interim head coach. “These exhibition games are more than just competition, they’re an opportunity for international friendship and a celebration of the game we all love.”
In a statement from Vulcan Athletics, this second Hawaiʻi expedition is the Chuo team “traveling for a friendly series against the University of Hawaiʻi at Hilo, framed by director Shigenori Yanagawa as a student-first international exchange focused on growth, new perspectives and deeper cross-border friendship — made possible through the support of families and Hawai’i’s baseball community with a stated commitment to transparent, responsible planning centered on what benefits students’ futures.”
Chuo University players bow to the fans at Francis Wong Stadium ahead of first pitch on Feb. 28, 2026. (Photo: Spencer Honda/Athletics Dept/UH Hilo)
