UH Hilo 2016 Awards and Recognition

Posted on May 6, 2016January 11, 2026 by Staff

Faculty, staff, students and administrators gathered for the annual event on May 5 to celebrate colleagues’ awards and milestones.

By Ken Hupp/University Relations/UH Hilo. Photos by Claudia Hagan/UH Hilo Stories.

Chancellor Don Straney hosted the University of Hawaiʻi at Hilo 2016 Recognition and Awards Celebration on May 5. Recognized at the event were the Student Employee of the Year, UH Hilo Award recipients, retirees, and faculty and staff years-of-service milestones.

Student Employee of the Year: Jaime Ouye

Group with Chancellor, honoree holds plaque. — From left, Executive Director of Enrollment Sherry Padilla, Chancellor Don Straney, Student Employee of the Year Jaime Ouye, and Resident Hall Manager Jenna Waipa. (Photo: Claudia Hagan/UH Hilo Stories)

Jamie Ouye, senior resident student assistant at University Housing, was named Student Employee of the Year. Selected for a strong work ethic and attention to detail, Ouye plans and implements engaging training and staff outreach, and has coordinated various informational outreach and awareness programs, such as suicidal ideation, the effects of bullying, stress management, and the importance of community service. Ouye was also credited for going the extra mile for her co-workers by covering shifts during breaks and holidays to allow them to travel home to visit family.

UH HILO AWARDS

Koichi and Taniyo Taniguchi Award for Excellence in Innovation: Mahavir Chougule

Group with Chancellor, honoree with lei and medal holds certificate. — From left, Randy Hirokawa, professor of communication, explained the history of the Taniguchi award at the event; Toby Taniguchi representing the benefactor family; recipient Mahavir Chougule; Carolyn Ma, dean of the College of Pharmacy; and Chancellor Don Straney. (Photo: Claudia Hagan/UH Hilo Stories)

Mahavir Chougule, associate professor of pharmaceutical sciences, was awarded the Koichi and Taniyo Taniguchi Award for Excellence and Innovation, which recognizes creativity in teaching, scholarship and artistic production at UH Hilo. Chougule has contributed to UH Hilo’s training and research mission with innovative nanotechnology research, focusing on targeted delivery to improve the therapeutic outcomes of diseases such as cancer and asthma that resulted in filing a provisional application for a patent. His research has led to establishment of the first nanotechnology-based extramural funded lung cancer and asthma program in the State of Hawaiʻi, bringing national recognition to the university in the form of the American Association of Cancer Research Minority-Serving Institution Faculty Scholar in Cancer Research Award.

Distinguished Service Award for Improving Student Life: Kaliko Trapp

Group at front of room, honoree in lei holding certificate. — From left, Chancellor Don Straney; Director of the College of Hawaiian Language Keiki Kawaiʻaeʻa; recipient Kaliko Trapp; and Vanessa Winchester-Sye, the student who nominated Trapp for the award. (Photo: Claudia Hagan/UH Hilo Stories)

Kaliko Trapp, lecturer at Ka Haka ʻUla O Keʻelikōlani College ofHawaiian Language, received the Distinguished Service Award for
Improving Student Life for making outstanding contributions beyond the boundaries of his official responsibilities. His student nominator, Vanessa Winchester-Sai, who is largely confined to a wheelchair, credits Trapp with helping her get the most out of her educational experience. In addition to being an instructor, he provided the technical accommodations necessary for Winchester-Sai to participate in her other classes as well. She said Trapp has made a profound difference in her life, for which she is eternally grateful.

Excellence in Building & Grounds Maintenance Award: Kevin Hand

The Excellence in Building & Grounds Maintenance Award was presented to Kevin Hand, the university’s electrician. Hand is currently UH Hilo’s only electrician, who is currently working on a campus-wide lighting conversion. The replacement of old fluorescent light fixtures with modern LED fixtures is enabling the university to maintain existing light levels with half as many lights, while saving an estimated 60 percent on electricity for lighting. He was recently awarded the President’s Award for Excellence in Sustainable Facilities Management, which is a system-wide award. He has also helped beautify the grounds and buildings by installing new conduits inside and underneath buildings. (Did not attend award event.)

Excellence in Service Award: Mitchell Anderson

Group of three, honoree in lei holds his certificate. — (l-r) Don Straney stands with mathematicians Mitch Anderson (award recipient) and Reni Ivanova (nominator). (Photo: Claudia Hagan/UH Hilo Stories)

Mathematics Professor Mitch Anderson was presented with the Excellence in Service Award, given to a faculty or professional staff for service-related professional skills to UH Hilo and the community. Anderson is one of the most active professors in the UH Hilo Faculty Congress and the go-to faculty member for program review, assessment, and accreditation, one nominator noted. He was a key author of the new Program Review Handbook that went into effect two years ago, and also spearheaded one of the nation’s biggest mathematical curricular redesigns by working with the State Department of Education to align its mathematics curriculum to state Common Core Standards (CCSS). His efforts have helped make Hawaiʻi a model for curricular alignment to CCSS.

Pūlama ʻIke Award: Gail Makuakāne-Lundin

Gail in lei, with Chancellor at the front of the room, she holds her certificate. — Champion and creator of many student programs Gail Makuakāne-Lundin stands with Don Straney. (Photo: Claudia Hagan/UH Hilo Stories)

The Pulama ʻIke Award, which recognizes a significant contribution to developing and promoting the spirit and mission of the university, was presented to Gail Makuakāne-Lundin, interim vice chancellor for student affairs. As a member of UH President David Lassner’s Hawaiʻi Papa O Ke Ao task force to indigenize each campus, she has spearheaded activities to increase student success, faculty and staff development, and institutional and extramural funding. Makuakāne-Lundin has led the Kupa ʻAina Summer Bridge program with Kamehameha Schools, which provides incoming students with a six-week residential experience focused on cultivating academic learning, personal development and professional skill sets. Her U.S. Department of Education grant-funded Hoʻokahua initiative provided $1 million in improvements and renovations to the Hale Kanilehua dormitory while funding a scholars-in-residence program that included Manulani Meyer and Kealiʻi Reichel among its participants.

RETIREES

This list covers the period from May 2015 through April 2016. Anyone retiring after April 30 will be recognized at next year’s event.

Group of three, honoree in lei holds koa bowl. — Happily retired Claire Shigeoka (center), at UH Hilo for 21 years, attended the event. At left is Chancellor Don Straney, at right is Marcia Sakai, vice chancellor for administrative affairs. (Photo: Claudia Hagan/UH Hilo Stories)

Andrea Adrian, Secretary, 14 years.
Jean Cruz, Secretary, 9 years.
Edward Fisher, Professor of Pharmacology and Toxicology, 8 years.
Nellie Hamada, Clerk, Financial Aid, 18 years.
April Housman, Associate Professor of Indigenous Education, 13 years.
Kay Kobata, Social Sciences Division, 23 years.
Antoinette Mallow, East Hawaiʻi Program Coordinator for Na Pua Noʻeau, 16 years.
Ken Morris, Professor of Pharmaceutical Sciences, 7 years.
Ryan Okimoto, Livestock Technician, UH Hilo Farm Laboratory, 10 years.
Anthony Otsuka, Instructor, Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences, 5 years.
Claire Shigeoka, Director, Human Resources, 21 years.
Harry Yada, Director of Real Property, 7 years.
Elise Yamamoto, Student Medical Services, 13 years.
Jan Zulich, Professor of Education, 31 years.