Connecting Learning, Life and Aloha
‘O ka ‘imi na‘auao, ke ola a me ke aloha kā kākou e huliāmahi ai

UH Hilo Leadership

Ua Kīpaepae ʻIa

UH Hilo Lays the Stepping Stones for New Leadership Team

11 new Deans, Directors, Executives, and Vice Chancellors participate in Kīpaepae Appointment Ceremony

HILO, Hawaiʻi –January 26, 2024 - The sound of pahu (Hawaiian drums) and pū (conch shells) resounded from the lānai of Mookini Library at the University of Hawaiʻi at Hilo (UH Hilo) this morning as eleven new members of the leadership team crossed the Kīpaepae, or stepping stones, entering into their new positions.

The new leadership team members include three College Directors, three Deans, the Chancellor’s Interim Executive Assistant, the Interim Director of University Relations, and all three of the campus’s Vice Chancellors. Chancellor Bonnie Irwin said, “This morning’s Kīpaepae signals a new era for UH Hilo, characterized by new ideas and new energy.”

The Kīpaepae was facilitated by a community of learners, staff, instructors, administrators, alums, and community partners of UH Hilo. Director of Hawaiian Culture and Protocols, Taupōuri Tangarō, addressed the group, challenging them to identify and stay grounded in what motivates their work. Tangarō shared after the ceremony that, “Their qualifications and accomplishments will speak for themselves, but at the core of this kīpaepae is the beckoning and affirming of a deeper reason for them being in these leadership positions; their heart for, and commitment to, the university community and Hawaiʻi overall,” shared Tangarō.

Chancellor Irwin expressed that she is “looking forward to the positive impacts of cross-campus collaborations and teamwork that have already begun, which opens up new opportunities for more creative and impactful ways to serve our students, faculty, and staff.”

New team members include:

Still Photos

UH Hilo and Hawaiʻi Community College students, faculty, staff, alums, and community partners offer oli and hula during the Kīpaepae

Standing from left to right are the new members of the leadership team: College of Arts and Sciences Dean, Michael Bitter, Interim Vice Chancellor of Academic Affairs, Keiki Kawaiʻaeʻa, Ka Haka ʻUla o Keʻelikōlani, College of Hawaiian Language Director, Kaʻiu Kimura, Interim Director of University Relations, Amy Kalili, College of Business and Economics Dean, Todd Inouye, Daniel K Inouye College of Pharmacy Dean, Rae Matsumoto, College of Agriculture, Forestry and Natural Resource Dean, Norman Arancon, College of Natural and Health Sciences Dean, Simon Kattenhorn, Vice Chancellor of Student Affairs, Chris Holland, Interim Executive Assistant to the Chancellor, Jessica Yamamoto, Vice Chancellor of Administration, Kaleihiʻiikapoli Rapoza. Chancellor Bonnie Irwin is seated in red next to Taupōuri Tangarō.

Director of Hawaiian Culture and Protocols for UH Hilo and HawCC, Taupōuri Tangarō, addressing the group of new leadership

Staff, faculty and students offer lei and aloha to their colleagues

UH Hilo and Hawaiʻi Community College students, faculty, staff, alums, and community partners offer oli and hula during the Kīpaepae

UH Hilo and Hawaiʻi Community College students, faculty, staff, alums, and community partners facilitated the ceremony

Director of Hawaiian Culture and Protocols for UHH and HawCC, Taupōuri Tangarō addressing the group of new leadership

About the University of Hawaiʻi at Hilo’s Kīpaepae

Kīpaepae are Hawaiian ceremonies of welcome to our campus & community. Kīpaepae contributes to transforming the University of Hawaiʻi at Hilo into a Hawaiian Place of Learning as defined by Hawaiʻi Papa O Ke Ao, the University of Hawaiʻi’s strategic commitment to transforming into a leader in indigenous higher education.