July 2010
Community and International Outreach
In the past month, I’ve had the opportunity to share the university’s goals and objectives and some of the good things that we’ve been working on with a number of community groups and business organizations, including the Hawai‘i Economic Association, the Kona-Kohala Chamber of Commerce and the Organization of Women Leaders.
I also participated in the East-West Center’s very successful 50th Anniversary International Conference where I was a panel presenter and part of a great discussion on the challenges and opportunities in higher education with a global perspective. It was a wonderful conference, and I extend my congratulations to the East-West Center for putting it together and on celebrating its 50th anniversary.
I also recently traveled to Japan, where I was invited to speak at a symposium of the National Women’s Education Center of Japan focused on advancing women scientists in Japan. I had the opportunity to meet with our ambassador to Japan and with officials from the Japanese Ministry of Science and Technology. These opportunities help us lay the groundwork for strategic alliances with Japan, and I look forward to more discussions on collaborative efforts.
Campus news from my July report
- 2011 APEC Hawai‘i Host Committee Update
- Funds for West O‘ahu and Hawai‘i CC
- Construction Procurement Advisory Committee
- Kudos to UH administrators
- Hilo telescope captures first images
- National honors for Manoa faculty and staff
- Senator Inouye recognizes UH West O‘ahu
- Ocean exploration with the Hokule‘a
- Respiratory therapy students lobby
- New environmental challenges course
- Pumping energy into Maui campus
UH System News
Release of Funds for West O‘ahu and Hawai‘i
We are extremely pleased that Gov. Lingle recently released funds to finance construction for our new UH West O‘ahu campus, renovations to Hawai‘i Community College’s Manono Campus in East Hawai‘i and development of the University of Hawai‘i Center at West Hawai‘i’s new campus at Palamanui.
The $48 million for the UH West O‘ahu campus will help bring to fruition the university’s plan of providing higher education to the rapidly growing West O‘ahu region. The funding will be used to develop three two-story buildings—one for classrooms, a laboratory building and a maintenance and mechanical building. The balance will be used for infrastructure, including mass grading of 10.5 acres; a 12-inch waterline, 10-inch sewer line and driveways and roadways from Kualaka‘i Parkway to the campus; electric power lines from Farrington Highway; a 183-stall parking lot; utilities to support the three initial buildings; and landscaping.
Under the $10 million for Hawai‘i Community College, the East Hawai‘i project at the Manono Campus involves the renovation of Hale Aloha, an 18,309-square-foot building and the West Hawai‘i project is for development of a 7,000-foot roadway that connects the planned UH Center at West Hawai‘i’s new campus with Kaiminani Drive. The project also includes on-site infrastructure and other related improvements.
These projects will help us expand our capacity to provide greater access to higher education in these regions.
