University of Hawai'i University Relations Media & Publications Honolulu, HI 96822	(808) 956-8856 Telephone (808) 956-3441 Facsimile ur@hawaii.edu E-Mail
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE	July 18, 1997
Contact: Donnë Florence, (808) 956-7522

Prestigious Ford Foundation Grant Coming to UH The University of Hawai'i is one of only 30 universities nationwide that will receive funding in a Ford Foundation initiative meant to revitalize area studies, UH President Kenneth P. Mortimer told the Board of Regents today. A letter from Ford Foundation Program Officer Toby Alice Volkman informed Mortimer that UH is one of the 30 institutions selected for funding under the foundation's "Crossing Borders" initiative. Not only will UH receive a $50,000 grant in this first round of funding, but it is one of just 30 institutions that may apply for a second round of grants, up to $500,000, Mortimer explained. The selection process began six months ago, when the Ford Foundation invited 200 institutions to submit preliminary proposals for projects that would revitalize both instruction and research in area studies. Building on strengths in both Asian and Pacific studies, UH proposed to develop instruction and research on Asians engaged in business and tourism in the Pacific. Mortimer thanked Willa J. Tanabe, Dean of the School of Hawaiian, Asian and Pacific Studies, for SHAPS' record of achievement in area studies&emdash;that is what attracted the Ford Foundation's initial invitation&emdash;and for the School's innovation and energy in responding to the Foundation's "Crossing Borders" challenge. The first stage of the UH project, which will concentrate on Asians in Palau, will be led by Terence Wesley-Smith, associate professor of Pacific Islands Studies in SHAPS, and Geoffrey White, a fellow in the East-West Center's Program on Education and Training.