This message was shared with the students, faculty and staff of the University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa on May 12, 2025.
Aloha UH Mānoa ʻohana,
As we close another remarkable academic year, I want to take a moment to congratulate each of you on reaching this milestone. For our graduating seniors, this marks the culmination of years of hard work, dedication and resilience. You have overcome challenges unlike any other class in recent memory, having started your college journey amid the disruptions of the COVID-19 pandemic. To say that you have persevered is an understatement—you have thrived.
This message is particularly meaningful for me, as it will be my final one as provost. After nearly a decade in leadership roles at the university, I will be stepping down at the end of this academic year to return to the faculty, and my passion for teaching and research. It has been the honor of a lifetime to serve as your provost, guiding this extraordinary institution through a period of transformation and growth.
I am so proud of what we have accomplished together. Not only did we weather the COVID-19 pandemic, we emerged stronger, with innovations in our teaching and our support systems for student success. To our faculty, staff and my fellow administrators, I cannot fully express how proud I am of your tireless efforts to make all of this possible. You transformed our classrooms into effective online learning environments and then brought us back to the vibrant, in-person campus community we know and love today.
While all of this was happening, our enrollment grew with record numbers of first-time freshmen. This graduating class led the way, helping solidify UH Mānoa as a destination of choice for Hawaiʻi residents and students from all 50 states, Puerto Rico, Guam, and 122 countries. UH Mānoa is a true melting pot of ideas, cultures and experiences—and our success is a testament to the power of diverse perspectives.
Our campus has never looked better, thanks to the tireless efforts of the Campus Operations and Facilities team and the Office of Project Delivery. I am especially proud that each of our recent capital improvement projects—from the Isabella Aiona Abbott Life Sciences Building completed in 2020, to the soon-to-open Student Success Center, and major upgrades to McCarthy Mall and Paradise Palms now underway—are all designed to enhance the student experience.
As I step away from my role as provost, I do so with immense pride in our world class academic programs and our research enterprise, which has been setting new records in extramural funding for four straight years now. While the landscape of higher education continues to shift, UH Mānoa is well-positioned to adapt and thrive thanks to the strong foundation we have built together.
Thank you to my colleagues, the deans, directors, vice provosts, and my incredible team—Robyn, April, Cynthia and so many others—who have supported me through every challenge and opportunity. I am deeply grateful to President Hensel for her support and leadership during this transition.
I am not going far. I look forward to returning to the classroom, diving back into my research, and continuing to contribute to the university’s mission in new ways. And I am so excited for my final commencement ceremony as provost—the most purely joyful day of the year!
Mahalo nui loa for the privilege of serving you. I look forward to our paths crossing again.
A hui hou,
Michael Bruno
UH Mānoa Provost
