UH Hilo celebrates Spring Commencement May 14

Dr. Kirsten Mollegaard

The University of Hawaiʻi at Hilo celebrates its 2022 Spring Commencement Saturday, May 14, beginning at 9 a.m. in the Edith Kanaka`ole Stadium. The ceremony may also be viewed via live stream at: https://youtu.be/Q9NS61_jMRQ.

Approximately 557 students have petitioned for degrees and/or certificates and for various post-graduate credentials from the College of Arts and Sciences, Ka Haka `Ula O Ke`elikolani College of Hawaiian Language, College of Agriculture, Forestry, and Natural Resource Management, College of Natural and Health Sciences, College of Business and Economics, and Daniel K. Inouye College of Pharmacy. The ceremony is by limited invitation and not open to the public. Students are allowed to invite four guests, who must be registered. The wearing of face masks is encouraged.

Dr. Kirsten Møllegaard, professor of English at UH Hilo, provides the keynote address.

Growing up in Denmark, Møllegaard developed a keen interest in folklore, fairy tales, and legends. Her area of specialization in English Studies is folklore and oral traditions’ rearticulation in film and literature. Since coming to UH Hilo in 2005, Møllegaard has taught a wide variety of courses in English, Gender and Women’s Studies, and Interdisciplinary Studies. She encourages students to present their work at conferences and to publish their research papers in peer-reviewed venues such as UH Hilo’s Hohonu – Journal of Academic Writing, where she serves as faculty advisor.

As a two-term member of the Board of Directors for Hawaiʻi Council for the Humanities, Møllegaard has been organizing the biennial Children’s Literature Hawaiʻi conference at UH Hilo.

Møllegaard is the recipient of the 2020 University of Hawaiʻi Board of Regents Excellence in Teaching Award. She received a B.A. in Anthropology and English from UH Hilo and a master’s degree and Ph.D. in English Studies at UH Mānoa.

Ku`uhiapo Jeong serves as student speaker.

A 2018 Kamehameha Schools Hawaiʻi Campus graduate, Jeong has served in various roles on and off campus while maintaining a 3.7 cumulative GPA . On campus, he served as Executive Chair for the Board of Media Broadcasting, President of the Psi Chi International Honor Society UH Hilo Chapter, Undergraduate Representative of the Chancellor’s Advisory Committee in Excellence in Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion, to name a few. His off-campus activities include Board of Director of the Hilo Education Arts Repertory Theater, Community Engagement Ambassador for Vibrant Hawaiʻi, and member of the Hawaiʻi Island Chamber of Commerce for Young Professionals.

He was recently awarded the Overall Ka Lama Kū Student Leadership Award, the highest and most prestigious student leadership award at UH Hilo, making him the fifth student in UH Hilo history to receive this award.

Jeong will be pursuing his master’s degree in Public Relations & Reputation Management from Biola University this fall. Upon completion, he will continue his work to advocate for Native Hawaiians in the arts and entertainment industry.

The ceremony will also be recorded and available for viewing at: https://hilo.hawaii.edu/commencement/.