Chaminade University of Honolulu

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Chaminade Boosts Grad School, Career Options for Underrepresented Students Through Leadership Alliance

Dr. Medeva Ghee speaking with studentsTo expand graduate school and career opportunities, as well as encourage diversity for students from underrepresented and underserved populations, Chaminade’s Office of Health Professions Advising and Undergraduate Research hosted a March 28-29 campus visit by Dr. Medeva Ghee, executive director of the Leadership Alliance.

Established in 1992, this national consortium develops underrepresented students into outstanding leaders and role models in academia, business and the public sector. Chaminade is one of 36 institutions forming the alliance, along with other universities such as Columbia, Harvard, Johns Hopkins, Princeton, Stanford, Vanderbilt and Yale.

Dr. Medeva Ghee with studentsDuring Dr. Ghee’s visit she met with students, faculty and staff at a poster reception and roundtable luncheon. Her keynote address, “Exploring the Unexplored,” encouraged students to pursue doctoral degrees.

Dr. Ghee is a faculty member with Brown University’s Department of Behavioral and Social Sciences. She also provided technical assistance and strategic advice for the Clinton Foundation initiative on preventing and treating HIV/AIDS in Sub-Saharan Africa.

Among the Leadership Alliance opportunities for undergraduates is the Summer Research Early Identification Program (SR-EIP). These fully paid internships provide training and mentoring in research principles so undergraduates can competitively apply for Ph.D. and MD-Ph.D. programs.

Internships are available in life and physical sciences, social and behavioral sciences, and the humanities at over 20 institutions nationwide.

Dior-Ashton TeodosioAmong the Chaminade students who completed an SR-EIP internship is Dior-Ashton Teodosio. After graduating this spring with a bachelor’s degree in Psychology, she plans to pursue a doctorate in Clinical Psychology so she can treat children with learning disabilities.

Teodosio’s internship, conducted through the American Psychological Association, took place at Washington University in St. Louis.

“I worked on two different studies this past summer,” Teodosio says. “One focused on false hearing and analyzing previous data from another false hearing study. And the second one focused on second language vocabulary and speech perception.”

Teodosio urges other Chaminade students to consider an SR-EIP internship.

“If I had to give any advice to future students applying for any type of summer program, I would say to do it and go in with an open mind,” she says. “This is an opportunity that most don’t have, so you should definitely try it out!”

The Office of Health Professions Advising and Undergraduate Research provides services to students interested in pursuing medical careers. These services include: academic preparation and advising, professional seminars and guest speakers, and undergraduate research programs. Chaminade students also have the opportunity for early admission to graduate programs through articulation agreements arranged with numerous medical schools.

Students Experience Spiritual Growth through Kalaupapa Pilgrimage

During spring break, eight students from Chaminade made a pilgrimage to Kalaupapa, Molokai to walk in the footsteps of Father Damien de Veuster, SS. CC. and Mother Marianne Cope and see the world through their eyes. Father Damien, known as “the apostle of the lepers,” and Mother Marianne, known as the “mother of outcasts,” were canonized for their work at Kalaupapa’s leper colony. Located on the northern peninsula of Molokai, isolated Kalaupapa has long been associated with Saint Damien (Contemplative Congregation of the Sacred Heart of Jesus and Mary) and Saint Marianne (Sisters of Saint Francis).

Campus Ministry 2017 Kalaupapa Pilgrimage

The Chaminade students were eager to connect with both saints.

“I wanted to immerse myself into my culture and gain a stronger appreciation for the islands and learn about the leprosy settlement on Kalaupapa. I wanted to walk where Father Damien and Mother Marianne walked and served,” said Karinna Himan, a junior majoring in Criminal Justice.

Kimberly Rose Aguada, a first-year student at Chaminade and an alumna of Damien Memorial High School, revealed, “When I first learned about Saint Damien, I decided to model my life after him – to always act courageously and faithfully.” Aguada is studying to be a nurse making Saint Marianne also significant to her.

Flying in on a small plane with all their belongings and supplies, the students spent March 18-21 in one of the most beautiful places on earth and yet, at one time in history, one of the saddest places on earth.

“The most memorable part of this trip for me was that for so long, Kalaupapa was known to be a place of sorrow and hardship,” said Yaron Fernando, a Criminal Justice major with a Forensic Sciences minor who will graduate in 2019. “Now it is a place where people can feel joy and compassion in the heart and learn to appreciate the beauty that God has created.”

Campus Ministry 2017 Kalaupapa Pilgrimage

This was the second time that Chaminade’s Campus Ministry offered the Kalaupapa Pilgrimage to its day undergraduate students. Chaminade Campus Ministry director Daniel O’Regan took his first Chaminade group there in 2013.  He noted the powerful impact that this pilgrimage had on students’ spiritual growth.  “It’s a way to connect with the earth, God, and be inspired by the history and people living in Kalaupapa, as well as allow the natural beauty of the island to speak to us of the grandeur of God’s goodness,” he said.

Aguada recalled one of the most memorable parts of the pilgrimage for her. “We hiked up a trail and at the top was a giant white cross. It overlooked the entire settlement and a beautiful valley. When I sat under the cross, I heard the wind blowing through the trees. It was almost as if God was speaking. I remember just sitting there and feeling at peace. I truly felt like He was there with me. It still gives me chills,” Aguada said.

Campus Ministry 2017 Kalaupapa Pilgrimage

From Ohio, Shea Smith, who will graduate in 2019 with a bachelor’s degree in Sociology and a minor in Criminal Justice, found the pilgrimage serene and meaningful. “I walked around by myself to reflect and focus on my spiritual side. Nature for me is calming, and it helps me see God. The beauty of the earth helps me see the beauty in my life that God has given me. This trip allowed me to realize just how grateful I am for my life,” Smith said. “I remember sitting on the pier looking at the crystal clear water and watching these colorful fish swimming around. I don’t see fish like that in Ohio, and when I see them here, I thought it was so amazing. It was another peaceful moment for me that I will always remember. It was relaxing, and it made me happy seeing them swim around and flow with the current. That moment was God talking to me, making me smile and helping me to remember that He is always with me and that I have so much to be grateful for in my life.”

The students had no set schedules, no agendas, and no phone signals as they shook off the stress of school. “As you visit the place, you realize that you are trying to move away from the insanity of our life filled with agendas, timelines, and meetings,” said O’Regan. “In Kalaupapa, you need to have the courage and confidence to go with the flow.  There was downtime to visit the sacred historical sites, hike, visit the locals and even get in a game of volleyball. There was time to reflect under a full night sky of stars, but everything was done by feeling the moment and doing what was right. That is something Kalaupapa teaches you.”

Campus Ministry 2017 Kalaupapa Pilgrimage

Himan noted how grateful the residents were. “They don’t need to have the most glamorous things to be happy. They enjoy the simple things in life and truly love and care about their Kalaupapa. Knowing the history of this place with the positivity of the people and its patients, it’s easy to forget the sad history of this settlement, which some have described as a giant graveyard.”

Once back on Oahu, Himan missed Kalaupapa intensely. “On our last night, we listened to locals have a jam session and just talked story with them. One of the less-than-a-dozen leprosy patients still there told us his experience of being at the settlement. The man described Kalaupapa better than I ever could and told us ‘one day we all going die, but I’m not worried because I already live in Heaven.’”

The value of family spirit and being able to experience the pilgrimage with each other stood out in the students’ memories.  “The people I went with became family, the place felt like home, and I will never forget the memories we’ve made. If anyone wants to experience a serenity that’s absent on our busy island, make new friends, and truly connect with God, I suggest that they apply for this opportunity the next time it’s available,” Aguada said.

Campus Ministry aims to provide students with the best spiritual support during their time at Chaminade University and offers abundant opportunities to nurture spiritual growth. Though Chaminade is a Marianist Catholic Institution, Campus Ministry welcomes and serves people of all faiths and traditions.

Student-Mentor Presents at National Conference

Chaminade senior Erin Ah Sue and Chaminade accounting professor Wayne Tanna presented their collaborative research at the 24th annual conference of the American Society of Business and Behavioral Sciences (ASBBS) in Las Vegas this spring.

Titled “The Palolo (Elementary School) Stock Market Challenge,” their paper with an accompanying PowerPoint was accepted for competition under the educational leadership track for the “Classroom and Adjustment Issues at Home and Abroad” session. The competitive sessions were organized with an average of four papers presented. After each presentation, general discussion followed.

For the past 20-years, students at Chaminade have strengthened their neighboring community, Palolo Valley, through various service-learning projects, including the “Palolo Stock Market Challenge,” a fantasy investment simulation. Ah Sue, majoring in Nursing and Business Administration, was a recent student-mentor with the project. She and Tanna, her instructor, shared details and the results of the development and operation of the most recent project that assisted low-income students and families in the area. Ah Sue was the main presenter.

The project taught the participating Palolo students basic math concepts and developed financial literacy and an appreciation of the ethical and environmental impacts of business operations through the real-world contexts of saving and investing.

“The paper was more of an instructor’s manual for replicating the game at other universities and public schools around the country,” said Tanna, who has been involved in this project for many years.

Tanna and Ah Sue, who is also a Hogan Entrepreneur Program student, were able to attend other sessions during the March 23-25 conference, as well as the ASBBS awards luncheon with Virginia Gean of California Lutheran University as keynote speaker.  Gean spoke on “Success Stories of Women Leaders in Business and Education.”

Tokyo Healthcare University and Chaminade’s School of Nursing Collaborate

The School of Nursing welcomed students and faculty members from Tokyo Healthcare University on March 17 to a cultural and inter-professional exchange. The collaboration has been ongoing since 2012. Assistant professor and simulation coordinator Jeanette Peterson was the lead faculty member this year and facilitated the simulation event. She has been involved with the intercultural experience since the beginning, providing a high-quality simulation lab experience for the visiting students.

Chaminade nusring students and Tokyo Healthcare University students interacting

This year, 23 Tokyo Healthcare students participated.  Their disciplines included health Informatics, clinical nutrition, and nursing. Peterson developed a scenario in which the visiting student nurses in all three disciplines could participate and learn about best practices with simulation. She and the Tokyo Healthcare faculty have collaborated since last October on the scenario.

“The interaction between students from both schools is more than a cultural exchange and learning about nursing in each of their cultures,” said Edna Magpantay-Monroe, chief nursing administrator and associate professor at the School of Nursing at Chaminade University. “Nursing as a profession has really looked at global health education, and this interaction provides for global health education. When nursing students in any part of the world understand cultural literacy, they can provide patient-centered care anywhere.”

Tokyo Healthcare University students in simulation lab

The visiting students completed their simulation experience totally in Japanese, which took place in the E.L. Wiegand Simulation Suite. The Tokyo Healthcare faculty acted as patients and also observed the performance rubric. Learning objectives focused on principles of inter-professional communication.  The visiting faculty with Peterson’s assistance debriefed the students in Japanese.

Student volunteers from Chaminade’s School of Nursing assisted the visiting group with skills, labs and equipment needed for the simulation. The students from both nursing schools also participated in a cultural exchange, listened to planned speakers and shared a meal together. Chaminade student Jaimee Sambrano, scheduled to graduate in 2019 with a Bachelor’s of Science degree in Nursing, served as the lead planner for Chaminade’s School of Nursing.“This event promoted student collaboration and leadership and increased our cultural awareness,” Sambrano said.

Yuka Garo, Clinical Credentialing assistant with Chaminade’s School of Nursing said, “I personally believe that this partnership benefits both Tokyo Healthcare University and Chaminade University nursing students to better understand the dynamic of interpersonal communication and its importance.”

The School of Nursing is a four year, full-time undergraduate program that offers a Bachelor of Science in Nursing degree. The unique program immerses students in nursing preparation with educational curriculum, human-patient simulations, community outreach projects, and service-learning and supervised clinical experiences. The curriculum for our undergraduates program is consistent with the Baccalaureate Essentials of Nursing produced by the American Association of Collegiate Nursing. The nursing program is fully accredited by the Commission on Collegiate Nursing Education.

Chaminade University’s Athletics Gala Celebrated 2017 Inductees

Nearly 400 people attended Chaminade University’s 2017 Intercollegiate Athletics Gala, held on March 16 at the Ala Moana Beach Hotel.  They came to celebrate the induction of Chaminade president Bro. Bernard Ploeger, S.M., Ph.D. and Chaminade alumnus and 1991 Maui Invitational MVP George Gilmore, Jr. ’04 into the 2017 Silversword Hall of Fame.

Filled with well-wishers – family, friends, colleagues, university supporters, and student-athletes– the ninth annual gala event bustled with excitement. The crowd in the Hibiscus Ballroom quietened as the two honorees prepared for their entrances.  As they were separately ushered into the room, emcee Lei U ‘I Kaholokula shared with the crowd the clear impact the men had on the university and on the community at large.

2017 Athletics Gala, George Gilmore, Jr. '04George Gilmore, Jr. ’04, after earning junior college all-America honors in men’s basketball at Santé Fe Community College in Florida in 1990, followed his coach to Chaminade University. In his first game in the 1991 EA SPORTS Maui Invitational, he scored 23 points against Iowa State. He followed that with 28 points against Toledo then 33 against Loyola Marymount. He finished the 1991-92 season second in the nation in scoring with a 28.3 scoring average while earning Division II All-America honors. The following year proved to be his landmark season when he set the Maui Invitational scoring record by pouring in 93 points in the three-game tournament, earning him the tournament’s Most Valuable Player honors, one of only two Chaminade players to hold that distinction.  He graduated from Chaminade in 2004. Today, the Kailua resident, in alignment with Chaminade’s mission and values, works at the Kapolei Detention Home helping to mentor at-risk youths turn their lives around.

2017 Athletics Gala, Bro. Bernie Ploeger, SMBro. Bernard Ploeger, S.M., Ph.D., who concludes his service as Chaminade University president on June 30, 2017, will have served Chaminade for 23 years: eight years as its president, plus the prior 15 years in other leadership capacities.  He is considered the chief architect in developing and carrying out the University’s strategic plans since 2008.  One of the major key levers of success in those strategic plans has been to renew Chaminade’s participation in intercollegiate athletics as a point of pride for alumni and for campus and community supporters. Ploeger has been instrumental in encouraging Chaminade’s competitive success in regional and conference sports, has helped ensure an increase in outreach in Hawaii, and has pressed for financial support in securing program facilities.

The crowd applauded loudly in a standing ovation. The processions were followed by Kaipo Leopoldino ’14 offering the Hawaiian ‘oli  “He Mele No Kaminaka” (Song or Chant of Chaminade), which Leopoldino had composed when he was a Chaminade student. Chaminade regent Bro. William Campbell, S.M. delivered the invocation. Video tributes for the two men played as dinner was served. The student-athlete speaker Megan McClanahan ’18, who originates from Nebraska and plays women’s soccer at Chaminade, shared her gratitude for the sports’ program and Chaminade’s academic program, which led to her acceptance into George Washington University Medical School.

Soon it was time for the honorees to share a few words. Gilmore spoke about his hardships in his early upbringing and his gratitude at being at Chaminade.  Not only did he shine athletically at the university, but he also met his wife at Chaminade.  Bro. Ploeger said that he had mentioned Gilmore as a possible inductee in the past and felt honored to be inducted at the same time as Gilmore.

After each spoke, each received a traditional Native Hawaiian implement — a sword created from the bill of a swordfish and crafted by alumnus Gordon “Umi” Kai ’73. Chairman of the Board of Regents Vaughn Vasconcellos was moved to tears during his closing remarks as he spoke of Bro. Ploeger’s influence on Chaminade. Both Ploeger and Gilmore have left unique marks on the University and the community at large. Chaminade was grateful and proud.

With the strong leadership of event chair Dr. Edison H. Miyawaki, the athletics gala has raised $1.5 Million over the last nine years in support of Chaminade University’s 10-sports intercollegiate athletics program. 

Bro. Bernie Ploeger’s, S.M., video tribute
George Gilmore, Jr. ’04 video tribute

Alumna Kelly Asato Helps Keiki Get a Solid Start

Serving as an elementary school counselor offers numerous psychological rewards for Chaminade University alumna Kelly Asato. One of the greatest, she says, is building relationships with students and their families during that early and critical phase of an educational journey.

Kelly Asato (MSCP '09)

“There is a tremendous amount of responsibility to make sure that the student has a positive experience in school that will lay the foundation for the rest of their time in middle and high school,” Asato says.

“Through these developmental years, students learn how to communicate, problem solve, work together with their peers and build study skills necessary to be competent learners,” Asato points out. “Knowing that I played some role in that developmental process is very rewarding and gratifying.”

At Ma’ema’e Elementary School in Honolulu, where Asato has worked since 2010, she counsels the same students as they progress from kindergarten through fifth grade. So naturally she becomes attached to the keiki and their parents.

“For me, the simple ‘thank you’ and ‘we appreciate what you have done to help our child’ is enough to help me get through the rough days and keep going day in and day out,” Asato says.

After Asato obtained her undergraduate degree on the Mainland, she returned home to Hawaii for graduate school and to pursue a counseling career. In 2009 she earned a master’s of science degree in counseling psychology with a school counseling emphasis.

“Knowing that Chaminade had a master’s program that specialized in not only counseling psychology but also allowed students to choose their emphasis was ideal for me,” Asato says. “And that was the primary reason why I chose Chaminade over other institutions.”

The most beneficial aspect of her university experience, Asato says, was being embedded at local schools during the practicum and internship parts of the program. That gave her the knowledge and skills required for transitioning into the Hawaii Department of Education (DOE).

“I appreciated that many of the teachers who taught the classes for the program actually had experience working in the DOE, currently as school counselors or in other capacities,” Asato says. “That wealth of knowledge and firsthand experience was definitely beneficial to my growth as a student.”

The Master’s of Science in Counseling Psychology (MSCP) program is part of the Division of Behavioral Sciences. The program includes three concentrations: School Counseling, Mental Health Counseling, and Marriage and Family Counseling. MSCP prepares graduates for careers in community and school settings. Graduates assist children, youth and adults in adapting to various educational, family, organizational and societal demands. The program includes the foundational use of standards established by the National Board for Certified Counselors (NBCC) and Council for Accreditation of Counseling and Related Educational Programs (CACREP).