Chaminade University of Honolulu

Diversity and Inclusion

Back to School

First cohort of Mu’o Scholarship recipients begin their journey to a teaching career

Efforts to address Hawaii’s teacher shortage have come in all different forms, from monetary incentives to scholarships. Recognizing the critical need for early education teachers in Hawaiʻi, Chaminade University and Kamehameha Schools have established the Mu‘o Scholarship, an innovative and community-focused teacher prep partnership that will provide tuition funding to educate, train and prepare aspiring teachers to lead Hawaii’s classrooms.  

“By providing these scholarships, we’re removing barriers that too often hinder many working adults in the state from obtaining a bachelor’s degree while still maintaining family and work commitments,” says Chaminade University President Lynn Babington, Ph.D. “Mu’o means to bud, and we believe our Mu’o Program will allow us to grow teachers, to bud teachers who will positively impact our communities through their teaching careers for generations to come.”  

This month, the first cohort of 49 Mu‘o Scholarship recipients began their path toward earning their teaching degrees. Of the 49 new students, 32 of them identified as Native Hawaiian, which matters because, like elsewhere around the country, the public education teacher workforce in Hawaii does not mirror the diversity of the student population. New York Times writer Claire Cain Miller cites research that says “students tend to benefit from having teachers who look like them, especially nonwhite students.”  

To address Hawaii's teacher shortage, Chaminade University and Kamehameha Schools have introduced their own new carrot: an innovative and community-focused teacher prep partnership that will provide 150 Muʻo Scholarships to educate, train and prepare aspiring teachers to lead Hawaiʻi’s classrooms.
Vice Provost Janet Davidson welcomes Muo scholars.

The same research shows that students perform better when they have teachers who reflect their race and gender, particularly in disadvantaged, high minority areas. However, this leads to another question: Do teachers who have a better cultural understanding of their students tend to stay longer in their roles? In Hawaii, the short answer is yes.  

“From Hanapepe to Hilo, we want to provide pathways to a college degree, and we believe that our Mu‘o Program will allow us to do that,” says Janet Davidson, Ph.D., Vice Provost of Academic Affairs. “By increasing opportunities for culturally relevant professional development, we significantly increase students’ success, and we see our students succeed to degree completion.”  

The Mu‘o Scholarship recipients also come from four of the major islands, with 14 from the Hawaii Island, 28 from Honolulu, eight from Kauai and five from Maui. Students’ majors also vary, with one concentrating on secondary education and another in elementary education, and the rest are majoring in either Early Childhood Education or Early Childhood Education with Montessori Credential.  

“We did some surveys and early childhood educators indicated their life situations didn’t allow them to take in-person courses,” says Dr. Elizabeth Park, Associate Professor and Director of Early Childhood Education with Montessori Credential. “So what we did was spend the energy and the time to design robust online courses to meet the needs of our educators.”      

Chaminade’s online bachelor’s degree program is designed for working adults in Hawai‘i who may already be serving as a teacher’s aide or, currently, in a similar position. The online delivery format will allow students to continue working while pursuing their bachelor’s degree. Program information is available and applications for the scholarships are being accepted. This transformative program is 100 percent online, with a requirement to complete a student-teaching track. Students will be paired with an academic advisor to guide them on the road to graduation.  

“Chaminade and Kamehameha Schools deeply value education, and we know a teacher-prep program, like our Mu‘o Program, will help address the teacher shortage here in Hawaii,” Davidson says. “And we know that education, especially from early childhood, has such a positive impact on our kids, their families and the community.”

Environmental Leaders

Changemakers discuss their path to policymaking

One is nicknamed by her husband as the “Irresistible Force.” The other is known as “The Enforcer.” And the third has a spouse who wholeheartedly stands behind him—even if it means wielding a tire iron. Together, Althine Clark, Celeste Connors and William Aila, Jr., respectively, represent a “super power” to contend with when it involves environmental policy and activism in the islands.  

“The goal of this session is to have our guest speakers talk about how they got where they are today,” said Clark, a Chaminade adjunct professor who recently retired as the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s (NOAA) superintendent of Papahānaumokuākea Marine National Monument. “You’ll hear real-life examples of what it’s like to live a life in environmental policy.”  

In his opening story, Aila recalled a time when he was young with a fervent commitment to do whatever it took to preserve the aina–even if it meant physical confrontation. “I saw these three guys one day and I confronted them because they were mistreating a cultural site,” Aila shared with the students. “I asked them to stop and I started to move towards them. When you’re about to get into a fight, you look at the person’s eyes and then watch their shoulder. But these guys kept looking behind me so I thought I was going to be ambushed. And when I had a second to look back, I saw my wife standing there with a tire iron in her hands.”  

Today’s environmentalists are faced with many forms of violence—and even death at times. The non-governmental organization Standing Firm has published an annual report on the killings of land and environmental defenders around the world every year since 2012, after the murder of Chut Wutty, a Cambodian environmentalist who worked with the Global Witness CEO Mike Davis investigating illegal logging.  

While stationed in Greece as an economics officer with the U.S. Mission to the United Nations, Celeste Connors once remembered seeing a bullet lodged in her office window. “There was so much anti-American sentiment at the time,” said Connors, Executive Director of Hawaiʻi Green Growth, which is a United Nations Local 2030 hub that brings together diverse stakeholders committed to economic, social and environmental priorities. “But when I told them I was from Hawaii, everyone started reaching out because they can connect with Hawaii.”

Indeed, Hawaii holds a special place with Connors who decided to come home in 2015 after serving as a diplomat in Saudi Arabia, Greece, Germany and U.S. Mission to the UN. She later was named the Director for Environment and Climate Change at the National Security Council and National Economic Council in the White House (2008-2012), where she helped shape the Administration’s climate and energy policies, including the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Connors also worked with the United Nations on the Paris climate agreement that was signed in 2016, which she sees as inspiration for Hawai‘i Green Growth’s goals.  

“The world is at a point where we desperately need solutions,” Connors asserted. “Since I left home, there has been a cultural renaissance, and other nations are now looking to indigenous models, such as Hawai’s ahupua‘a system, to become sustainable and independent. Think locally but act globally.”  

With a background in urban and regional planning, Clark understands the complexity of environmental law and policy, a class (ENV 300) that she is currently teaching to sophomores and juniors. Her introductory course outlines environmental policy and law—specifically its nature, development, flexibility, and growth, and to the ethical dimensions surrounding the creation of state, national and international environmental policy and law.  

“No is not an option nor an answer,” Clark said. “I’m now seeing lots of communities get engaged. One of the reasons I agreed to teach at Chaminade is because the University encourages students to get involved in projects that benefit society.”  

Asked by a student how to deal with climate change deniers, Aila said try to first reason with them. “And if that doesn’t work, go around him, go above him, go below him,” he advised. “Don’t let anyone tell you, you can’t. Instead, use those words as a motivator, and go out and make a difference.”                

Enterprising Minds

Teams to compete in Silversword Business Competition

Game on! In a Shark Tank-like competition, teams of students will compete in an entrepreneurial 18-week contest, vying for the grand prize of $2,000. The catch: the product or the service must have some element of sustainability.  

“Your idea has to address any of the CIFAL Center’s 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDG),” explained Asoke Datta, EdD, School of Business and Communication’s Assistant Dean, outlining the competition’s rules. “It has to be profitable, not just in terms of revenue, but for the greater good of society.”  

Without revealing too much about her strategy, Carol Nacario ’23, a senior in the School of Business and Communication, is concerned with all the “waste” that she sees around her. The environment, like many in her generation—led by Greta Thunberg and the Sunrise Movement, a youth-led political organization urging increased attention to climate change—is an issue that needs to be kept in the forefront of people’s minds.  

Students participating in the Silversword Business Competition include, from left, Peyton Haleamau, Michalla Burtado, Alyssa Torres (kneeling), Emma Rosales and Carol Nacario.

“Deciding on a final project will be the most difficult challenge,” shared Nacario with other students who attended Day 1 of the competition. “My target audience will be the campus.”  

Academic competitions play an essential part in learning for students. Participation offers a hands-on opportunity for students to apply the knowledge and principles they have gained in the classroom and apply it to real-work situations. These competitions foster such skills as leadership, teamwork and communication. They can also be a great way to make new connections and friends.  

School of Business and Communication interim dean, Dr. Annette Santos, issued her first challenge to the students: recruit others to join their teams. “It can be a team of two to five students,” said Santos via a live video feed from Guam. “However, at least one of the team members has to be from the School of Business and Communication.”  

A business major, Peyton Haleamau ’25, convinced second year forensics science majors, Emma Rosales ’25 and Michalla “Meeks” Butardo ’25, to be on her team. Having never taken a business course, Rosales and Butardo consider their lack of entrepreneurial savvy as their major challenge.  

“We’ll be here as advisors and mentors,” marketing lecturer Wera Panow-Loui, MBA, told the students. “Last year, I opened my house up to a team of students who were producing jewelry out of microplastics reclaimed from the beach and in the ocean. And I also fed them.”  

Datta suggested to find team members who are in different disciplines, from art and interior design to nursing and data analytics. “You want a wider perspective than just business,” he said. “That’s what entrepreneurs do—they get creative. And, if they fail, what they learn from that failure determines how they succeed the next time.”

Each team will be given $250 seed money to use at its discretion. The School of Business and Communication’s Advisory Board members, who are providing the funding for the seed money, will also be available as mentors.  

When the competition was launched in 2021, the plan was to have students open and manage a pop-up concession on campus. Because COVID-19 was still a factor, another approach was decided: the School invited students to participate in a business competition that would allow them to show off their creativity, their ability to work with others and their aptitude in everything from marketing to accounting and customer service.  

“Think of this competition as an incubator of ideas,” said Dr. Eduard Merc, who is Chaminade’s MBA director. “You’ll have the chance to work alongside your professors and the opportunity for experiential learning that goes beyond theory.”  

Students’ final presentation will take place on Nov. 16. Each team will be assessed by sales/revenue, social media likes and shares, and their profit-and-lost statement.  

“And your business must align with the sustainable approach,” Santos emphasized. “In developing your business plan, take into account these considerations: 1) Identify future needs; 2) Identify technology to serve that need; and 3) How will you deliver the need, through what channels of distribution?”  

Their time starts now!    

Special Delivery  

Dr. Thomas Shieh has delivered 11,000 babies on Guam and another 4,000 at Kapiolani Medical Center for Women & Children.

Dr. Thomas Shieh with his daughter Beverly in his arms after the Chaminade graduation ceremony.
Dr. Thomas Shieh with his daughter Beverly in his arms after the Chaminade graduation ceremony.

There’s an old Chinese proverb that literally translates to, “Nothing in the world is difficult for one who is determined enough to achieve it.” In other words, where there’s a will, there’s a way. This hasn’t always been the attitude Dr. Thomas Shieh ’87 projected when he was growing up in Salt Lake. He barely graduated from Moanalua High School, eking out a GPA of 2.2, just 0.2 points above the required average threshold to earn a diploma. College wasn’t even a consideration, let alone medical school.  

“I still have nightmares that Moanalua will call me one day and say they made a mistake,” quips Shieh, an obstetrician/gynecologist with a thriving, eponymous private clinic in Tamuning, Guam. “I was an average student with a 1.8 GPA at best until my senior year when I realized I might not graduate.”  

After graduation, Shieh enrolled at a local travel school for three months and earned a travel agent certificate, taking aim at a career in the tourism industry. He personally hand delivered his resume to all the airlines and travel agencies on the island. None responded.  

“Maybe if one of them had answered, I would have been the Roberts Hawaii,” says Shieh with a laugh. “But no one wanted to hire me, so I had a six-month gap between graduating from high school and starting university. Then one day, I was watching a Chaminade basketball game and I said to myself, ‘These guys are good.’ And this is how I learned about Chaminade—through basketball.”  

After applying to Chaminade, Shieh met with the late Sr. Roberta Derby who accepted Shieh’s application but placed him on academic probation for a year, and limited the number of courses he could pursue to just four. “It was English, math, social studies and I can’t remember the fourth one,” Shieh says. “During the summer of ’83, I got all As and I was now more motivated to continue my matriculation.”  

In the meantime, his high school sweetheart, Raven Rawlins—whom he met when he was a sophomore and she was a freshman at Moanalua—decided to follow him to Chaminade. He was studying biology and she was majoring in computer science. In his senior year, however, they learned that Raven was pregnant. After making two appointments at an abortion clinic, the young couple decided to keep the baby.

“I tell Beverly (the eldest of two daughters) this story all the time,” Shieh says candidly. “I got a lot of counseling from Henry Gomes (Chaminade’s director of Native Hawaiian Partnerships) who encouraged me that we could do this; that having a baby didn’t need to stop my education in pursuing a medical degree.”  

Dr. Thomas Shieh and Raven Shieh with their grandson Maui.

Having a 1-year-old infant and attending medical school seemed antithetical, but Shieh and Raven had a will…and they found a way: Enlist in the Navy so he could have his medical school paid for, as long as he committed to military service for four years after graduation.

During his third year at the Medical College of Wisconsin, Shieh witnessed his wife give birth to their second daughter, Tiffany. Inspired by the experience, he decided to specialize in obstetrics and gynecology.  

“I am thankful to my wife, Raven, whom I like to say went to medical school with me, but I’m the one who ended up with a degree; she was with me every step of the way—through all the challenges and fatigue to the clinical rotations and exams,” Shieh says. “She and my two daughters have meant everything to me.”  

With two young daughters, Shieh had little time to go to Milwaukee Bucks games or cheer on the Brewers, although he is a dedicated sports fan. Instead, he was parenting and studying from 9 p.m. to 3 a.m., joking that the late hours were part of the training of becoming an obstetrician/gynecologist. Nearing the end of his matriculation at medical school, he was now preparing to become an active duty member of the Navy.  

“I was told by my Navy detailer that I was going to be stationed in San Diego, so I was OK with that,” Shieh recalls. “A month before graduating, though, I get a call from him, and he tells me ‘You’re going to Guam. We need you there.’ I had no idea where Guam was, and when I did an internet search, all I could find were references to super typhoons and brown tree snakes.”  

Initially reluctant to upend his young family to this U.S. island territory in Micronesia, Shieh eventually relented after his detailer promised that he would only have to serve two years in Guam. Afterward, he would be free to choose whichever duty station he would like to be relocated to serve out his remaining two years.  

That was 1996. Two years turned into four years, which extended to another four years and an additional four years. Twenty-seven years later, the popular Guam physician is committed to the community, and owns and operates a state-of-the-art, 9,000-square-foot clinic for women.  

“When I left the Navy, my office was 700 square feet and it only consisted of two exam rooms,” Shieh says. “I built this clinic two-and-a-half years ago to improve the full spectrum of healthcare for women and to enhance clinical teaching.”  

Dr. Thomas Shieh and Raven Shieh helped establish the Merv Lope Scholarship.
Dr. Thomas Shieh and Raven Shieh helped contribute to the Merv Lopes Scholarship.

To date, Shieh has delivered 11,000 babies on Guam and another 4,000 at Kapiolani Medical Center for Women & Children. And when he’s not in the operating room, he’s in the classroom teaching the next generation of obstetricians and gynecologists at John A. Burns School of Medicine, Department of Obstetrics, Gynecology and Women’s Health.  

His support for the community, though, reaches far beyond the OR and maternity wards. His philanthropic endeavors span across the Pacific. For nearly the past 25 years, he has funded Guam’s best student-athletes with the Shieh Su Ying Scholar-Athlete award, named after his beloved grandmother.  

“I always credit my late grandmother for encouraging me to become a doctor,” Shieh says. “She always told me to help people and to do good for the community.”  

When he was a student at Chaminade, Shieh was voted in as the Senior Senator and helped place clocks in all the hall, half joking, he says, that the students were always late. He was involved with the yearbook, designing the silver medallion that graced the front cover. And he helped establish the Henry Gomes Endowment and the Merv Lopes Scholarship.  

“My journey at Chaminade was truly fun and memorable,” Shieh says. “Chaminade was my stepping stone; it gave me motivation and taught me the values of family spirit, faith, service, equality and justice. I truly cherish the years that I spent there.”                  

One Year MBA: Smart Track to a Degree

Mia Vallero, MBA ’23, visited Nara, Japan four years ago. She remembers seeing the deer at Nara Park, and how playful and eager they were to be fed crackers by visitors. This past August, she returned to the same prefecture but this time the trip was part of the Chaminade University One Year MBA degree program, and she noticed the deer were not as lively as she remembered.

“It forced me to reflect on the tourism industry in Japan and in Hawaii,” Vallero ruminates. “I’m glad I had the opportunity to think twice about the use of wildlife for tourism and entertainment.”

Thinking deeply about business practices, culture, and economic impact and sustainability are all part of Chaminade’s One Year MBA program of which Vallero entered in the fall of 2022. The recent trip to Japan was one of the final segments of the program, as she traveled with eight fellow MBA candidates, her professor Dr. Caryn Callahan, and the Interim Dean of the School of Business and Communication Dr. Annette Santos. 

Considered the messengers of the gods, Nara's over 1000 deer have become a symbol of the city and have even been designated as a natural treasure.
Considered the messengers of the gods, Nara’s over 1000 deer have become a symbol of the city and have even been designated as a natural treasure.

A customer service manager at Aloha Freight Forwarders, Vallero enrolled in the One Year MBA program for the experience and skills she would gain to expand opportunities for her future. 

Likewise for fellow MBA candidate Joshua McDonough who earned his bachelor’s degree from Boston University. Both Vallero and McDonough belong to the second cohort of the One Year MBA program, which they will complete this September 2023. The first cohort of students entered in the fall of 2021 and earned their MBAs in September 2022. A third cohort will begin this September 2023 and will conclude in September 2024. All graduates have the option to participate in Chaminade’s commencement ceremony the following May of their program completion.

As an executive program designed for people who have work experience, the One Year MBA program provides valuable resources, credentials, and professional and practical classroom and real world exposure to its graduate students. In-person classes held every other Saturday on campus are supplemented by online course work and travel abroad, which is largely sponsored by Chaminade. The first cohort traveled to New Zealand and the international destination for the third cohort is yet to be determined. 

“Through this MBA program, I look to broaden my business perspective, grow my professional network and enhance my leadership, communication and critical thinking skills,” McDonough says.

On the recent trip to Japan, MBA candidates visited such businesses and organizations as  the Luxottica eyeglass frame factory, the Masunaga Optical Company, Daiko Advertising and Asahi Beer Suita Brewery. They also attended a baseball game at Koshien Stadium and enjoyed a private meeting with Kazuhiro Tanabe, a director of the stadium. 

Visiting the eyeglass and optical companies was particularly relevant since students were tasked to study the industry in preparation for their trip to Japan. They compared the operations of two different manufacturers, with one based in Milan, Italy—but has a presence in Japan— and the other based in Japan. They researched how a progressive, modern approach differs from a more traditional business model, and how they market, manufacture and distribute their products. 

MBA candidates got to visit the Megane Museum, where visitors learn about the history of glasses, and the more than 200 steps involved in making a pair.
MBA candidates got to visit the Megane Museum, where visitors learn about the history of glasses, and the more than 200 steps involved in making a pair.

“There’s nothing like getting students out into the field,” says Dr. Caryn Callahan, who has been teaching the One Year MBA program since its inception. “You can read textbooks and study in the classroom, but by traveling abroad we were able to meet with the presidents of companies, and were greeted warmly by high-level management. The students had researched the companies, and they were well prepared before going into these meetings”

Dr. Annette Santos agrees and recognizes the valuable experience students received by seeing Japanese business cultures through a western lens, learning about the diversification of industries, and understanding the differences and similarities between eastern and western ways of conducting business.” 

“Each curated tour, visits to manufacturing companies, meetings with heads of organizations was a professional and personal growth opportunity for our students,” Santos says. “Students  asked very good questions, such as, ‘What is it like to be a leader?’ as well as  about production and supply chain. It was really nice to see the students’ critical-thinking capacity, as reflected by the questions they asked the leaders.”

On September 16, the School of Business and Communication will hold a banquet for the graduating One Year MBA class, as well as for the new cohort of students entering the program to begin their 12 month journey, which will also conclude with international travel.

“Our international study trips transform students’ understanding of business and provide a wonderful opportunity of exposure to other cultures and local business practices,” says Dr. Eduard Merc, who is Chaminade’s MBA director. “Additionally, the academic trip gives participants a comprehensive overview of trends in business and an in-depth view into companies currently operating in the Asia Pacific region. 

“At the School of Business and Communication, we believe in the importance of our students seeing firsthand the strategies that international businesses have pursued to take part in the explosive growth of Asia, and how these companies effectively adapt to the ever-changing business, social, and political landscapes in which they operate,” Merc adds. “This supplements their MBA classroom learning in significant ways by learning directly from business leaders.”

The banquet will be bittersweet for the outgoing students whose lives for the past year were filled with the collegiality of their close-knit class. Now as alumni, they belong to Chaminade’s global network. And like many of his fellow MBA ’23 graduates, Ethan Dayton had a vision for what he hoped to accomplish a year ago when he started the curriculum. 

“My goal at the end of this program is to have amassed new knowledge,” wrote Dayton, a year ago, “and skills that expand my career path options.” 

Indeed, by all accounts, his and the entire cohort’s goals were beyond achieved. 

Welcome to the Class of 2027

Freshman and Hawaii Island native Shalei Parong was among a throng of incoming students who moved into the Hale Pohaku co-ed dormitory on August 17. Meanwhile, after attending the freshman Apo Haumana Retreat, Gavin Ritcheson, Chase Murray and Kanden Yamada bonded and became instant friends.

“It was a fun retreat,” said Yamada of Apo Haumana. “We learned more about Chaminade’s mission, Hawaii’s culture, and we met with our new faculty mentors. We also sang a lot of karaoke., too”  

This year, Chaminade University welcomed one of its largest incoming classes in recent history. The projected number of new students amounts to 1,572 undergraduate students and 642 graduate students for a total of 2,214 student enrollment. (The official final count is due Oct. 1.) The incoming class of freshmen and transfer students added up to 481, many of whom attended the New Student Orientation.

Madyson Jensen, left, and Epifania Petelo stand inside a Barbie box for incoming residents to have their photos taken.

This Fall, the University also noted a 34 percent increase in new students from Hawaii, thanks in large part to the Hawaiʻi Guarantee initiative, which makes tuition for local Hawaiʻi freshmen on par with tuition at UH Manoa.  

“It’s gratifying to see so many local high school graduates and others selecting Chaminade as the institute to pursue their higher education,” said Chaminade University President Dr. Lynn Babington. “We also have the highest graduation rate of Hawaii colleges, according to the National Center for Education Statistics, and that’s something of which we’re really proud.”  

Also of note, 285 students live in university residence halls, with nine resident assistants guiding their dormitory experience that includes activities, and all safety and security procedures.  

“We enforce the dorm rules,” said Kieffer Hall resident assistants Mady Jensen ’26 and Epifana Petelo ’23, as they waited to check in incoming students. “We make sure that everyone abides by the curfews and other regulations.”  

New this year is Chaminade’s Major and Minor in the Sport and Event Management (SEM) program within the School of Business and Communication. It is the first college program of its kind in Hawaii, according to SEM professor Wendy Lam, Ph.D. Students will take an interdisciplinary approach to build their foundation of knowledge with courses in sports business administration, sports psychology, sustainability, law, ethics and communications.  

“Sports programs generate tremendous value to both our communities and Hawaii’s economy,” said Lam, Associate Professor of Business. “The future of the school is mission-focused, practical and exciting.”  

New graduate programs include the Education Specialist in School Psychology (EdS); Doctor of Education in Organizational Leadership for Adaptation and Change (EdD–Sustainability Leadership concentration; Doctor of Nursing Practice (DNP)–BSN-DNP Pediatric Nurse Practitioner (PNP) certificate; and the Doctor of Nursing Practice (DNP)–Post-Doctor Pediatric Nurse Practitioner (PNP) Certificate.  

In addition to more than 60 majors and minors, the University’s Office of Student Engagement offers more than 30 active student clubs for students to join.  

“Looking ahead, we have an exciting year planned, and I am grateful in advance for all of the hard work and commitment of our faculty and staff members,” Babington said. “We are always here for our students.”