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Academic All-PacWest Teams Announced, Chaminade Sets Record

A record-100 Chaminade University student-athletes were named Thursday to the Academic All-Pacific West Conference Teams.

The number broke the previous standard of 93 set during the 2017-18 academic year. It marks the fifth time in the past seven years that the Chaminade Athletics set a record for student-athletes recognized as Academic All-PacWest.

A total of 102 Silverswords were actually named but two student-athletes earned academic all-conference in two different sports.

Women’s volleyball senior Nina Torio (Mililani, O‘ahu, Hawai‘i/Mililani) capped off her college career with a perfect 4.00 cumulative grade-point average while majoring in Business Administration. She was one of nine seniors in the PacWest to post perfect GPAs.

Men’s soccer had the most Academic All-PacWest eligible members with 18 followed by women’s soccer with 16, women’s volleyball with 15 and softball with 14. Women’s basketball had all 10 of its eligible student-athletes honored.

Among small-roster sports (10 student-athletes or less), women’s tennis had all seven members recognized as Academic All-PacWest. Men’s cross country and women’s cross country had six each.

A total of 1,742 student-athletes in the PacWest were named on the academic all-conference teams.

To be recognized as Academic All-PacWest, student-athletes must have a minimum cumulative GPA of 3.00, have completed two semesters at their current institution and competed in at least one regular season game or competition. Chaminade competes in 10 of the conference’s 15 sponsored sports.

Men’s Basketball
  • Isaac Amaral-Artharee, Freshman, Business Administration major, Portland, OR
  • Andre Arissol, Senior, Communication major, Northampton, England
  • Tyler Cartaino, Senior, Accounting major, Newbury Park, CA
  • Telly Davenport, Junior, Business Administration major, Idaho Falls, ID
  • Kevin Kremer, Freshman, Business Administration major, Chico, CA
  • Kobe Young, Freshman, Biochemistry major, Honolulu, HI
Women’s Basketball
  • Cheyenne Ardona, Sophomore, Business Administration major, Mililani, HI
  • Jamia Bailey, Sophomore, Elementary Education major, Yokosuka, Japan
  • Ellyonna Bankofier, Sophomore,Nursing major, Happy Valley, OR
  • Kali Benavente, Senior, Business Administration major, Tamuning, Guam
  • Arianna Blowe, Sophomore,Psychology major, Monument, CO
  • Destiny Castro, Senior, Accounting major, Talofofo, Guam
  • Michaella Dean, Sophomore, Behavioral Science major, Irvine, CA
  • Breann Nueku, Senior, Psychology major, Honolulu, HI
  • Grace Underhill, Sophomore, Biology-Integrative and Organismal major, River Forest, IL
  • Kirstin Wong, Senior, 3.62 GPA Criminology and Criminal Justice major, Laguna Niguel, CA
Men’s Cross Country
  • Elijah Bernardo-Flores, Junior, Criminology and Criminal Justice major, Waipahu, HI
  • Rocco Deangelo, Junior, Biology-Integrative and Organismal major, Mebane, NC
  • Beau Larsen, Freshman, Communications major, Papillion, NE
  • Peyton Oshiro, Freshman, Undeclared, Honolulu, HI
  • Josiah Rodrigues, Senior, Criminology and Criminal Justice major, Honokaa, HI
  • Matthew Schmidt, Senior, Forensic Science major, Hanalei, HI
Women’s Cross Country
  • Alena Albertson, Freshman, Environmental Science major, Austin, TX
  • Riley Hallman, Junior, Nursing major, Renner, SD
  • Hannah Hovestol, Sophomore, Nursing major, Modesto, CA
  • Montserrat Lanfranco, Freshman, Environmental + Interior Design major, Honolulu, HI
  • Eri Leong, Freshman, Communications major, Las Vegas, NV
  • Olivia Mariucci, Junior, Nursing major, Templeton, CA
Men’s Golf
  • Colby Gunderson, Junior, Biology-Cellular and Molecular major, Kaneohe, HI
  • Demond Mello, Senior, Communications major, Kaneohe, HI
  • Jeren Nishimoto, Senior, Business Administration major, Honolulu, HI
  • Schuyler Peterson, Freshman, Communications major, Huntington Beach, CA
Men’s Soccer
  • Quinton Brown, Freshman, Business Administration major, El Paso, TX
  • Kelton Cheney, Junior Undecided, State College, PA
  • Curtis Coburn, Senior, Biology-Integrative and Organismal major, Huntington Beach, CA
  • Lyric De Leon, Junior, Criminology and Criminal Justice major, Kapolei, HI
  • Tyler Ebisuya, Junior, Business Administration major, Kaneohe, HI
  • Jamin Fonseca, Junior, Criminology and Criminal Justice major, Mililani, HI
  • David Gewargis, Freshman, Business Administration major, San Jose, CA
  • Reece Hambly, Senior, Business Administration major, Binghamton, England
  • Steven Harris, Junior, Psychology major, Monroe, WA
  • Brison Kim, Freshman, Undecided, Honolulu, HI
  • Taka Kosins, Junior, Elementary Education major, Tokyo, Japan
  • Isaiah Kuloloia, Senior, Business Administration major, Mililani, HI
  • Colin Roemer, Junior, Undecided, Cologne, Germany
  • Matthew Schmidt, Senior, Forensic Sciences major, Hanalei, HI
  • Michael Stafford, Senior, Psychology major, Honolulu, HI
  • Tasman Turner, Accounting major, Kailua, HI
  • Joshua Wong, Criminology and Criminal Justice major, Aiea, HI
  • Brandon Yasue, Criminology and Criminal Justice major, Honolulu, HI
Women’s Soccer
  • Rachel Arakawa, Senior, Biology-Integrative and Organismal, Kaneohe, HI
  • Breanna-Leigh Bactista, Junior, Business Administration major, Mililani, HI
  • Camryn Cabudol, Freshman, Undecided, Ewa Beach, HI
  • Sharon Cain, Sophomore, Forensic Sciences major, Honolulu, HI
  • Randi Fontes, Junior, Nursing major, Wahiawa, HI
  • Alyssa Francia, Freshman, Religious Studies-Christian Studies major, Surprise, AZ
  • Laina Jumawan, Freshman, Biology-Integrative and Organismal major, Kaneohe, HI
  • Kira Nishiki, Freshman, Elementary Education major, Mililani, HI
  • Dayna Nishimura, Sophomore, Biology- Integrative and Organismal, Mililani, HI
  • Jordan Taboniar, Senior, Elementary Education major, Anahola, HI
  • Naomi Takata, Freshman, Nursing major, Honolulu, HI
  • Kyla Takazono, Sophomore, Elementary Education major, Pearl City, HI
  • Cierra Toledo-Muragin, Senior, Nursing major, Hilo, HI
  • Nicole Vontsolos, Freshman, Criminology and Criminal Justice major, San Diego, CA
  • Lindsey Wilson, Freshman, Nursing major, Mililani, HI
  • Kirstin Wong, Senior, Criminology and Criminal Justice major, Laguna Niguel, CA
Softball
  • Karyna Baldomino, Sophomore, Elementary Education major, Diamond Bar, CA
  • Kobe Brown, Freshman, Psychology major, Mililani, HI
  • Kaitlyn Castillo, Senior, Forensic Sciences major, Makawao, HI
  • Ronni Gallegos, Junior, Communication major, Long Beach, CA
  • Kailah Gates-Koyaso, Freshman, Business Administration major, Waianae, HI
  • Taylor Genera, Freshman, Biology-Cellular and Molecular major, Norwalk, CA
  • Malia Ka’akimaka-Moisa, Junior, Forensic Sciences major, Ewa Beach, HI
  • Kieren Lopez, Freshman, Biology-Cellular and Molecular major, Bakersfield, CA
  • Hailey Matsumura, Sophomore, Criminology and Criminal Justice major, Honolulu, HI
  • Cheyne Obara, Sophomore, Elementary Education major, Pearl City, HI
  • Alexas Presto-Ahsing, Sophomore, Business Administration major, Pearl City, HI
  • Yolanda Racaz, Freshman, Elementary Education major, San Pedro, CA
  • Jehna Ramiscal, Freshman, Forensic Sciences, Visalia, CA
  • Madelyn Stockslager, Junior, Psychology major, Torrance, CA
Women’s Tennis
  • Cai Yan Fang, Senior, Data Science, Analytics and Visualization major, Zhongshan, China
  • Tomomi Kohno, Senior, Psychology major, Tokyo, Japan
  • Kayleen Lau, Freshman, Biology-Cellular and Molecular major, Wailuku, HI
  • Catrina Liner, Junior, Biology-Cellular and Molecular, Corvallis, OR
  • Mariel Navarro, Senior, Nursing major, Manila, Philippines
  • Emily Ramirez Miranda, Freshman, Environmental Science major, Honolulu, HI
  • Elyssa Shirai, Senior, Environmental + Interior Design major, Waipahu, HI
Women’s Volleyball
  • Alecza Abary, Freshman, Undecided, Fontana, CA
  • Alana Handy, Senior, Historical & Political Studies major, Burlington, WA
  • Leka Kiner-Falefa, Junior, Business Administration, Honolulu, HI
  • Tate Lutu, Sophomore, Criminology and Criminal Justice major, Honolulu, HI
  • Riley Lynch, Junior, Psychology major, Kaneohe, HI
  • Rae Montrose, Freshman, Psychology major, Cedar Hills, UT
  • Rachel Reedy, Junior, Nursing major, Temple City, CA
  • Annah Rivera, Freshman, Biology-Cellular and Molecular major, Granada Hills, CA
  • Emma Tecklenburg, Senior, Criminology and Criminal Justice major, Plano, TX
  • Isabella Tessitore, Senior, Business Administration major, San Diego, CA
  • Tatiana Toleafoa, Sophomore, Psychology major, Union City, CA
  • Nina Torio, Senior, Business Administration major, Mililani, HI
  • Danielle Wiley, Junior, Elementary Education major, Peoria, AZ
  • Jacqueline Wolfe, Junior, Business Administration major, Laguna Hills, CA
  • Claire Zanon, Junior, Business Administration major, Beaverton, OR

Dr. Roy Panzarella Named Director of the Hogan Entrepreneurial Program

Chaminade University is delighted to announce a familiar name—Dr. Roy Panzarella—has been appointed director of the Hogan Entrepreneurial Program. He will begin July 1.

Dr. Roy Panzarella

Panzarella, who served as vice chair of the Board of Regents and volunteered as a Hogan Entrepreneurial Program mentor, brings his wealth of leadership experience to the role.

His business acumen and commitment to serving others have taken him around the world—and eventually brought him to Chaminade.

Panzarella is truly a perfect fit for the Hogan program, a signature initiative at the university that relies on strong collaborations with executives and challenges students to turn their ideas into business plans.

Panzarella sees Hogan students as ethical, transformational and innovative leaders-in-training.

Among Panzarella’s many previous leadership roles was as chief executive of Lockheed Martin-United Arab Emirates. As an Army colonel, Panzarella also served as the US defense attaché to Poland.

And in academia, Panzarella also wore many hats, including as dean of student affairs at the George Marshall Center for Security Studies in Germany.

Panzarella holds a Doctorate in Organizational Leadership from the University of Oklahoma.

He also has master’s degrees in Human Development and in International Relations, from Boston University and the Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy at Tufts University, respectively.

Panzarella received his bachelor’s degree from the US Military Academy at West Point.

He considers serving others his lifelong calling and has volunteered his time with a long list of organizations, including the Chamber of Commerce, advisory board of NYU Abu Dhabi’s Department of Engineering and the Board of Trustees for the American School of Warsaw.

Please join the entire Chaminade ‘ohana in congratulating Dr. Roy Panzarella on his appointment.

Caring for Caregivers

As a nursing major, Rosemarie Maltezo was excited for her junior year. It’s when she was going to get to work hands-on in a clinical setting and put into practice some of what she had learned about patient care in the last two years in the classroom and simulation lab.

Queen's Medical Center's nurses and staff saying thank you to the HOSA Club for the care package donation
Queen’s Medical Center Punchbowl unit nurses thanking the HOSA Club for the care packages

Maltezo was assigned to the 9th floor of the Diamond Head Tower at Queen’s Medical Center, and spent her time shadowing and assisting the unit’s nurses. But a week after her clinical coursework ended, COVID-19 hit and she received a message from her professor saying that the whole 9th floor had been turned into a COVID unit.

That hit home. The nurses Maltezo had been working alongside were now on the front lines of combating a still very mysterious and unpredictable global disease outbreak.

Maltezo wanted to help. She was the president and founder of the Chaminade Health Occupational Schools for America (HOSA) Future Health Professionals Club, and they were slated to do a community service project with the Boy Scouts and Girl Scouts of America in April. When that event was canceled, Maltezo saw it as an opportunity to get down to the core of who they were and what they believed in.

Chaminade's HOSA Club's care pacakges
HOSA Club’s care packages

HOSA Club members are all aspiring healthcare employees, and throughout their time in clinicals they had come to realize just how much of a sacrifice nurses make every day. The global pandemic brought that sacrifice to a whole new level.

“Going through clinicals, we noticed that nurses do so much for us that sometimes they forget to take care of themselves,” says Maltezo. “Their number one priority is being an advocate for their patients, but sometimes they neglect their own health to keep us alive and running.”

With funding and supplies donated by Chaminade’s School of Nursing and Health Professions and two of their club advisers and professors, Denise Cooper and Dr. Edna Magpantay-Monroe, the HOSA club members put together 128 care packages to donate to nurses on the front lines at Queen’s Medical Center Punchbowl and Queen’s Medical Center West Oahu.

Each care package included a stress ball shaped like a pill with the label “chill pill”, face masks, deodorant and some power snacks. The packages also included mouthwash and gum, because as Maltezo realized during her clinical rotations, “they’re in their masks all day and honestly it’s so hard to be in a mask and smell your own breath all day.”

Chaminade's HOSA Club delivering care packages to Queen's Medical Center
Delivering care packages to Queen’s Medical Center West Oahu: Rose Alika Maltezo, Jasmine Pineda, Alisha Chavez, Elanie Sua’ava and alumna Brandy Dela Cruz

Maltezo founded the HOSA club in the spring of 2018. The Chaminade club is part of the international HOSA organization which empowers future healthcare leaders. Member clubs participate in community service, leadership opportunities, networking events and competitions.

The students and their advisors chose to deliver the packages at the end of May, once COVID-19 was starting to slow down so that they wouldn’t be a bother at the hospital and interrupt the busy workflow of the nurses. They dropped off packages at Queen’s Punchbowl on May 15 and Queen’s West on May 26, and were met by Chaminade alums Edlene Vanessa Coloma, Kate Chamberlain and Brandy dela Cruz who came out to receive them.

Maltezo had participated in a HOSA club at her high school, and knew she wanted to bring the club to Chaminade. So her freshman year, she recruited a few upperclassmen to help her create a Chaminade chapter, and by summer 2018 they had already won second place in their first international competition in Dallas, Texas. They repeated that accomplishment again in summer 2019, winning second place in the international competition in Orlando, Florida.

HOSA Club at a competition
HOSA Club at a competition, winning second place

Maltezo is stepping down as president this coming year to focus on finishing her fourth year as a nursing student. The club has selected sophomore Kelvin Manganaan to take over as president, and Maltezo will serve as his vice president to help get him settled into the new role. 

“This coming year we want to participate in the Hawaii State Leadership Conference again, and hopefully send at least 10 people to the international competition,” says Maltezo. “We also want to be more involved in the community.”

Honolulu NAACP Hosts Virtual Town Hall

Over 10,000 people took part in a rally at the Hawaii State Capitol on Saturday, June 6, to show solidarity with the black community against systemic racism and police brutality. It was the largest of several peaceful protests that took place across the state in response to the recent killing of George Floyd.

Following the rally, the Honolulu chapter of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) held a virtual town hall meeting featuring a panel of community leaders, including Chaminade Professor Dr. Allison Paynter. Paynter was joined by the Reverend Dr. Anthony Cook from Trinity Missionary Baptist Church; John McCarthy, the deputy chief of the Honolulu Police Department; Rep. John Mizuno from the Hawaii State Legislature; and Christel Thompson, a family counselor.

Co-host and NAACP Honolulu Branch President Alphonso Briggs began the town hall by explaining that the meeting was designed to be the next step after the march. Now that the rally was over, what could be done to continue discussions and further efforts to address systemic racism?

Hawaii Supreme Court Chief Justice Mark E. Recktenwald helped put the issue of racism into a local context. “I want to make very clear—this is not just an issue for the mainland,” stated Recktenwald. “One study showed here in Hawaii, a person who is black is more than twice as likely to be imprisoned than a person who is white. So we have a lot of work to do.”

John McCarthy, deputy chief of the Honolulu Police Department, opened by immediately calling out the killing of George Floyd. “I’ve been in law enforcement for 44 years with the Honolulu Police Department,” said McCarthy. “I’ve seen a lot of things, but even that was disturbing and appalling and should never have happened, anywhere. It just shouldn’t have gone down that way.”

NAACP's Virtual Town Hall - Dr. Allison Paynter was one of the panelists

Dr. Allison Paynter offered a historical perspective, comparing today’s perceptions of African Americans to a quote from the early 20th century by one of the co-founders of the NAACP, James Weldon Johnson.

The quote reads: “The battle was first waged over the right of the Negro to be classed as a human being with a soul; later, as to whether he had sufficient intellect to master even the rudiments of learning; and today it is being fought out over his social recognition.”

To Paynter, the quote reflects how unfortunate it is that nearly 100 years later, “we are still trying to establish the African American as a viable, just and equitable partner in the citizenship of America.”

The outrage Paynter sees flooding the streets across the nation is not surprising to her. She supports the emotional responses and sees them as a vital component to our wellbeing, but she encouraged protesters to channel their aggression into creative venues. She called on youth to use their words, their social media platforms, their art and their politics to demand effective change.

While Paynter described racism as “the most virulent virus around,” she understands how the current COVID-19 pandemic in conjunction with civil rights protests across the nation has many on edge. As the only higher education representative on the panel, she recognized that parents of college-aged students may be feeling incredibly anxious about a fall return to the classroom given recent events. She described Chaminade’s plan for hybrid learning—combining face-time in the classroom with online lectures and seminars—as one way forward.

“The most important thing a family can do is speak to their institutions and make sure that any concerns they have are answered,” offered Paynter. “I think all of our faculties and administrators across the nation are willing to take part in that discussion.”

Just as she began, Paynter closed her time by putting today’s protests into a historical context. “When we look at protests against slavery and the civil rights movement, we tend to look at them as closed capsules where we only have African Americans fighting for and dying for justice.” Paynter points to examples of that changing now—last week alone there were peaceful rallies in all 50 states standing in solidarity with the Black Lives Matter movement.

With new technologies and new ways of documenting injustices and organizing communities emerging, Paynter sees a growth in global awareness that we are all humans. “There is a media presence today that we didn’t have access to in the ’60s,” says Paynter. “We cannot be silenced, nor should we be silenced.”

She concluded by calling for intergenerational collaboration. “When I look back at some of these protests and protesters, and I see these voices coming forward in our youth, I am heartened,” says Paynter. “I am of one generation, you are of another. We need to come together and make sure there is a pathway for kindness, love and justice in the future.”

The full town hall meeting is available for viewing on the KHON website.

The Importance of Kindness

When Henry “Jamie” Holcombe first arrived on-island in 1986 as an Army Officer, he knew he wanted an MBA. He explored a few different universities, and ultimately settled on Chaminade University.

Alexandria, Virginia -- February 27, 2019 -- Portrait of Jamie Holcombe, Chief Information Officer (CIO) at the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO). (Photo by Jay Premack/USPTO)

He was Catholic, and he liked that Chaminade educated in the Marianist tradition. But he was also attracted to the diversity that the campus offered.

And thus began his two-year foray acting as soldier by day, and student by night.

Over 30 years later, and Holcombe finds he still uses the knowledge he gained at Chaminade nearly every single day.

He’s the Chief Information Officer at The United States Patent and Trademark Office, and his department is responsible for overseeing nearly 10,600,000 patents.

When someone comes up with an idea that they want to implement, they have to make sure that it’s a unique and novel idea and that if they were to patent it, their patent would stand up in a court of law.

His office is responsible for designing and maintaining an easy-to-use platform so people all over the world can search for unique and novel ideas. His team relies heavily on computers and search algorithms, and builds classifications for all types of information, from genetics and microbiology to artificial intelligence.

Chaminade’s prime location offered Holcombe a valuable insight into Eastern business philosophies, which, as a businessman, has proved invaluable. When he was a student, Japan’s economy was surging and served as a great model to study. He also gained a better understanding of Japanese culture which is vital as he works regularly with his counterpart in Japan.

But the one thing that really impacted Holcombe, and that he reflects on every single day, are the pillars of the Marianist philosophy. At Chaminade, Holcombe came to value the importance of having a heart and extending kindness toward others. “I try to use kindness as a theme throughout my management style,” he says. “We’re all about results and getting things done better and faster, but life is too short. You have to have kindness.”

PPE for Queen’s Medical Center

CTRAC created PPE donated to Queen's Medical Center

The Castle Teacher Resource Activity Center (CTRAC) in Chaminade’s School of Education and Behavioral Sciences recently donated 62 face shields to nurses in the Trauma Unit at Queen’s Hospital to use as protection while treating patients with COVID-19.

CTRAC created PPE donated to Queen's Medical Center

When Chaminade staff approached Graduate Assistant Veronica Haskell about using the CTRAC equipment to create face masks, she immediately got to work creating a prototype. With a successful prototype in hand, she went into production and produced the face shields using the center’s 3-D printer and laser cutter.

Haskell, a graduate student in Chaminade’s Master of Arts in Teaching program, has worked at CTRAC for less than a year. She has learned to master both the 3-D printer and the laser cutter in that short period of time and has been invaluable on numerous projects, including this one.

CTRAC created PPE donated to Queen's Medical Center

CTRAC was established nearly 10 years ago through generous funding from the Samuel N. and Mary Castle Foundation, and provides a much-needed space for students to study, relax, create and socialize. The center was turned into a maker’s space in 2018 and now houses the 3-D printer and laser cutter, both of which are available for student use.

Haskell worked with Dr. Elizabeth Park, associate professor of education at Chaminade, and Dr. Amber Noguchi, director of Undergraduate Research and Pre-Professional Programs at Chaminade. Together, they were able to coordinate the delivery of the masks to Queen’s in a contactless drop-off on June 1, 2020.