Chaminade University of Honolulu

Marianist

New Executive Director Appointed For Marianist Universities Association

Allison Leigh, director of Marianist strategies at the University of Dayton in Ohio, has been appointed the new executive director of the Association of Marianist Universities.

Her term begins July 1.

She will be the first woman and first lay Marianist woman to serve as executive director.

Because the AMU executive director position was expanded to full-time, Leigh will leave her current role but remain on the University of Dayton’s campus.

She will succeed Bro. Tom Giardino, S.M., who is stepping down after nine years to pursue other Marianist priorities.

As director of Marianist strategies at the University of Dayton, Leigh built strong relationships across the three Marianist universities—Chaminade, St. Mary’s in Texas and UD—including through her work with the Marianist Educational Associates program.

She also previously served as the University of Dayton’s campus minister for retreats and assistant director for retreats and faith communities.

Leigh received her master’s degree in pastoral ministry and doctorate in educational leadership from the University of Dayton, with her research focusing on how students experience the Catholic and Marianist mission.

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Leigh earned her bachelor’s degree at Xavier University and then spent a year of service with the Jesuit Volunteer Corps. Her experience led her to consider a career in campus ministry.

Leigh said she’s thrilled to continue being part of a mission that has inspired her to live her faith more deeply.

“Since first meeting the Marianists at UD in 2003, I have known Catholic and Marianist higher education offers a contribution to our society the world desperately needs,” Leigh said.

“It is a profound honor to take on this new role and collaborate with faculty, staff, and students who embody this mission in their work, every day, across all three Marianist universities. I have been blessed and deeply formed in my own faith and values by those who have done this important work, and am thrilled to carry it forward.”

The Association of Marianist Universities is a ministry of the Marianist Province of the United States to support, promote and advance Marianist higher education through cooperation among the three universities.

Chaminade President Lynn Babington said, “We’re thrilled Allison has accepted this leadership role with AMU. Her passion for empowering faculty, staff and students and students to animate and embody the mission through their individual and collective roles and her love for facilitating programs that help people grow in their formation are so important in our university communities.”

Marianist Lecture: On ‘Learning From Grief’

Fr. James Keenan, S.J., a nationally-recognized theological ethicist, spoke on the transformative power of learning from grief at the latest Marianist Lecture this month.

Keenan urged attendees to see grief not as something to “get over,” but as part of a complex and personal process of “moving forward.” “I think grief is a form of love,” he said, speaking February 9 in the Mystical Rose Oratory.

“Those who know grief … experience terrible pain and that experience is what liberates them to be responsive.”

He added, “Mourning is not something that can be finished.”

Keenan serves as the director of the Jesuit Institute and vice provost of Global Engagement at Boston College. He also founded Catholic Theological Ethics in the World Church, an international network of ethicists, and has published several books on ethics.

The Marianist Lecture, sponsored by the Marianist Center of Hawai‘i, Chaminade University and Saint Louis School, is aimed at fostering inclusive dialogue on Catholic thought and responsibility. Marianist Lecture presenters are honored with the Mackey Award for Catholic Thought, named after the first president of Chaminade University.

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Dustyn Ragasa, Ph.D., an assistant professor of Religious Studies and director of Chaminade’s Master of Pastoral Theology program, said Keenan served on his dissertation committee. In helping to introduce him at the lecture, Ragasa said he can attest to Keenan’s “generosity, wisdom, compassion and empowering insight.”

“Over the last 40 years, Dr. James Keenan, Jesuit and ethicist, has been a leading voice of hope, an advocate for the marginalized, and a prophetic voice for the call to mercy,” Ragasa said. “Father Keenan has influenced generations of ethicists around the world.”

Keenan’s talk was titled “Learning from Grief: Epiphany in the Upper Room,” and he encouraged attendees to eschew the standard “get over it” model of grief and consider Jesus’ teachings on personal growth and love.

Under that new model, he said, “grief is shared. In light of grief, one needs not to find the way back but the way forward.”

To watch Keenan’s full lecture on Facebook, click here.

Celebrating a Century-Old Bridge to Education

Chaminade University joined the Marianist Center of Hawaiʻi, Saint Louis School and Sacred Hearts Academy on Friday to celebrate the 100th anniversary of the Palolo Stream Bridge, which has served as a “strong, humble” entry point to campus and a symbol of the ongoing Marianist mission in the islands.

The gathering included a parade, performances and a lunch. Speakers also took to a stage on the Front Lawn to underscore the significance of the anniversary.

Bro. Dennis Schmitz, S.M., of the Marianist Center of Hawaiʻi, called the bridge a powerful connection between the world and Kalaepōhaku, the hill where Chaminade and Saint Louis School are located and “our sacred space.” Speaking to attendees, Schmitz said, “The bridge has a mission—to enable us to come to this campus to learn Catholic Marianist values.”

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President Lynn Babington, Ph.D. added it was an honor to celebrate the bridge and its special significance to the Hawaiʻi’s Marianist community, connecting Kalaepōhaku with Waialae Avenue.

As part of the event, attendees also walked to the bridge to learn more about Marianist history.

The bridge over Palolo Stream was built in 1925 by Hawaiian Contracting Company for $14,500.

“Thanks to this ‘little’ bridge, we were able to construct this campus—where so many people were able to come to be educated in the Marianist and Catholic tradition,” Schmitz said.

“For 100 years, it has been the link from the world to Saint Louis School and Chaminade University and it has been the link from Kalaepōhaku back to the world. Students and their families cross this bridge in the morning to grow in their spiritual and intellectual lives. At the end of the day, they cross the bridge back to the world where they try to live out the values that they’ve learned.”

Schmitz noted the gathering is also a kick-off of a series of other century celebrations at Kalaepōhaku. Ching, Bertram and Henry halls will turn 100 in 2027.

Schmitz said that as he has worked on the bridge celebration event, he’s come to deeply appreciate the structure’s greater significance.

“In this time of so much division in the world, the bridge symbolizes the importance of reaching across the divide so that good things can happen,” he said. “We’re called to be like the bridge and to learn from our enriching experiences on the campus so that we too might lay down our lives in humble service.”

Ceremony Recognizes Heritage Award Honorees

As part of the annual Founders’ Week festivities, three members of the Chaminade community were honored Wednesday with Heritage Awards for their strong commitment to Marianist values.

The recipients were recognized at a special Founders’ Day Mass at the Mystical Rose Oratory.

The Heritage Awards are conferred by the Chaminade Rector’s Office annually to celebrate Marianist values of service in education. Nominations are submitted from across the University.

Dr. Koreen Nakahodo, an assistant professor of English, received the Chaminade Award for embracing Marianist values in education and undertaking “the intellectual life as a form of service in the interest of justice and truth.”

Several colleagues nominated her for the honor, saying that her work with students, across campus and with the community is impressive and impactful.

“I have been privileged to work with Dr. Nakahodo for more than two decades,” one Chaminade professor wrote in his nomination letter.

“She is a true example of Fr. Chaminade’s dictum that our progress is like a brook, caressing obstacles, gaining depth and breadth in the fullness of time, the brook overflows the obstacles and moves forward. She is persistent, undaunted by obstacles.”

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Academic Affairs Program Manager Jackeline Sanqui received the Marianist Award for her unwavering support of Chaminade’s vision and mission. Marianist Award honorees are full-time support staff members who live Marianist values of family spirit, hospitality and openness.

In a nomination letter, one of Sanqui’s supervisors said she creates a welcoming, inclusive environment for everyone. “Jacky’s commitment to Chaminade’s mission extends beyond her immediate responsibilities. She is a vital support in programs that serve underserved populations,” the nominator wrote, adding she is a vital member of the Chaminade family.

Finally, Noelani Tugaoen ‘25 was honored with the Founders’ Award, which is given to a Chaminade student who has exhibited the Marianist values of generosity, respect and a spirit of faith. Recipients are also recognized for serving as positive role models for the Silversword family.


Tugaoen is a student ambassador, active in the Ka Ipu Kukui Me Ka ‘ie ‘ie (Hawaiian) Club, and Campus Ministry. A Chaminade staff member who nominated Tugaoen said the senior is a true servant leader who “wants people to feel loved and know they each have a place.”

The nominator continued, “In every sphere she has been in, Noe has always been a vibrant and joyous person, constantly looking for ways to meet students and their families, and bring a sense of belonging to everyone present. The atmosphere changes when Noe enters a space.”

Founders’ Week officially kicked off Jan. 17, with a special lei draping ceremony and prayer service at the Father Chaminade statue on the University’s Front Lawn.

The week celebrates the founders of the Marianist Family, Father Chaminade, Mother Adele, and Marie-Thérèse de Lamourous.