Chaminade University of Honolulu

Students

Welcoming our Master of Science in Counseling Psychology Students

Incoming graduate students in Chaminade’s counseling psychology program gathered in October to develop personalized road maps for how they’ll pursue their degrees – and go onto successful careers.

Master of Science in Counseling Psychology students and faculty pose for a group picture during new student orientation

It was the first time the program has held an orientation for new graduate students. Organizers of the October 5 event say it was aimed at answering students’ questions, inspiring them as they learn more about the professional pathways they’re setting out on, and ensuring they feel supported and welcomed.

The orientation also gave faculty and staff a chance to introduce themselves to new students.

Some 27 students attended the event, coming from across the three concentrations offered in Chaminade’s Master of Science in Counseling Psychology: Marriage and Family Counseling; Mental Health Counseling and School Counseling. The orientation touched on the program’s overall goals along with the core competencies required in each of the program’s three focus areas.

Dr. Dale Fryxell, School of Education and Behavioral Sciences dean, was on hand at the half-day orientation along with Counseling Psychology Program Director Dr. Robert Santee, and a number of full-time and adjunct faculty. Time was also set aside for new and current students to network.

Students rounded out the orientation by breaking up into groups and meeting with their advisers. Attendees also got valuable information on student organizations and internship opportunities. And before the event wrapped up, attendees all gathered around for – what else? – a group picture!

Chaminade University Professors and Student Honored by Hawaii Psychological Association

HONOLULU (October 28, 2019) – Two Chaminade University professors and one student were recently honored by the Hawaii Psychological Association at its Behavioral Health Convention. They were among six individuals to be recognized for their contributions to the field. They included:

Lunden D. Head, Dr. Steven Choy and Dr. Lianne T. S. Philhower
Lunden D. Head, Dr. Steven Choy and Dr. Lianne Philhower

Steven J. Choy, Ph.D. – The Pat DeLeon Lifetime Achievement Award
Dr. Choy is an associate professor of clinical psychology at Chaminade University. A licensed clinical psychologist, he specializes in the identification, assessment, treatment, and prevention of child maltreatment. He was the founder and director of the Child Protection Center at Kapiolani Medical Center for Women and Children for over 30 years before his retirement and appointment to the Hawaii School of Professional Psychology. During his tenure as director of the Child Protection Center, he was instrumental in the development of the Child Protective Act in Hawaii as well as in the development of protocols for child maltreatment risk assessments, psychological evaluations, multidisciplinary team assessments, and psychological treatment for the State of Hawaii. He serves on numerous boards and committees focused on the protection of children and strengthening of families. He is also a trainer for the State of Hawaii Child Welfare Workers and continues to provide presentations and workshops on issues of child protection at local, national and international conferences.

Lianne T. S. Philhower, PsyD – Professor of the Year Award
Dr. Philhower is an associate professor of clinical psychology at Chaminade University and a licensed clinical psychologist. She has a diverse professional background that includes working in public health environments, outpatient community mental health programs, private practice, school consultation, and education. Her knowledge, experience, and ability to integrate creativity with structure comes through in the way she teaches her courses and supports students individually. The courses she teaches regularly and the electives she offers are all directly informed by her education, training, and professional experience. She is able to bring in realistic case examples and professional situations into her teaching, and utilize instructional scaffolding techniques that allow her students to grow clinically, ethically, and professionally. As a scholar, Dr. Philhower has provided community trainings, consultation, and presentations, and has supported the research projects of countless students.

Lunden D. Head, MA – Outstanding Student of Psychology Award
Lunden Head is a doctoral candidate in the Clinical Psychology Doctoral Program (Psy.D.) at The Hawaii School of Professional Psychology at Chaminade. Her doctoral research examines the intersection between epigenetic transmission of trauma, race-related stress, and intergenerational trauma in the African-American community. Having served as a graduate teacher assistant for multiple doctoral-level courses, Head exhibits a steadfast commitment to her campus community. She also displays an unwavering dedication to Hawaii’s local psychology community, shown in her experience providing individual and group psychotherapy services at counseling and behavioral health centers, while serving as a student representative and a volunteer at psychology conferences. In addition to carrying a full-time course load and completing practicum assignments at The Family Strengthening Center, The University of Hawaii-West Oahu, and Waianae Coast Comprehensive Health Center, Head works at a counseling center in Honolulu to underwrite her tuition while maintaining a 3.9 grade point average.

The Hawaii School of Professional Psychology at Chaminade is designed to prepare students for both contemporary and emerging roles in the practice of professional psychology. The school offers a five-year generalist program that supports the development of core competencies in psychological assessment, intervention, consultation/education, and management/supervision. The program emphasizes the acquisition of attitudes, knowledge bases, and skills essential for professional psychologists who are committed to the provision of ethical quality services.

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Chaminade University of Honolulu provides a collaborative and innovative learning environment that prepares graduate and undergraduate students for life, service and successful careers. Established in 1955, the university is guided by its Catholic, Marianist and liberal arts educational traditions, which include a commitment to serving the Native Hawaiian population. Chaminade offers an inclusive setting where students, faculty and staff collectively pursue a more just and peaceful society. For more information, visit chaminade.edu.

A Cultural Experience

There are few traditions as beloved – or as fun – at Chaminade as the Pacific Island Review.

Pacific Island Review 2019, Samoan Club performance

Every year, hundreds come together to watch members of the University’s student cultural clubs take to the Sullivan Family Library Lawn to showcase their talents in music and dance with high-energy performances. It’s an evening punctuated by good food – and lots and lots of good cheer.

And this year was no exception.

From sunset well into the night on October 26, dozens of students from the Hawaiian, Micronesian, Marianas, Tongan and Samoan cultural clubs donned traditional garb and took to the lawn to perform.

Along the way, they got plenty of applause and encouragement from the big crowd, which included students, members of Chaminade’s faculty and staff as well as attendees from the community at large.

The Pacific Island Review is annually one of Chaminade’s biggest events.

And this year, it got some buzz in the press.

In the ramp-up to the big day this year, the Samoan Club got a chance to perform on KITV morning news. And the Star-Advertiser attended the event to capture hundreds of photos for an online gallery.

Missed it? Don’t worry, Jackie Martinez ’23 created a video recapping the exciting event.

Students Present Findings at Leadership Alliance Symposium

Chloe Talana has a mantra in life: Don’t wait for opportunities to knock, go out and get them.

That how’s the Chaminade senior found herself researching Hepatitis C in a lab at New York University’s School of Medicine over the summer and then presenting her findings at a national conference alongside other undergraduates selected for the competitive Leadership Alliance program.

“You have to find the initiative,” she said. “That’s how I see opportunities. You go and find them.”

Chloe Talana and Nainoa Norman Ing at the Leadership Alliance Conference

Talana was one of two Chaminade students who participated this summer in Leadership Alliance, designed to prepare underrepresented minorities for academic research and graduate degrees. Also representing Chaminade: Nainoa Norman Ing, who conducted research at Vanderbilt University.

Chaminade is one of 35 institutions nationwide that are part of the Leadership Alliance. Other participating universities include Harvard, Yale and Stanford. Through the program, Chaminade students gain access to valuable research, mentoring and career development opportunities.

“This program specifically tries to gather people from different walks of life and really bring them together to let them see you’re not alone in this journey,” said Talana, who came to Chaminade from Farrington High. “Their mission is to really make sure that students who want to pursue Ph.D. in any field are able to do it, regardless of their background and the challenges they face along the way.”

It was actually the second year that both Talana and Norman Ing participated in the program, completing internships that give them real-life experiences in labs and then presenting what they learned to their peers – and to experts in the fields they’re interested in pursuing.

Norman Ing said the Leadership Alliance symposium, held in Connecticut this year, is aimed at giving researchers-in-training a taste for what it’s like to defend your conclusions – while also considering what you might have missed. He added that the experience of working in a cutting-edge university lab and then reporting on what you’ve learned is aimed at preparing students for graduate school.

“This experience … reminded me that while I live and learn on this island, the world is a much bigger place,” Norman Ing said. “One of the biggest lessons I learned from experiencing living with people from across the country in a diverse setting is just how important it is to be grounded in one’s own culture.”

He said that while he’s learned so much at Vanderbilt University about organic chemistry – his presentation at the conference was titled, “A vision for vaccines built from fully synthetic cell-surface antigens” – the biggest takeaway of the internship for him was that he could envision a future for himself in academics. It was “just the pure experience in and around the university,” he said.

As for Talana, she said she’s already gunning for that next opportunity.

After graduation from Chaminade, she hopes to secure a post-baccalaureate appointment at a university on the mainland in order to further build a foundation of knowledge. After that, she plans to seek a dual medical and doctoral degree, with a focus on infectious diseases.

She added that she’s grateful for all of the opportunities she’s been able to grab at Chaminade. “The attention from faculty is amazing,” she said. “The help they provide to students, I can’t even pick words to describe it. It’s really wonderful how they’re able to help students pursue what they want to do.”

Writing Songs to Tell Stories

A Student’s Perspective: written by Elijah Abramo ’21

Peter Buffett is the son of Warren Buffett, but he is much more than just that.

Elijah Abramo '21 and Peter Buffett

“Actually people thought I was related to Jimmy Buffett the singer”

Warren Buffett, the biggest name in the investing business is known for his massive success and dedicated frugality. Peter, is quite frugal himself. Despite being thrust into the spotlight in 2006, as his father gave away his fortune to his children to each start billion-dollar foundation, Peter has stayed humble. This was quite apparent in my time with him.

If you don’t know Peter, you may believe that he is business-focused like his father. Rather, he is a composer, pianist and Grammy Award winner for soundtracks he has created over the years. He still composes but has focuses on philanthropy as co-chair of the Novo Foundation, which supports initiatives to end injustices to women and indigenous communities around the world.

He is also visiting university communities around the United States with his Concert and Conversation series, which was his reason for being in Hawaii.

This was Peter’s first time being in Hawaii. Not only did he want to “relaxercise” (how he says he stays fit) and take in the wonderful scenery, but also learn about Hawaii’s poverty, homelessness, early childhood development and various other social issues that were brought via colonialism and the current economic system.

I was fortunate to be given the opportunity to have a one-on-one interview with Peter.

As any college student would, I asked about his advice for me. He brought it back to his career.

“(When first starting in his music career) I said yes to everything because I knew it was more about my agreeability and willingness to kind of get in there and do whatever it took than my talent to some extent, cause I had enough talent but it was more my personality.”

He encouraged me to be passionate about my work but also broadening my possibilities.

“Sometimes people can get so narrow in what they want to be that they forget that there’s a whole ecosystem of possibility around that (their passion), that could still give you joy.”

In a short time, It was clear that he could talk about anything while not overstepping his credibility. “That’s why I tell my story as opposed to telling advice,” is one of Peter’s guiding principles.

He knows that he has been very lucky in life, but he also has gone through his own struggles just like all of us.

I attended his Concert and Conversation event the next day at the Hawaii Theatre, ready to learn more.

The concert was something that most people didn’t expect, He discussed topics such as feminism and colonialism in the detail and his music followed his own story.

First, Peter discussed his childhood growing up in Omaha, Nebraska saying, “I was safe, seen and heard. Peter cited the importance of each while growing up.

He then discussed his career from writing music for TV ads to soundtracks for movies.

Next, he discussed his foundation work, where the conversation got heavier. Peter talked about his first time being in Kolkata and having met a girl only 10 years old being sex trafficked. “I asked her how I could help, and she said ‘tell my story,’ so I did.”

Through his music, he transported the audience to the red light district of India, broken villages of West Africa and many other impoverished communities. Images of people in despair were heightened with the tense somber playing of his cellist Michael Kott.

Finally, he discussed the hope for the future, “community will be the last thing we have in humanity and will be the key to solving our problems.”

Here in our Chaminade ohana, let’s stay committed to keeping these conversations going.

Scholars Welcome Dinner

With oli and inspirational speeches, a special welcome dinner this month celebrated 27 recipients of competitive Chaminade scholarships geared toward those interested in STEM-related careers.

Students and families at scholars welcome dinner

The dinner Sept. 6 honored Ho’oulu scholars and awardees of the National Science Foundation S-STEM scholarship.

In addition to the scholars and their families, attendees included previous recipients of the Ho’oulu Scholarship, representatives from Chaminade University and Kamehameha Schools, and invited guests.

The Ho’oulu scholarship was made possible thanks to an innovative partnership with Kamehameha Schools, and is geared toward helping those interested in STEM fields achieve their career goals.

Awardees receive 100 percent tuition assistance to Chaminade along with access to career-preparation opportunities and programs that help students ensure they stay on track to graduate in four years.

Current and previous recipients of the scholarship have worked toward careers in a broad cross-section of STEM fields, from data science and medicine to forensic sciences and biotechnology.

Eighteen incoming Ho’oulu scholars were recognized at the welcome dinner.

Also in attendance: Nine students who received the National Science Foundation S-STEM scholarship this school year. The $10,000 merit scholarship is distributed over four years, and also includes innovative development programs, from research opportunities to internships. Speakers at the event included Dr. Helen Turner, vice president of Strategy and Innovation at Chaminade, Kamehameha Schools CEO Jack Wong, and Lauren Nahme, vice president of strategy and transformation at Kamehameha Schools.