Chaminade University’s Board of Regents serves to create and authorize school plans and policies and to ensure that they articulate the vision and mission of the university system. It has named five new members to its Board of Regents. They are:
Violeta A. Arnobit, CEO, Ace Medical, Inc.
Violeta is currently co owner of Ace Medical Inc. together with her husband Terry. She serves currently as Board of Governors at the Filipino Community Center, Advisory Nursing Board for Chaminade University, Advisory Board for the Primary Care Providers and Alliance of Professional Primary Care Administrators. She was a founding Board member of Pali Momi Foundation, past Board of Directors at Pali Momi Medical Center, Filipino Community Center, awarded Filipino Entrepreneur of the Year in 1998 and Entrepreneur of the Year 1999 with Ernst and Young, and Nursing Excellence Award with the Filipino Nurses Organization of Hawaii.
Melialani “Meli” P. James, Co-Founder, Mana Up
Meli James is a cofounder at Mana Up, an initiative to expand economic opportunity, business infrastructure, and higher wage jobs in Hawai’i. Its six-month accelerator program enables Hawaiʻi product entrepreneurs to scale their businesses globally. Mana Up operates a retail business, House of Mana Up, to connect people to local brands. Additionally, she is president of the Hawaii Venture Capital Association, an organization that seeks to foster entrepreneurship through education, networking, and access to capital. Previously, James brought her Silicon Valley startup experience to Hawaii accelerators Blue Startups and the University of Hawaii’s Venture Accelerator. James founded her first company, Nirvino, a #1 ranked wine app, an Apple Platform Top 100 App, and Top Ten Lifestyles App in 2007. In 2016, she was recognized by Entrepreneur Magazine as one of five Women to Watch. In 2017, she was recognized again by Entrepreneur Magazine as one of eight Women Leaders Who Are Disrupting Entrepreneurship. James is a graduate of The School of Hotel Administration at Cornell University.
Estelle Kelley, JD, PhD, Community Volunteer
Estelle M. Kelley was an attorney and an adjunct professor of law at Hawaii Pacific University, Clark College, and Washington State University-Vancouver (1994-1996). Born and raised in Hawaii, she graduated from Punahou School, and earned her BA from Pacific Lutheran University, her JD-MBA from Santa Clara University, a MA in Humanities and her MA/PhD in depth psychology from Pacifica Graduate Institute. Estelle served on a number of Boards including St. Andrew Nativity School, Oregon Episcopal School, Pacific Lutheran University, Outrigger Enterprises, and the American Needlepoint Guild. She continues to volunteer for the Kelley Fund for the Oregon Community Foundation, the Community Foundation for SW Washington, and the Hawaii Community Foundation, and now Chaminade University.
Lydia Park Luis, President, NY Brands and International Caleres, Inc.
Lydia Park Luis is the president of Caleres Inc., Brand Portfolio-New York Group and leads the company’s international business. Luis has over 25 years experience in the fashion industry. She was most recently Chief Executive Officer of Jack Rogers where she oversaw rebranding and reorganization of the 60-year-old footwear brand. Prior to Jack Rogers, she was Chief Commercial Officer of Rag & Bone and held several leadership positions at Tory Burch, where she led U.S. wholesale, international expansion, and licensing. She has also worked at Coach, Swarovski and Bertelsmann. Ms. Luis holds a BA with honors and a MS from New York University. She was born in Seoul, S. Korea and grew up in Hawaii where she graduated from Mid-Pacific Institute.
Alison “Bo” Tanaka, Vice President, Tanaka of Tokyo Restaurants, Ltd.
Alison “Bo” Tanaka is the Vice President of Tanaka of Tokyo Restaurants, Ltd. Prior to becoming Vice President, she held positions of increasing importance from server to Manager of the Waikiki restaurant to Assistant General Manager for the corporation to Corporate General Manager. Bo has been working at Tanaka of Tokyo for the past 10 years. She was born and raised in Honolulu and attended Hanahau’oli and Punahou Schools, and received her BA from the University of Hawaii at Manoa. Bo graduated with her MBA from Chaminade University in 2015, where she was the Valedictory Speaker. She is on the Hogan Advisory Board, and also received her Hogan Entrepreneurial Certificate at Chaminade. Bo is a member of Chamber of Commerce Hawaii, a member of the National Association of Professional Women, a member of the Young Presidents Organization NG, a volunteer spokesperson, a member of the Board for the Hawaii Restaurant Association, and committee member for the Domestic Violence Action Center, and a former Miss Hawaii United States (2012).
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Chaminade University of Honolulu believes in the power of education to drive positive change, broaden perspectives and deepen our understanding of one another. With an emphasis on transformative service-learning experiences, we prepare students to serve as tomorrow’s leaders, inspiring and challenging them to use their minds and their hearts to help build stronger and more just communities. We are proud to serve as Hawai‘i’s only Marianist university, and rely on these values to guide us in delivering a high-quality education with an individualized approach and a focus on excellence, innovation and change. Established in 1955, we offer more than 30 undergraduate and graduate programs, including doctoral degrees in education, psychology and nursing practice. Learn more at chaminade.edu.
