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Chaminade Students Inspire School Children at Annual ‘Astronaut Lacy Veach Day of Discovery’

November 14, 2017 by University Communications & Marketing

By sharing their knowledge and love of science, two teams of Chaminade University students encouraged children to pursue STEM educations and careers at the “2017 Astronaut Lacy Veach Day of Discovery.”

Held Oct. 28 at Punahou School, this 16th annual event honored the life and legacy of NASA astronaut Charles Lacy Veach, who flew on Space Shuttle missions in 1991 and 1992 and developed robotics for the International Space Station. The Punahou alumnus and U.S. Air Force Academy graduate died of cancer in 1995 at the age of 51.

2017 Lacy Veach Day - anchialine pools activity

One team of Chaminade students conducted a workshop on the tiny opae`ula Hawaiian red shrimp and the ecologically fragile anchialine pools where they live. Anchialine pools are enclosed bodies of water with underground connections to the ocean.

“The kids we worked with made a habitat for the shrimp and were really excited to take them home,” said English major Kalei Ehlers from the Hogan Entrepreneurs Program. “Kids are excited by science and I had a blast teaching them something new.”

Also conducting the workshop were students Aulani Oka, Martina Segura, Tara Supit and Luwella Leonardi.

A team of students from the “I Am A Scientist” mobile outreach program showed children how to dust and “lift” latent fingerprints.

2017 Lacy Veach Day - fingerprint activity

“We got to educate kids and parents about the different characteristics in fingerprints that are unique to the individual person,” said Nursing major Heather Carvalho. “We also taught them that fingerprints are how they catch criminals.”

Carvalho said she enjoyed encouraging parents and children “to engage in science education together as a family.”

“It was an awesome way to get the kids outdoors,” she said, “instead of in front of the television and internet devices.”

Forensic Science major Kaitlyn Castillo said she initially thought young children “wouldn’t really think about doing science-related things.”

“After this event, I know that I was wrong and that some kids really do enjoy science so much,” Castillo said. “A few parents I talked to said they had bought their kids fingerprint kits and they would be dusting for prints all over the house.

“I liked knowing there were kids that got interested in forensic science by actually doing things related to forensic science,” Castillo added, “rather than from a TV show.”

Working with Carvalho and Castillo at the fingerprint booth were students John Aiwohi, Chante Carter, Doris Sanborn and Samantha Williams, along with alumna Cassandra Song and biology lecturer Dr. Eric Umemoto.

Future STEM Teachers Inspired by Leading Scientists, Engineers at NASA Institute

September 7, 2017 by University Communications & Marketing

For the second consecutive summer, future teachers studying at Chaminade University gained a behind-the-scenes look at America’s space program. This during a five-day professional development institute conducted by the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA).

The training program, funded by NASA’s Minority University Research and Education Project, helped pre-service teachers enhance their STEM instructional practices. Field trips and other interactive events focused on the International Space Station, a planned mission to Mars and other major NASA initiatives.

Dr. Katrina Roseler, an associate professor with the Division of Education, applied for the program and took seven Chaminade students to Ames Research Center, a major NASA facility in California’s Silicon Valley.

“For me, the most memorable part of the trip was watching the excitement of the students as they engaged in new activities,” Dr. Roseler said. “They developed their engineering design skills and had firsthand learning opportunities with some of the leading U.S. scientists and engineers.”

She pointed out that many elementary schools emphasize mathematics and language arts – because they’re highlighted on standardized tests – at the expense of science education. Moreover, pre-service teachers are only required to complete six hours of science-related coursework in their undergraduate studies.

“As a science educator, to me, this is unacceptable,” Dr. Roseler said, emphasizing that “science knowledge and practices are essential tools for engaging with the world.” NASA addresses this issue, she said, by providing learning experiences for future teachers “that can be directly applied to their future classrooms.”

Danielle Friend ‘18, a double major in Elementary Education and English, said she and the other six Chaminade students “got to go inside a wind tunnel, see how the NASA engineers prepare to send things up to the space station, and so much more.”

“I am excited to share what I learned at NASA with just about anyone who will listen to me,” Friend said. “But mostly, I hope to take what I learned and help encourage students to love science. Teach them that if they work hard, they really can become astronauts or even rocket scientists.”

Katie Grywczynski ‘18, an Elementary Education major, said she wanted to attend the training institute “because it sounded like a really fun opportunity to learn about NASA, their resources and STEM activities I can use in my future classroom.”

“My most memorable part of the trip was getting to tour the facilities/labs and learning about everything that NASA does in our world,” Grywczynski said. “My biggest takeaway from the program was learning about all the amazing and free resources NASA has to offer.”

Elementary Education major Sara Castillo ‘19 said the training program was “jam-packed with so many sessions, tours and lessons.” This included meeting an astronaut, experiencing a mega-computer “that took up a whole upstairs building,” and exploring numerous NASA sites.

“I think my biggest takeaway – literally – is all the physical resources that we were given on the last day of the conference,” Castillo said. “Everyone was given pamphlets, lesson plans, posters for the classroom, stickers and just so many heavy resources – 20 pounds to be exact.

“Many of us were struggling to put it in our luggage without going over the airline’s weight limit,” she added.

Other Chaminade students participating in the training institute were: Angelica Louise Concepcion, Hannah Parker, Marisa Paz and Samantha Tufaga.

Chaminade’s Division of Education offers undergraduate programs in Early Childhood Education, Elementary Education and Secondary Education. The division also offers graduate programs leading to a Master of Education degree or Master of Arts in Teaching degree.

Chaminade University Announces Legacy Gift of Over $1.6 Million

July 6, 2017 by University Communications & Marketing

Angela Starke’s (BGS English ’85) bequest will go toward supporting the Bridges to the Future campaign

Chaminade University announces the receipt of over $1.6 million bequest through the estate of the late alumna Angela Starke, BGS English ’85. The major gift will support Chaminade’s ongoing Bridges to the Future campaign. Starke’s generosity represents one of the largest, single private gifts from an individual in support of the campaign, and the largest bequest in school history.

Born in Saint Louis, Missouri, Angela Starke graduated from Chaminade University in 1985 with a bachelor’s degree in General Studies. Continuing her passion for emphasizing the importance of higher education and showing her appreciation for her professors, Starke established the Fr. Bolin Excellence in Scholarship Award benefitting Chaminade faculty members, and also made charitable gift annuity contributions to further the university’s educational mission.

“Angela was a lifelong learner,” said Chaminade President Bro. Bernard Ploeger, SM, PhD. “Her history of giving to Chaminade began the year after her graduation and continued steadily throughout her long life. As a non-traditional student, Angela became close to many of our faculty and staff, particularly Dr. Al Lum and Fr. John Bolin, SM. When she established the Fr. Bolin Award, Angela remarked, ‘a university is only as good as its faculty.’”

In 2008, Angela and her husband, Vincent Mainelli, were inspired by the history of the Marianists in Hawaii, and in particular, a collection of rediscovered nineteenth century photographic glass plates of the Hawaiian Kingdom, taken by Bro. Bertram Bellinghausen, SM, the first president of Saint Louis School. In a letter written to then Chaminade President Sue Wesselkamper, Starke and Mainelli announced that they would donate $100,000 towards the “preservation, expansion, and maintenance of the Bertram material and other archival material relating to the Marianists in Hawaii.” The exhibit later traveled to the neighbor islands and Washington D.C.

“My Chaminade experience didn’t end with a degree in 1985,” said Starke, in a 2002 interview for Chaminade Quarterly. “Instead, it spelled out reasons to give back to the university. I appreciated the quality education I received at Chaminade.”

ABOUT BRIDGES TO THE FUTURE
Bridges to the Future campaign focuses on four critical areas: (1) ensuring student access and support; (2) advancing academic programs; (3) building a richer campus life; and (4) renewing Chaminade’s athletics tradition. To contribute to the campaign, interested individuals should contact Diane Peters-Nguyen, Vice President of Institutional Advancement at dpeters@chaminade.edu or (808)735-4772.

ABOUT CHAMINADE UNIVERSITY’S PLANNED GIVING
The Planned Giving Program creates a lasting legacy and supports the continuing educational opportunities for future students and tomorrow’s leaders. In 2016, Chaminade University was selected as a participating organization in Hawaii Community Foundation’s two-year Legacy Giving Campaign.

Medical School Honors Chaminade Graduate Jacquelynn Pratt with ‘Diversity Excellence Award’

June 16, 2017 by University Communications & Marketing

Chaminade University alumna Jacquelynn Pratt has received the “Diversity Excellence Award” from A.T. Still University’s College of Osteopathic Medicine in Kirksville, Missouri, where she graduated this spring. The annual award recognizes her commitment to diversity and inclusion in graduate healthcare education.

Born and raised on Oahu, Pratt majored in Biology and English at Chaminade. She earned both bachelor’s degrees in May 2006, while receiving the “Outstanding English Graduate” award.

Pratt participated in numerous research programs at Chaminade in the fields of psychology, cancer biology, ecology and epidemiology. She was also highly involved with campus clubs and organizations, including the Delta Epsilon Sigma and Sigma Tau Delta honor societies.

After graduating from Chaminade, Pratt worked with the Ministry of Health on the Cook Islands to computerize patient data and thereby more accurately calculate the incidence and prevalence of cancer among the native Maori population.

She later returned to Chaminade and served as the Assistant to the Associate Provost in the Office of Health Professions Advising and Undergraduate Research.

Vita In Verbo Presentation Asks, “Why Teach Slave Narratives?”

March 20, 2017 by University Communications & Marketing

Chaminade University associate professor of English Allison E. Paynter, Ph.D. was one of a select group of faculty members chosen nationwide by the Council of Independent Colleges and the Gilder Lehrman Institute of American History to participate in a special American history seminar on “Slave Narratives.” The multidisciplinary seminar for faculty members in history, English, and related fields used the slave narrative–as well as some other assigned secondary reading–to comprehend the lived experience of slaves in the transition from bondage to freedom. From a pool of 66 highly competitive nominations, 27 faculty members were selected to participate in the seminar held June 19-24, 2016 at Yale University.

The Gilder Lehrman Yale Fellow presented her findings to her Chaminade colleagues at the March 8 Vita in Verbo session. Her PowerPoint presentation titled “Why Teach Slave Narratives?” introduced different narrative forms: confessions, memoirs, and autobiography. At Yale, she studied the slave narrative approach and its importance as a genre in studies, regardless of the discipline or field.

Paynter demonstrated that slave narrative was integral to pre- and post-Civil War American history and culture. Rhetorical choices and stylistic techniques informed American literature during the post-Civil War through dialogue, American sensibility, and the psychology of escape and freedom. American writers influenced by slave narratives included Harriet Beecher Stowe, Mary Todd, Harriet Wilson, Mark Twain, William Edward Burghardt “W. E. B.” Du Bois, Booker T. Washington, and Ralph Ellison. Contemporary films inspired by slave narratives included Unchained Memories: Readings from the Slave Narratives (2003); Manderlay (2005); 12 Years a Slave (2013); Tula: The Revolt (2013); Birth of a Nation (2016); Free State of Jones (2016); 13th (2016); Roots and Underground miniseries (2016).

Paynter pointed out that slavery continues to inform popular culture in America, but stereotypes and fallacies abound. Students should have a foundation by which to analyze this “American institution” called slavery. She gave stereotype examples such as Uncle Tom, Aunt Jemima, Zip Coon, Sambo, and Pickaninny.

Paynter is currently writing an article on the powerful and disturbing book Kindred, which she teaches in her class. She also recommended the novel Underground Airlines: What Price Freedom? for additional reading. She noted that though the 13th amendment was created in 1865 to ensure slavery would never return to America, there was still in existence modern slavery in the form of sex trafficking.

Marshallese Poet and Activist Inspires Chaminade Students

February 20, 2017 by University Communications & Marketing

More than 125 students, faculty and staff packed the Clarence T. C. Ching Center in Eiben Hall to hear the Marshallese poet and activist Kathy Jetñil-Kijiner read poetry from her book Iep Jāltok: Poems from a Marshallese Daughter. Published this month by The University of Arizona Press, Iep Jāltok made history as the first published book of poetry written by a Marshallese author.

Considered an important new voice for justice, Jetñil-Kijiner connected the Chaminade community to Marshallese daily life and tradition through the weaving of her impassioned words and rhythmic descriptions. She shared her background and the role of women in the matriarchal Marshallese culture and highlighted in her poems the traumas of colonialism, racism, forced migration, American nuclear testing and the threats of climate change. However, she ended with a vision of hope in her deeply moving rendition of “Dear Matafele Peinam,” performed originally at the 2014 Opening Ceremony of the United Nations Secretary-General’s Climate Summit. It received international acclaim.

Students from environmental studies and student members from the Micronesian Club and other Pacific Island clubs were especially moved by the activist poet. One Chaminade student was invited to read with Jetñil-Kijiner. He read in Marshallese, and she read in English. Students were visibly moved.

Jetñil-Kijiner’s writing and performances have been featured on CNN, Democracy Now, Mother Jones, the Huffington Post, NBC News, National Geographic, Vogue, Nobel Women’s Initiative and more. She co-founded the nonprofit Jo-Jikum, dedicated to empowering Marshallese youth to seek solutions to climate change and other environmental impacts threatening their home island. Jetñil-Kijiner has been selected as one of 13 Climate Warriors by Vogue in 2015 and the Impact Hero of the Year by Earth Company in 2016. She received her Master’s in Pacific Island Studies from the University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa.

The division of Humanities and Fine Arts hosted the February 17 event, which was coordinated by the English department and spearheaded by English professor Koreen Nakahodo.