University of Hawaii West Oahu Seal

Ka Pe‘ahi Lono: Monthly Message for March

Date/Time sent: 03/01/2021 9:20 am

Aloha mai kākou e UH West Oʻahu ʻOhana!

We will mark one year this month that the World Health Organization declared COVID-19 a public health emergency and we, at UH West Oʻahu, closed our campus and pivoted to remote work and online/distance learning! Throughout the last 12 months every member of our UH West Oʻahu ʻohana has stepped-up to ensure that we were vigilant, every day, to live into our mission and sustain our pahuhopu as we cared for our students, each other, our ʻohana and communities. I want to mahalo each of you for your extraordinary year of service focused on inclusivity, effective and strategic actions, and respect. Indeed, there have been many fundamental challenges to our operations! I know it has felt daunting to move forward in a different way when so much of the landscape is uncertain.

This is exactly the time, however, for all our diverse perspectives, skills, and expertise to be shared to aid in shaping our collective strategic planning and crises response. Many have shared their voice and knowledge through the work of our fall semester task force and our current spring semester work groups. These endeavor not only address our current needs as we forward plan but more importantly their work continues to nurture a community of belonging—an inclusive and transparent culture—that supports well-informed decisions and long-term vitality. The work and relations that we form today will only become more important over time!  Mahalo nūnui kākou!

Please take the time to read through our monthly newsletter. We begin with an overview of the good work that our Office of Distance Learning and Kūlana o Kapolei are doing. We repeated an overview of the Pueo Planning Process, which is a great reminder of what is engaging our work groups. Finally, there are important messages about the CARES Act and from the Business Office, Compliance, and Human Resources.

Again, mahalo nūnui for all you contribute to UH West Oʻahu!

E mālama pono!
Maenette Benham, Chancellor

A Celebration of Good Works: Kūlia i ka nuʻu (Reach for the Summit!)

There is much we are doing to support student success!  

The Office of Distance Learning has released two of the three Go the Distance videos that were created to support students as effective online learners.

Go the Distance – Getting Started
Video 1 Released January 11, 2021, has 97 views.

Go the Distance – Keep Going
Video 2 Released February 8, 2021, has 131 views

Go the Distance – Finish Strong
Video 3 Will be released on March 22, 2021, just as students return from Spring Break

Student Support Specialist, Anuhea Piliere, is providing socially distanced space for students to work in a “study hall” manner with her support in a conference room in the University Center on Kauaʻi. She has also lent out iPads to students on Kauaʻi.

Student Instructional Design Assistants have been assigned to support all faculty who have requested assistance with building content in Laulima.

At the same time, we are committed to support our faculty and instructors!

The February 2021 issue of Distance Learning@UHWO is available. This issue covers the following topics:

  • Check out the updated Distance Learning Faculty Guide
  • Faculty Digital Handy Help Wall
  • Video Production Tip: YouTube Audio Library
  • Earn a Quality Course Design Digital Badge – UH Online Innovation Center
  • Go the Distance – Keep Going – student support
  • edtech together – Spring 2021 series
  • Every Learner Everywhere Expert Network: 1:1 Coaching in Equitable Teaching Practices and Digital Learning for Higher Education.

Distance Learning @ UH West Oʻahu

Kūlana o Kapolei continues to illuminate and enlighten us about ʻāina, ʻike kūpuna and connects us to our beloved communities (please see attachment)

The Year of the Ox has arrived! Kūlana o Kapolei has prepared for this moment with a host of ideas that, despite the pandemic, have moved forward with verve, intentionality, and focus.

The Uluniu Project has begun! This cultural agro-forest is located beside the Student Organic Garden here on campus. The effort is led by the Aloha ʻĀina Student Club members with their Advisor: Indrajit Gunasekara of the Financial Aid Department.  We have planted 6 niu (coconut palms) and 1 ulu (breadfruit) thus far. All 20 holes are ready and soil rejuvenation helps us understand the difference between clay, mulch, soil, compost, fish meal, heat + wind impact, and the importance of niu husks in retaining moisture for our beloved ulu and niu within this ʻāina wela (hot lands).  We are learning many unique methods to rejuvenate ourselves in this process.  There is even a Niu Nursery that holds 264 niu seed nuts with over 20 niu varieties!  Please enjoy the attached summary!

Aunty Lynette Paglinawan’s course on Kaumaha is a weekly experience that helps us understand the role of trauma and the function of cultural resilience practices. Aunty Lynette is clear, powerful and passionate about the reality of these times and her classes are well attended and deeply effective.  She is sharing her ʻike kupuna and our community is grateful.

Our HIHH Scholarship has been developed!  Mahalo to Dr. Kauʻi Merritt, along with Mark Fukeda, our UHWO Development Officer. The HIHH – Hawaiian and Indigenous Health and Healing Concentration – will soon have a scholarship specific for those students.  It was well received by our community participants and fiscal support is helping us reach our goal.

Hawaii Food Bank distributions are supported by our UH West Oʻahu students, staff and faculty! Mahalo to aunty Patty Teruya of the Waianae Coast Community Foundation, along with Senator Kurt Favella for their coaching and support of our UH West Oʻahu community. We help in their food distributions both at the old K-Mart site and at Ilima Intermediate School in Ewa. UH West Oʻahu has been helping since November of 2020 and now there are 40+ Pueo Volunteers who come to support our beloved community with distributing food to 500+ cars/families.

Check out these stories – further illustrating the brilliance of our faculty, staff and students!

Hana Lawelawe: On Leadership

The Pueo Planning Process: Work Groups

Our Pueo Planning Process webpage has been updated and now provides information on our Work Groups. We have archived our campus forums as well as the work of the Task Force.

Please read the weekly bulletin, which provides an update on the progress of each of the work groups. Should you have any questions or would like to engage in the discussions, please contact the facilitators of the work group.

Here is an overview of each of the Work Groups that also includes their tasks and membership.

Business Model and Mindset

Purpose: To develop a renewed budget model and mindset.

Explanation: Given that much of the cost of higher education is fixed—particularly in personnel, operations—when a reduction in state funding occurs an institution like UHWO must develop a Business Model and operational mindset that ensures its financial solvency and ability to be partially self-sustaining. This group will revisit and renew the current Business Model articulated in the campus’ Strategic Action Plan (2018) through thoughtful, intentional conversations that will help UHWO pivot from high dependency on state coffers to a status that blends existing funding with solid revenue generation.

Group members: Walter Kahumoku (facilitator), Ed Keaunui (facilitator), Camonia Graham-Tutt, Suzy Johnson (student), Frank Kudo, Adrian Lee, Leslie Lopez, Leslie Rush, Linda Saiki, Keith Sakuda, and Eli Tsukuyama.

Student Recruitment & Student Retention

Purposes: (1) To strengthen recruitment of current student populations as well as targeting new student populations. (2) To increase retention by providing programs for new markets and providing new approaches to improve wellbeing.

Explanation: By bolstering access to current and “new” student markets through digital tools and other strategies, UHWO will seek to increase the number of traditional freshmen as well as non-traditional learners to our programs. A second and equally important part of this group’s work will be to recommend retention efforts that combine the expertise of Student Affairs and Academics to increase student success. Initiatives will look to improve student time management, career possibilities, financial literacy, engagement, wellbeing as well as academic expertise and career readiness.

Group members: Jan Javinar (facilitator), Reed Young (facilitator), Loea Akiona, Sarah Chase, Michelle Cohen, Ken Inouye, Lelemia Irvine, Holly Itoga, Laurie James, Dylan Keaweehu, Loke Kenolio, Nalo “Shu” Lago (student), Katie Landgraf, Caton Liang (student), Veny Liu, Joe Mareko, Nicholas Mitchell, Leslie Opulauoho, James Oshiro, Ryan Perreira, Keʻalohi Perry, and Lynette Williamson.

Student Learning

Purpose: To build and strengthen mission and post-pandemic critical academic programs by balancing costs, enrollment patterns, student interests, diverse delivery platforms, industry trends, and innovation.

Explanation: To generate a set of robust investment initiatives this group will first be introduced to an in-depth analysis of the costs associated with personnel and academic programming. This will provide a more accurate/data-based understanding of workload, instructional costs, enrollment patterns, programs that generate revenues and programs that don’t, identification of mission critical programs, and the efficacy of different delivery platforms. Other key data points include operational costs, student interest, current and future job markets and industry trends, successful and innovative programs employed at other campuses, and others. Such data will form the foundation for a revised academic plan.

Group members: Jeff Moniz (facilitator), Mary Heller (facilitator), Kaʻiulani Akamine, Kauʻi Merrit, Rebecca Carino-Augustin, Matt Chapman, Michael Furuto, Sharla Hanaoka, Michael Hayes, Louis Herman, Cathy Ikeda, Michiko Joseph, Stephanie Kamai, Kristina Lu, Jon Magnussen, Therese Nakadomari, Christine Park (student), Princess Soares, Robyn Tasaka, Kaylee Torres (student), Rouel Velasco, and Marnelli Ulep.

Campus Efficiencies

Purpose: Strategize to build a more strategic workforce to maximize our skill and talent base is focused where it can have the greatest impact in the near and long-term.

Explanation: The focus is to generate efficiency recommendations that will increase effective, efficient operations across the campus—Academics, Administration, and Student Affairs.

Group members: Kevin Ishida (facilitator), Katherine Aumer, Sheri Ching, Michelle Ferguson, Lori Foo, Daphne Fox (student), Kelly Fujino, Brient Hutchinson (student), Kay Nagata, Donna Shaver, Lisa Spencer, Nancy Nakasone, and Esther Widiasih.

Mahalo to all our work group volunteers!

How does that work? Messages from across our Campus

Information Regarding the CARES ACT:

For those tracking the second tranche of federal resources to higher education, we provide an update in the attached document. It is a rather lengthy and technical document, however, provides information of what we know as of February 2021. Currently, UH West Oʻahu has been notified that we will be receiving funding, however, we are still awaiting both our federal supplementary paperwork (GAN) and the funding. We will keep you posted through our weekly bulletins and this newsletter.

From our Business Office:

Fiscal Year 2021 Closing Deadlines:

The Business Office recently issued internal fiscal 2021 year-end deadlines to administrative staff to provide ample time to ensure appropriate fiscal planning. Please be on the lookout for communication regarding fiscal year-end deadlines from your respective administrative staff.

Reminder — Monitoring Available Funding:

As fiscal year 2021 begins winding down and your respective budget allocations begin to exhaust, it is critical for Account Supervisors to monitor available funding in their respective accounts.  Please ensure sufficient funding is available prior to approving requisitions, disbursement vouchers, and student employment hires/extensions. To assist Account Supervisors monitor available funding, the Business Office provides monthly Budget Status Reports and KFS may also be reviewed at any time.  For questions and/or assistance, please feel free to contact Sheri Ching (sheric@hawaii.edu; x2512).

Reminder — Check Printing Schedule Change:

With the reduction of physical check printing to two times per month, students, employees, and vendors are encouraged to sign-up for digital delivery of payments (continued to be processed daily) via eRefunds, ePayment, or Vendor ACH Payments.  The following links have been provided to give you more information to assist you with signing up for electronic payments:

From our Compliance Office:

Changes to the Title IX Federal Regulations Amidst a Pandemic

On May 6, 2020, the Title IX proposed regs were finalized, leaving institutions scrambling to meet the required August 14th, 2020 implementation date. However, many institutions have discovered since, that the implementation of the new Title IX regulations during the pandemic would prove to be challenging- to say the least.

Some of the new changes included the following, and became applicable to ALL institutions receiving federal funding:

  • Specific definitions for the terms complainant/respondent, sexual harassment, sexual assault, domestic and dating violence, and stalking;
  • Addition of individuals to fill specific roles within the grievance process, such as investigators, advisors, hearing officers and informal grievance officers;
  • Recorded/live hearing requirement (which includes the ability for cross examination);
  • Specific timeframes for providing preliminary info to BOTH parties prior to hearing;
  • More equitable treatment for both parties (complainant and respondent);
  • Required “emergency removal” process when the institution determines there is an immediate threat;
  • Just to name a few.

Another important change to the Title IX federal regulations requires institutions to publish  training used to train individuals on our campus who will be responsible for compliance with the new regulations, as well as individuals who have a role in the new process, such as investigators or hearing officers.  Interested campus community members who would like to view these recorded training, as well as view additional resources may access them directly on our Title IX Training and Resources webpage.

In response to the changes in the federal regs, the UH System (as well as other institutions around the country!) modified and adopted policies and procedures that were in line with the new regulatory language. In August of 2020, the system adopted and published EP 1.204: Interim Policy on Title IX Sexual Harassment and the accompanying procedures, AP 1.204: Interim Title IX Sexual Harassment Grievance Process.

Campus Confidential Resources

For issues or resources directly related to intimate partner violence (i.e., dating or domestic violence or stalking), you may contact Leslie Cabingabang, assigned UH Confidential Advocate via email at leslie.cabingabang@hawaii.edu. If you, or someone you know who is a member of our campus community, is experiencing difficulty during this challenging time, you may contact the campus’ Confidential Resource, Dr. Steven Taketa via email at taketas@hawaii.edu.

For more information regarding Title IX at UH West Oʻahu, please visit the campus Title IX webpage, or you may also contact the UHWO Title IX Coordinator, Beverly Baligad directly via email at bbaligad@hawaii.edu.

To submit a sexual harassment report, please fill out the information on our online form.

From Human Resources:

Reminder — Non-UH West Oʻahu employee volunteers

Per Administrative Policy A9.041, please remember that volunteers on the UH West Oʻahu campus must fill out A Volunteer Application Form (page 9 of the administrative policy). It is recommended to include an emergency contact. Also, if an individual will be volunteering for 15 days or more, a TB Clearance will be required.  Volunteers would be covered by Workers Compensation should they become injured in the course of their duties. Please contact UH West Oʻahu Human Resources (uhwohr@hawaii.edu) if you have any questions.

Announcements

Refer to our weekly bulletins or our news site Ka Puna O Kaloʻi for more information, updates, news, and announcements.