Strategic Hiring Initiative
June 01, 2011
Aloha! Our campus is undertaking a Strategic Hiring Initiative with a pilot focused on two campus priorities – Sustainability and Native Hawaiian programs. We received 11 proposals for Sustainability and 8 for Native Hawaiian programs. All proposals were evaluated independently by both the coordinators (Peter Mouginis-Mark and Maenette Benham) and the review committee (members were Robert Brewer (GSO), Kathy Cutshaw (VCAFO), Reed Dasenbrock (VCAA), David Ericson (Chair, Faculty Senate Committee on Administration and Budget), Francisco Hernandez (VCS), Susan Hippensteele (Chair, Faculty Senate Executive Committee), Andrew Itsuno (ASUH), John Kalei Laimana (Kualii Council), Gary Ostrander (VCRGE), Sarita Rai (Chair, Faculty Senate Academic Policy and Planning Committee) and David Sanders (Member, Faculty Senate Committee on Research) in April. Their recommendations were then submitted to me in May for consideration.
The proposals presented quality ideas and reflected tremendous depth of commitment to these issues from a wide range of faculty and academic units. That leads me to believe that we should stay with these overall cluster ideas for another year, as I will describe below.
Sustainability
The cluster that will be funded this coming year is “Integrating Marine Science, Economics, Engineering, Design and Policy for Sustainable Coastal Communities”. The lead unit is SOEST, in collaboration with Engineering, Social Sciences and Architecture. The proposal authors are: Gordon Grau (SOEST-Sea Grant); Darren Lerner (SOEST-Sea Grant), Denise Konan (Social Sciences–Economics); Stephen Meder (OVCAFO and Urban Planning) and David Karl (SOEST–Oceanography/C-MORE); the endorsing deans are Brian Taylor (SOEST), Peter Crouch (Engineering), Clark Llewellyn (Architecture) and Dick Dubanoski (Social Sciences). This proposal is a well-defined, tightly integrated cluster on a topic of great importance for the state with the potential for significant education, research, and community impact. The proposal includes hiring five faculty members, one in each of the following areas: coastal civil engineering, coastal policy and community development, environmental economics, microbial oceanography/biogeochemistry and sustainable building/community design – all with partial (.25 FTE) appointments in Sea Grant. This proposal has an excellent management plan for integrating the hires into a single team to promote teaching and research opportunities and presented well defined metrics for evaluating its continuing success.
During the review, it became obvious that other clusters on energy were also strong contenders for funding and, since sustainability is a topic of such significance for the future of the state, I will extend the sustainability emphasis for a second year. The 2012 Sustainability hires will be in the field of energy sustainability. This means that there will not be a new general call for other ideas until 2013. I have asked Peter Mouginis-Mark to work with the collaborators who submitted proposals this year to develop a joint proposal for the following year.
Native Hawaiian Programs
In this case, a cluster hire proposal was selected for funding, but I also am going forward with “catalytic hires” which are positions that will help initiate clusters of impact for the future. The cluster selected is “The Program in Native Hawaiian and Indigenous Health”. The lead unit is JABSOM, in collaboration with Social Work, Nursing, Law, CTAHR and School of Hawaiian Knowledge. The proposal authors are: Joseph Keaweʻaimoku Kaholokula (Medicine-Native Hawaiian Health) and Jay Maddock (Medicine-Public Health). The endorsing deans are: Jerris Hedges (JABSOM); Maenette Benham (HSHK); Sylvia Yuen (CTAHR); Avi Soifer (Law); Mary Boland (Nursing); and Noreen Mokuau (Social Work). This cluster’s strengths are in addressing an urgent need of the Hawaiian community, providing a bold vision with measurable outcomes and launching a new Master of Public Health in Indigenous Health. At this time, three joint faculty positions are approved for this cluster, including: one appointment that is .75 FTE in Public Health and .25 FTE in Social Work; one appointment that is .75 FTE in Public Health and .25 FTE in CTAHR; and one appointment that is .75 FTE in JABSOM-Native Hawaiian Health and .25 FTE in Hawai‘inuiākea School of Hawaiian Knowledge.
In considering the priority of strengthening Native Hawaiian programs and providing opportunities for Native Hawaiian scholars, it was clear that a number of the proposed hires fit that priority and could well develop into “clusters” and that “catalytic” hires would help promote that development. Therefore, I am also authorizing two faculty positions in the arts: one appointment that is .75 FTE in the Department of Music with .25 FTE linked to UH System programs at Windward Community College and Honolulu Community College to develop a stronger Native Hawaiian music program, and one appointment that is .75 FTE in the Department of Theatre and Dance and .25 FTE in Kawaihuelani Center for Hawaiian Language to develop Indigenous Theatre. In addition, one faculty hire will also be directed to Mālama ʻĀina with a .75 FTE appointment in Kamakakūokalani Center for Hawaiian Studies and .25 FTE appointment in Ka Huli Ao (Law/Politics) to focus on developing a certificate program that educates community leaders to be land stewards from an informed Native Hawaiian world view.
There were many other good ideas for positions supporting Native Hawaiian Scholarship, so I have decided that the overall cluster on Native Hawaiian programs will be continued for a second year with a call for new cluster proposals in Spring 2012. This is an opportunity to use the intervening year to build on interdisciplinary relationships and further develop the ambitious plans that marked the cluster proposals this year.
These Cluster Hires are a high priority for our campus. To this end, the coordinators and my office will work during the summer with the proposers to define job descriptions and the search process, including strategies for recruiting underrepresented candidates. The recruitments will begin when faculty return in the fall and hiring should be underway in 2012. Mahalo for the partnering across units that developed such excellent ideas for addressing these two important campus priorities.
Virginia S. Hinshaw
Chancellor, University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa
vhinshaw@hawaii.edu