Hawaii Pacific University
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| Hawaiʻi Pacific University | |
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| Motto: | Holomua Me Ka Oiaio (Hawaiian: Forward With Truth) |
| Established: | 1965 as Hawaii Pacific College, later in 1990 as Hawaii Pacific University |
| Type: | Private |
| Endowment: | US $80 million |
| President: | Chatt G. Wright, MBA |
| Undergraduates: | 7,500 |
| Postgraduates: | 1,500 |
| Location: | Honolulu, Hawaiʻi, USA |
| Campus: | Urban and Rural |
| Nickname: | Sea Warriors |
| Website: | http://www.hpu.edu |
Hawaiʻi Pacific University (also known as HPU) is a private coeducational university in Honolulu, Hawaii, founded in 1965 as Hawaii Pacific College by Paul C.T. Loo, Eureka Forbes, Elizabeth W. Kellerman, and Reverend Edmond Walker.
Hawaiʻi Pacific University is the largest private university in the central Pacific, most noted for its diverse student body of almost 9,000 students, representing over 100 countries. The school's largest academic programs are in Business Administration, and International Relations.
The current president of the university is Chatt G. Wright, MBA. Mr. Wright joined Hawaiʻi Pacific College at its founding as Hawaii Pacific College. He has served as president of the university through a period of recent expansion, including a merger with Hawaiʻi Loa College in 1992, and a 2003 affiliation with the Oceanic Institute.
Hawaiʻi Pacific University has two main campuses and access to scientific facilities. HPU's downtown Honolulu campus serves most of the business, liberal arts, and other general programs. This campus occupies much of Fort Street Mall and surrounds the Cathedral of Our Lady of Peace. The HPU traditional campus is the Hawaiʻi Loa campus. It is located near Castle Junction in Kāneʻohe, on the windward side of the Koʻolau Range. This campus was originally built by Hawaiʻi Loa College, a liberal arts school that was merged into Hawaiʻi Pacific University in 1992. The campus is also referred to as the Windward campus. This campus houses the majority of the science programs and the nursing program. However, other general courses are offered on the Windward campus and recent talks of developing the Windward campus into a full service campus have emerged. HPU's Military Campus Programs operates campuses on Oʻahu's US military bases, including Pearl Harbor, Hickam Air Force Base, Tripler Army Medical Center, Camp H. M. Smith, Schofield Barracks, and Kaneohe Marine Corps Base Hawaii. A significant online program is also offered. Over 2,500 HPU students take courses through Military Campus Programs. Retired US Navy Captain Robert E. Cyboron serves as Dean of Military Campus Programs. Lastly, the Oceanic Institute is affiliated with HPU, thus providing HPU students with access to significant research programs in the marine and oceanic sciences.
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[edit] History
Recognizing the need for an independent, nonsectarian liberal arts college in Honolulu, four prominent and public-spirited citizens -- Eureka Forbes, Paul C.T. Loo, Elizabeth W. Kellerman, and The Reverend Edmond Walker — applied for a charter of incorporation for a not-for-profit corporation to be called Hawaiʻi Pacific College. The state of Hawaiʻi granted a charter of incorporation to Hawaiʻi Pacific on September 17, 1965.
In September of 1966, Honolulu Christian College merged into Hawaiʻi Pacific College, and a new charter was granted by the state of Hawaiʻi.
In 1967, Dr. James L. Meader became Hawaiʻi Pacific College's first President. President Meader, in consultation with community leaders, developed a comprehensive educational program to meet various higher educational needs for the state of Hawaiʻi.
When Dr. Meader retired on June 30, 1968, the Board of Trustees elected The Reverend George A. Warmer as Hawaiʻi Pacific's second President. Under President Warmer's leadership, the College implemented academic programs in the liberal arts and cooperative education.
In 1972, Hawaiʻi Pacific College graduated seven students in its first commencement class and in the same year established a School of Business Administration. Chatt G. Wright became the founding Dean of Hawaiʻi Pacific's new School of Business Administration.
In 1973, the College received full accreditation from the Western Association of Schools and Colleges. The following years saw the creation of the English Foundations Program, offering instruction to non-native speakers of English, and the Division of Special Programs, administering off-campus instruction on various military installations on Oʻahu.
President Warmer retired in 1976, and Chatt G. Wright became Hawaiʻi Pacific's third President. Under President Wright's leadership, Hawaiʻi Pacific has seen rapid and continuous expansion. Augmenting its thriving undergraduate program of baccalaureate and associate degrees, Hawaiʻi Pacific launched a Master of Business Administration program in 1986, a Master of Science in Information Systems program in 1989, and a Master of Arts in Human Resource Management in 1991.
Hawaiʻi Pacific continued to expand and develop throughout the 1980s, and in 1990 became Hawaiʻi Pacific University (HPU).
In 1992, Hawaiʻi Loa College, a small, independent, liberal arts college located on the windward side of Oʻahu, merged into Hawaiʻi Pacific University. This historic merger has brought together the strength of two academically strong institutions, and has helped to expand Hawaiʻi Pacific University's role as a leader in higher education for the state of Hawaiʻi and the Pacific Basin.
In 1992, Hawaii Pacific University graduate Carolyn Sapp was the first Miss Hawaii to achieve the title of Miss America (1992), and is also an established leading motivational speaker, a charismatic entertainer and a product spokesperson. Her achievements include starring in a highly acclaimed NBC movie among various feature films, authoring a wide variety of articles and opinion pieces, and national appearances in public forums and mass media.
In 2004, The HPU International Vocal Ensemble[1] made their Carnegie Hall debut where they performed Morten Lauriden’s Lux Aeterna and O Magnum Mysterium.
[edit] Athletics
The university's athletic teams are called the Sea Warriors. They compete in the Pacific West Conference as part of the NCAA's Division II. Hawai`i Pacific University's first venture into intercollegiate athletics came with the formation of the men's basketball team. Men's basketball has been joined in intercollegiate competition by men's teams in baseball, cross country, golf, soccer, and tennis, and women's teams in basketball, cross country, soccer, softball, volleyball, and tennis. The school's most successful athletics program has been its women's volleyball team, which has won multiple national championships. HPU also has nationally recognized Division II cheerleading and dance teams.
[edit] Academics
Education at Hawaiʻi Pacific University is based on a traditional liberal arts foundation. Hawaiʻi Pacific University is made up of multiple colleges, these include the; College of Business Administration, College of Communication, College of International Studies, College of Liberal Arts, College of Natural Sciences, College of Professional Studies, and the School of Nursing. HPU offers both undergraduate and graduateprograms in each of its colleges and schools.
Hawaiʻi Pacific University is also home to specific unique academic environments through the Hawaiʻi Pacific University Entrepreneurship Center, ELS Language Center at Hawaiʻi Pacific University, HPU Concurrent Program,and the university participation in the Army ROTC program. The university also has an extensive Distance Learning and Online based platform for many of its programs[1]. HPU also boasts a unique and extensive Study Abroad and Student Exchange Program[2]
Hawaiʻi Pacific University is regionally accredited by the Western Association of Schools and Colleges (WASC).
[edit] Notable Alumni
[edit] Undergraduate Alumni
- Benny Agbayani, BA, former Major League Baseball outfielder. He played for the New York Mets, the Colorado Rockies, the Boston Red Sox, the Cincinnati Reds, and Kansas City Royals. Currently he is signed with Chiba Lotte Marines in the Japanese Pacific League of the Nippon Professional Baseball organization. He is also the author of his own autobiography Big League Survivor w/Shayne Fujii.
[edit] Graduate Alumni
- Daniel Brackins, MBA in Economics, 2009. Economist and candidate for Congress, Republican - Hawaii's 1st Congressional District
[edit] Notable faculty
- Ken Schoolland, Associate Professor of Economics and Political Science, Author of Johnathan Gullible and Shogun's Ghost: The Dark Side of Japanese Education, Member of the Board of Directors for the International Society for Individual Liberty, and Sam Walton Fellow for Students in Free Enterprise.
- Carlos Juarez, Ph.D., Dean of the College of International Studies and Professor of Political Science, Member of the Board of Governors of the Pacific and Asian Affairs Council (PAAC), the World Affairs Council for the State of Hawaii, and a consultant to the Fulbright program of the US Department of State, and a consultant to the United States Institute of Peace.
- Adly Mirza, Ph.D., Instructor of Arabic, also an accomplished portrait artist, musician, and photographer, Arabic Instructor to the US Army, US Air Force and other US Military Branches in Hawaii. He is also the Arabic coach for the popular TV series LOST.
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[edit] External links
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