The University of Hawaiʻi System, formally the University of Hawaiʻi and popularly known as UH, is a public college and university system that confers associate, bachelor's, master's, and doctoral degrees through three universities, seven

community college A community college is a type of educational institution. The term can have different meanings in different countries: many community colleges have an "open enrollment" for students who have graduated from high school (also known as senior sec ...

s, an employment training center, three university centers, four education centers and various other research facilities distributed across six islands throughout the

state of Hawaii Hawaii ( ; haw, Hawaii or ) is a state in the Western United States, located in the Pacific Ocean about from the U.S. mainland. It is the only U.S. state outside North America, the only state that is an archipelago, and the only state ...

in the United States. All schools of the University of Hawaiʻi system are accredited by the

Western Association of Schools and Colleges The Western Association of Schools and Colleges (WASC) was an organization providing School accreditation, accreditation of public and private universities, colleges, secondary school, secondary and elementary schools in California and Hawaii, ...

. The UH system's main administrative offices are located on the property of the

University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa The University of Hawaii at Mānoa (University of Hawaii—Mānoa, UH Mānoa, Hawai'i, or simply UH) is a public land-grant research university in Mānoa, a neighborhood in Honolulu, Hawaii. It is the flagship campus of the University of Haw ...

in Honolulu CDP.

History

The present-day University of Hawai'i System was created in 1965 which combined the State of Hawai'i's technical and community colleges under one system within the former

University of Hawai'i A university () is an institution of higher (or tertiary) education and research which awards academic degrees in several academic disciplines. Universities typically offer both undergraduate and postgraduate programs. In the United States, th ...

Former University of Hawai'i

The University of Hawai'i was created by the Territory of Hawai'i in 1907 as a land-grant college of agriculture and mechanical arts and held its first classes in 1907. In 1912 it moved to its present location in Mānoa Valley and being renamed College of Hawaii. In 1919 the College of Hawai'i obtained university status by the Hawai'i Territorial Legislature and was renamed the University of Hawai'i. In 1965, the state legislature created a system of community colleges and placed it within the university. The university was renamed the

University of Hawai'i at Mānoa A university () is an institution of higher (or tertiary) education and research which awards academic degrees in several academic disciplines. Universities typically offer both undergraduate and postgraduate programs. In the United States, th ...

to distinguish it from other campuses in the University of Hawai'i System in 1972.

Colleges and universities

The

is the flagship institution of the University of Hawaiʻi system. It was founded as a

land-grant college A land-grant university (also called land-grant college or land-grant institution) is an institution of higher education in the United States designated by a state to receive the benefits of the Morrill Acts of 1862 and 1890. Signed by Abraha ...

under the terms of the Morrill Acts of 1862 and 1890. Programs include

Hawaii Hawaii ( ; haw, Hawaii or ) is a state in the Western United States, located in the Pacific Ocean about from the U.S. mainland. It is the only U.S. state outside North America, the only state that is an archipelago, and the only stat ...

an/

Pacific Studies Pacific studies is the study of the Pacific region (Oceania) across academic disciplines such as anthropology, archeology, art, economics, geography, history, linguistics, literature, music, politics, or sociology. In the fields of anthropology an ...

Astronomy Astronomy () is a natural science that studies astronomical object, celestial objects and phenomena. It uses mathematics, physics, and chemistry in order to explain their origin and chronology of the Universe, evolution. Objects of interest ...

East Asian East Asia is the eastern region of Asia, which is defined in both geographical and ethno-cultural terms. The modern states of East Asia include China, Japan, Mongolia, North Korea, South Korea, and Taiwan. China, North Korea, South Korea a ...

Languages and Literature,

Asian Studies Asian studies is the term used usually in North America and Australia for what in Europe is known as Oriental studies. The field is concerned with the Asian people, their cultures, languages, history and politics. Within the Asian sphere, Asian ...

, Comparative

Philosophy Philosophy (from , ) is the systematized study of general and fundamental questions, such as those about existence, reason, knowledge, values, mind, and language. Such questions are often posed as problems to be studied or resolved. Some ...

Marine Science Oceanography (), also known as oceanology and ocean science, is the scientific study of the oceans. It is an Earth science, which covers a wide range of topics, including ecosystem dynamics; ocean currents, Wind wave, waves, and geophysical flu ...

, Second Language Studies, along with

Botany Botany, also called , plant biology or phytology, is the science of plant life and a branch of biology. A botanist, plant scientist or phytologist is a scientist who specialises in this field. The term "botany" comes from the Ancient Greek w ...

Engineering Engineering is the use of scientific method, scientific principles to design and build machines, structures, and other items, including bridges, tunnels, roads, vehicles, and buildings. The discipline of engineering encompasses a broad rang ...

Ethnomusicology Ethnomusicology is the study of music from the cultural and social aspects of the people who make it. It encompasses distinct theoretical and methodical approaches that emphasize cultural, social, material, cognitive, biological, and other dim ...

Geophysics Geophysics () is a subject of natural science concerned with the physical processes and physical properties of the Earth and its surrounding space environment, and the use of quantitative methods for their analysis. The term ''geophysics'' som ...

Law Law is a set of rules that are created and are enforceable by social or governmental institutions to regulate behavior,Robertson, ''Crimes against humanity'', 90. with its precise definition a matter of longstanding debate. It has been vario ...

Business Business is the practice of making one's living or making money by producing or Trade, buying and selling Product (business), products (such as goods and Service (economics), services). It is also "any activity or enterprise entered into for pr ...

Linguistics Linguistics is the scientific study of human language. It is called a scientific study because it entails a comprehensive, systematic, objective, and precise analysis of all aspects of language, particularly its nature and structure. Linguis ...

Mathematics Mathematics is an area of knowledge that includes the topics of numbers, formulas and related structures, shapes and the spaces in which they are contained, and quantities and their changes. These topics are represented in modern mathematics ...

, and

Medicine Medicine is the science and practice of caring for a patient, managing the diagnosis, prognosis, prevention, treatment, palliation of their injury or disease, and promoting their health. Medicine encompasses a variety of health care pract ...

. The second-largest institution is the

University of Hawaiʻi at Hilo The University of Hawaii at Hilo (UH Hilo) is a public university in Hilo, Hawaii. It is one of ten general campuses of the University of Hawaii system. It was founded as Hilo Center at Lyman Hall of the Hilo Boys School in 1945 and was a bran ...

on the "Big Island" of Hawaiʻi, with over 3,000 students. The University of Hawaiʻi-West Oʻahu in

Kapolei Kapolei () is a planned community in Honolulu County, Hawaiʻi, United States, on the island of Oʻahu. It is colloquially known as the "second city" of Oʻahu, in relation to Honolulu. For statistical purposes, the United States Census Bureau ...

primarily serves students who reside in Honolulu's western and central suburban communities. The University of Hawaiʻi Community College System comprises four

s island campuses on

O'ahu Oahu () ( Hawaiian: ''Oʻahu'' ()), also known as "The Gathering Place", is the third-largest of the Hawaiian Islands. It is home to roughly one million people—over two-thirds of the population of the U.S. state of Hawaii. The island of O’ ...

and one each on Maui,

Kauaʻi Kauai, () anglicized as Kauai ( ), is geologically the second-oldest of the main Hawaiian Islands (after Niʻihau). With an area of 562.3 square miles (1,456.4 km2), it is the fourth-largest of these islands and the List of islands of th ...

, and

. The colleges were created to improve accessibility of courses to more Hawaiʻi residents and provide an affordable means of easing the transition from

secondary school A secondary school describes an institution that provides secondary education and also usually includes the building where this takes place. Some secondary schools provide both '' secondary education, lower secondary education'' (ages 11 to 14) ...

high school A secondary school describes an institution that provides secondary education and also usually includes the building where this takes place. Some secondary schools provide both '' lower secondary education'' (ages 11 to 14) and ''upper seconda ...

college A college (Latin: ''collegium'') is an educational institution or a constituent part of one. A college may be a degree-awarding tertiary educational institution, a part of a collegiate or federal university, an institution offering ...

for many students. University of Hawaiʻi education centers are located in more remote areas of the State and its several islands, supporting rural communities via distance education.

Universities

* University of Hawaiʻi, West Oʻahu

Colleges

* University of Hawaiʻi Maui College

Community colleges

* Hawaiʻi Community College in Hilo * Hawaiʻi Community College in Kailua Kona *

Honolulu Community College Honolulu Community College is a public community college in Honolulu, Hawaii. It is one of ten branches of the University of Hawaii system and is accredited by the Western Association of Schools and Colleges. HCC's strengths are in its industr ...

* Kapiʻolani Community College *

Kauaʻi Community College Kauai Community College is a public community college in Līhue, Hawaii and it is the only institution of higher learning on the island. It is part of the University of Hawaii system and is accredited by the Accrediting Commission for Commun ...

Leeward Community College Leeward Community College is a public community college in Pearl City, Hawaii. It is one of 10 campuses of the University of Hawaii system and is accredited by the Accrediting Commission for Community and Junior Colleges. Leeward's open admiss ...

Windward Community College Windward Community College is a public community college in Kāneohe, Hawaii. It is part of the University of Hawaii system and is accredited by the Accrediting Commission for Community and Junior Colleges. Created in 1972, Windward Community ...

Professional schools

Daniel K. Inouye College of Pharmacy The Daniel K. Inouye College of Pharmacy is one of six colleges within the public University of Hawai'i at Hilo (UH Hilo). The school awards a four-year Doctor of Pharmacy degree (Pharm.D.) and is by the Accreditation Council for Pharmacy Educ ...

* School of Ocean and Earth Science and Technology * John A. Burns School of Medicine *

William S. Richardson School of Law The William S. Richardson School of Law is the professional graduate law school of the University of Hawaii at Manoa. Located in Honolulu, Hawaii, the school is named after its patriarch, former Hawaii State Supreme Court Chief Justice William ...

Shidler College of Business Shidler is a city in Osage County, Oklahoma, United States. The population was 328 in the 2020 census, a decline from the figure of 441 recorded in 2010. History Shidler was founded in December 1921 and named for Eugene S. Shidler, a Pawhuska b ...

Research facilities

* Center for Philippine Studies * Cancer Research Center of Hawaiʻi *

East-West Center East West (or East and West) may refer to: *East–West dichotomy, the contrast between Eastern and Western society or culture Arts and entertainment Books, journals and magazines *''East, West'', an anthology of short stories written by Salma ...

* Haleakalā Observatory * Hawaiʻi Natural Energy Institute * Institute for Astronomy * Institute of Geophysics and Planetology * Institute of Marine Biology *

Lyon Arboretum The Harold L. Lyon Arboretum is a arboretum and botanical garden managed by the University of Hawaii at Mānoa located at the upper end of Mānoa Valley in Hawaii. Much of the Arboretum's botanical collection consists of an artificial lowland t ...

Mauna Kea Observatory The Mauna Kea Observatories (MKO) are a group of independent astronomical research facilities and large telescope observatories that are located at the summit of Mauna Kea on the Big Island of Hawaiʻi, United States. The facilities are locate ...

W. M. Keck Observatory The W. M. Keck Observatory is an astronomical observatory with two telescopes at an elevation of 4,145 meters (13,600 ft) near the summit of Mauna Kea in the U.S. state of Hawaii. Both telescopes have aperture primary mirrors, and when comp ...

* Waikīkī Aquarium

University centers

* University of Hawaiʻi Center West Hawaiʻi *

University of Hawaiʻi Center Kauaʻi A university () is an educational institution, institution of higher education, higher (or Tertiary education, tertiary) education and research which awards academic degrees in several Discipline (academia), academic disciplines. Universities ty ...

* University of Hawaiʻi Center Maui

Education centers

* Molokaʻi Education Center * Lānaʻi Education Center * Hāna Education Center * Waiʻanae Education Center * Lāhainā Education Center

Board of Regents

In accordance with Article X, Section 6 of the Hawaiʻi State Constitution, the University of Hawaiʻi is governed by a Board of Regents, composed of 15 unpaid members who are nominated by a Regents Candidate Advisory Council, appointed by the governor, and confirmed by the state legislature. The board oversees all aspects of governance for the university system, including its internal structure and management. The board also appoints, evaluates, and if necessary removes the president of the University of Hawaiʻi.

Student regents

The university's governing board includes a current student appointed by the governor of Hawaiʻi to serve a two-year term as a full voting regent. The practice of appointing a student to the board was approved by the Hawaiʻi State Legislature in 1997.

Notable alumni

Alumni of the University of Hawaiʻi system include many notable persons in various walks of life. Senator Daniel Inouye and

Tammy Duckworth Ladda Tammy Duckworth (born March 12, 1968) is an American politician and retired Army National Guard lieutenant colonel serving as the junior United States senator from Illinois since 2017. A member of the Democratic Party, she represented ...

both are veterans of the US military who were injured in the line of duty then later entered government service.

Bette Midler Bette Midler (;''Inside the Actors Studio'', 2004 born December 1, 1945) is an American singer, actress, comedian and author. Throughout her career, which spans over five decades, Midler has received List of awards and nominations received by Be ...

and

Georgia Engel Georgia Bright Engel (July 28, 1948 – April 12, 2019) was an American actress. She is best known for having played Georgette Franklin Baxter in the sitcom ''The Mary Tyler Moore Show'' from 1972 to 1977, Pat MacDougall on ''Everybody Loves Ra ...

are successful entertainers on the national stage. Composer

Hsiung-Zee Wong Hsiung-Zee Wong (born October 24, 1947) is a composer, artist, and designer who was born in Hong Kong. She moved to the United States in 1966, where she worked as a freelance graphic designer and illustrator. Wong studied at the University of Hawaii ...

also attended the University of Hawai'i. President

Barack Obama Barack Hussein Obama II ( ; born August 4, 1961) is an American politician who served as the 44th president of the United States from 2009 to 2017. A member of the Democratic Party, Obama was the first African-American president of the U ...

's parents,

Barack Obama Sr. Barack Hussein Obama Sr. (; 18 June 1934 – 24 November 1982) was a Kenyan senior governmental economist and the father of Barack Obama, the 44th president of the United States. He is a central figure of his son's memoir, '' Dreams from My Fa ...

and

Ann Dunham Stanley Ann Dunham (November 29, 1942 – November 7, 1995) was an American anthropologist who specialized in the economic anthropology and rural development of Indonesia. She is the mother of Barack Obama, the 44th president of the Uni ...

, and half-sister,

Maya Soetoro-Ng Maya Kasandra Soetoro-Ng (; ; born August 15, 1970) is an Indonesian-American academic, who is a faculty specialist at the Spark M. Matsunaga Institute for Peace and Conflict Resolution, based in the College of Social Sciences at the University ...

, also earned degrees from the Mānoa campus, where his parents met in a Russian language class. His mother earned three degrees from the University of Hawaiʻi including a PhD in anthropology.

Mazie Hirono Mazie Keiko Hirono (; Japanese name: , ; born November 3, 1947) is an American lawyer and politician serving as the junior United States senator from Hawaii since 2013. A member of the Democratic Party, Hirono previously served as a member of t ...

is a current U.S. senator. She graduated from the University of Hawaii with a BA in psychology. She is the first elected female senator from Hawaii, the first

Asian-American Asian Americans are Americans of Asian ancestry (including naturalized Americans who are immigrants from specific regions in Asia and descendants of such immigrants). Although this term had historically been used for all the indigenous people ...

woman elected to the Senate, the first U.S. senator born in Japan, and the nation's first

Buddhist Buddhism ( , ), also known as Buddha Dharma and Dharmavinaya (), is an Indian religion or philosophical tradition based on teachings attributed to the Buddha. It originated in northern India as a -movement in the 5th century BCE, and ...

senator. Alice Augusta Ball was not only the first woman to graduate from the College of Hawaiʻi (now the University of Hawaiʻi) in 1915, but was also the first African American research chemist and instructor in the college's

chemistry Chemistry is the science, scientific study of the properties and behavior of matter. It is a natural science that covers the Chemical element, elements that make up matter to the chemical compound, compounds made of atoms, molecules and ions ...

department. In addition, she was the first person to successfully develop a water-soluble form of

chaulmoogra oil ''Hydnocarpus wightianus'' or chaulmoogra is a tree in the Achariaceae family. ''Hydnocarpus wightiana'' seed oil has been widely used in traditional Indian medicine, especially in Ayurveda, and in Chinese traditional medicine for the treatmen ...

that was used for decades to relieve the symptoms of Hansen's disease (

leprosy Leprosy, also known as Hansen's disease (HD), is a long-term infection by the bacteria ''Mycobacterium leprae'' or ''Mycobacterium lepromatosis''. Infection can lead to damage of the nerves, respiratory tract, skin, and eyes. This nerve damag ...

Notable faculty

The University of Hawaiʻi system has had many faculty members of note. Many were visiting faculty or came after they won major awards like

Nobel Laureate The Nobel Prizes ( sv, Nobelpriset, no, Nobelprisen) are awarded annually by the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences, the Swedish Academy, the Karolinska Institutet, and the Norwegian Nobel Committee to individuals and organizations who make out ...

Georg von Békésy Georg von Békésy ( hu, Békésy György, ; 3 June 1899 – 13 June 1972) was a Hungarian-American biophysicist. By using strobe photography and silver flakes as a marker, he was able to observe that the basilar membrane moves like a surface w ...

Ryuzo Yanagimachi is a Japanese-born, American-based scientist. He has made numerous key contributions to the study of mammalian fertilization. He is a pioneer of assisted fertilization technologies such as in vitro fertilization and direct sperm injection into ...

, principal investigator of the research group that developed a method of cloning from adult animal cells, is still on the faculty. In July 2019, Bob Huey, a professor of Japanese literature in the Department of East Asian Languages and Literatures, was presented the Order of the Rising Sun, Gold Rays with Neck Ribbon, one of Japan's highest honors for those without Japanese citizenship.

References

External links

*
University of Hawaiʻi Athletics
{{DEFAULTSORT:University of Hawai'i American Association of State Colleges and Universities Buildings and structures in Honolulu Education in Honolulu Public universities and colleges in Hawaii Schools accredited by the Western Association of Schools and Colleges 1907 establishments in Hawaii Public university systems in the United States