Four new members join UH Foundation Board of Trustees
University of HawaiʻiContact:
Posted: Jun 9, 2011
Alan Arakawa
T. Michael May
Lawrence J. Taff
Richard Wacker
HONOLULU – The University of Hawai‘i Foundation is happy to announce the appointment of four new members to the board of trustees: Alan Arakawa, T. Michael May, Lawrence J. Taff and Richard Wacker.
Alan Arakawa is senior vice president, planning at A&B Properties, Inc. Prior to joining A&B, he served as president of Waiawa Ridge Development LLC, a joint venture between A&B and Gentry Investment Properties, and executive vice president at Castle & Cooke Homes Hawai‘i, Inc. responsible for residential development operations.
Arakawa is a member of the Hawaii Developers Council and has served on the board’s development and construction industry organizations. He earned a BS in civil engineering and an MBA from the University of Hawai‘i at Manoa.
T. Michael May (Mike), 63, retired as president and chief executive officer of Hawaiian Electric Company, Inc. and the Hawaiian Electric Board in 2009 after 13 years. He also served on the Hawaiian Electric Industries board from 1995-2004, Hawaii Electric Company and was chairman to the board of directors of Maui Electric Company, Ltd. and Hawaii Electric Light Company, Inc. Prior to joining Hawaiian Electric Company, Inc. in 1992, May founded Management Assets Group, a management consulting firm with clients ranging from Hughes Corporation, Joy Technologies, South African Mining Company to the Ministry of Industry in Poland.
May was born in Newport News, Virginia, and holds a bachelor’s degree in industrial management with further training in industrial engineering and a master’s degree in finance.
Lawrence J. Taff is executive vice president of Pacific Office Properties Trust, Inc. responsible for overseeing operations in the Honolulu region. Pacific Office Properties was formed in 2008 when The Shidler Group merged its California, Arizona, and Hawai‘i office properties into Arizona Land Corporation, an existing public real estate investment trust. Taff continues to serve as the managing partner for The Shidler Group’s Honolulu Office. He oversees all management and leasing matters for the Hawai‘i assets. Taff joined The Shidler Group in 1995 and was instrumental in reorganizing the firm and planning new ventures and property acquisitions. He began his career with Arthur Andersen LLP in 1980.
Taff received a bachelor’s degree in accounting from California Polytechnic University, Pomona and is a Certified Public Accountant.
Richard Wacker was named president & CEO of American Savings Bank (ASB) in November 2010; he also serves as a director on the board. Prior to joining ASB he was the chairman of Korea Exchange Bank (KEB), the fifth largest Korean bank. Wacker lived in Korea from 2004 and was CEO of KEB from 2005 to 2009. He worked for General Electric (GE) domestically and abroad for 20 years in both industrial and financial services.
Wacker is a member of the Hawaii Business Round Table and the Hawaii Banker’s Association and he serves on the board of directors of Child and Family Service. He continues to serve as the chairman of the KEB Foundation, which he helped found as the first social welfare foundation in the Korean banking industry. Originally from St. Louis, Wacker graduated from the University of Missouri with a BS in mechanical engineering.
Alan Arakawa is senior vice president, planning at A&B Properties, Inc. Prior to joining A&B, he served as president of Waiawa Ridge Development LLC, a joint venture between A&B and Gentry Investment Properties, and executive vice president at Castle & Cooke Homes Hawai‘i, Inc. responsible for residential development operations.
Arakawa is a member of the Hawaii Developers Council and has served on the board’s development and construction industry organizations. He earned a BS in civil engineering and an MBA from the University of Hawai‘i at Manoa.
T. Michael May (Mike), 63, retired as president and chief executive officer of Hawaiian Electric Company, Inc. and the Hawaiian Electric Board in 2009 after 13 years. He also served on the Hawaiian Electric Industries board from 1995-2004, Hawaii Electric Company and was chairman to the board of directors of Maui Electric Company, Ltd. and Hawaii Electric Light Company, Inc. Prior to joining Hawaiian Electric Company, Inc. in 1992, May founded Management Assets Group, a management consulting firm with clients ranging from Hughes Corporation, Joy Technologies, South African Mining Company to the Ministry of Industry in Poland.
May was born in Newport News, Virginia, and holds a bachelor’s degree in industrial management with further training in industrial engineering and a master’s degree in finance.
Lawrence J. Taff is executive vice president of Pacific Office Properties Trust, Inc. responsible for overseeing operations in the Honolulu region. Pacific Office Properties was formed in 2008 when The Shidler Group merged its California, Arizona, and Hawai‘i office properties into Arizona Land Corporation, an existing public real estate investment trust. Taff continues to serve as the managing partner for The Shidler Group’s Honolulu Office. He oversees all management and leasing matters for the Hawai‘i assets. Taff joined The Shidler Group in 1995 and was instrumental in reorganizing the firm and planning new ventures and property acquisitions. He began his career with Arthur Andersen LLP in 1980.
Taff received a bachelor’s degree in accounting from California Polytechnic University, Pomona and is a Certified Public Accountant.
Richard Wacker was named president & CEO of American Savings Bank (ASB) in November 2010; he also serves as a director on the board. Prior to joining ASB he was the chairman of Korea Exchange Bank (KEB), the fifth largest Korean bank. Wacker lived in Korea from 2004 and was CEO of KEB from 2005 to 2009. He worked for General Electric (GE) domestically and abroad for 20 years in both industrial and financial services.
Wacker is a member of the Hawaii Business Round Table and the Hawaii Banker’s Association and he serves on the board of directors of Child and Family Service. He continues to serve as the chairman of the KEB Foundation, which he helped found as the first social welfare foundation in the Korean banking industry. Originally from St. Louis, Wacker graduated from the University of Missouri with a BS in mechanical engineering.