UH Board of Regents Approves Establishment of Certificates in Peace Studies and Disability and Diversity Studies at UH Manoa

University of Hawaiʻi
Contact:
Carolyn Tanaka, 808/956-6106
Kristen Bonilla, 808/956-5039
External Affairs & University Relations
Posted: Jun 4, 2004

HONOLULU — The University of Hawaiʻi Board of Regents (BOR) at its monthly meeting held today at the UH Mānoa campus approved the establishment of an undergraduate certificate in peace studies and an interdisciplinary graduate certificate program in disability and diversity studies, both at the UH Mānoa campus.

The undergraduate certificate in peace studies is offered by the College of Social Sciences‘ Spark M. Matsunaga Institute for Peace. Since the events of September 11, teaching and learning about peace is considered more important than ever, and the undergraduate certificate provides one vital pathway for students to explore and understand the multiple facets of peace.

The program is designed to increase awareness of the necessity and means of finding alternatives to violence for resolution of conflict; to foster a planetary outlook on human affairs; to stimulate critical thinking about peace, justice and world order; to encourage creative thinking and "imaging" about the future of humankind; and to encourage active participation in the process of peace building.

The interdisciplinary graduate certificate program in disability and diversity studies was granted provisional status in the College of Education at the UH Mānoa campus. The program will provide professionals with skills grounded in the interdisciplinary process that are needed to promote effective, efficient, and culturally sensitive services for persons with disabilities of all ages. It is intended to compliment existing graduate programs in education, health, human services, and related disciplines with career goals in or interacting with the disability field.

The program will be jointly administered by the Department of Educational Foundations and the Center on Disability Studies, both within the College of Education, and it is designed to meet personnel needs in the fields of health, education, and human service both in Hawaiʻi and nationally.

In other action, the BOR authorized the administration to enter into three lease agreements with Kenneth A. Bansemer and Patricia A. Bansemer, the Christa Limberg Trust, and Hawaiian State Enterprises, for classroom and office facilities at the Central Kona Center and Kealakekua Business Plaza for the University of Hawaiʻi Center, West Hawaiʻi. The BOR also extended the lease for approximately 32,000 square feet of UH land in Mānoa with the U.S. Department of Agriculture, Agricultural Research Service. The site is used by the USDA-ARS for fruit fly research.

The contract for consultant services with Cassidy & Associates, Inc., of Washington, D.C., was extended through December 31, 2004. The contract extension will enable the university to continue to work with Cassidy & Associates, Inc., in obtaining federal funding for new and continuing initiatives while the university solicits proposals pursuant to a new Request for Proposals for the consultant contract.

Other items authorized were the budget-neutral competitive procurement of a server for the university‘s Financial Management Information System, the rebalancing and subsequent reallocation of investments in international equities for the university‘s Endowment Fund, and the reassignment of money management duties for the ASUH Stadium Stock Fund. The BOR also approved the termination of the graduate certificate in construction engineering and management in the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering in the College of Engineering at UH Mānoa.

In committee meetings held Thursday afternoon, the BOR also heard a report on the Lyon Arboretum investigation conducted by UH Interim Vice President for Research Jim Gaines. The BOR will be updated regularly on the matter as more information becomes available.