National community college leadership honor for UH associate VP

University of Hawaiʻi
Contact:
Kelli Abe Trifonovitch, (808) 228-8108
Chief Communications Officer, UH Communications
Monica Clark
Senior Program Manager, College Excellence Program, The Aspen Institute
Posted: May 4, 2020

Tammi Oyadomari-Chun
Tammi Oyadomari-Chun

Tammi Oyadomari-Chun, associate vice president for academic affairs for the University of Hawai‘i Community Colleges, is one of 40 leaders selected for the 2020–21 class of the Aspen Rising Presidents Fellowship. The highly competitive leadership program prepares the next generation of community college leaders to transform institutions to achieve higher and more equitable levels of student success.  

The Aspen Institute College Excellence Program made the announcement on May 4, 2020. Rising Presidents Fellows will embark on a 10-month fellowship beginning in July 2020. Delivered in collaboration with the Stanford Educational Leadership Initiative, the fellows will be mentored by esteemed current and former community college presidents who have achieved exceptional outcomes for students throughout their careers, and will learn strategies to improve student outcomes in and after college, lead internal change, and create strong external partnerships with K–12 schools, four-year colleges, employers and other partners. 

"Tammi has been a driving force behind a number of initiatives at UH including Hawaii P-20, Returning Adults, and "Onramps 2020," a new project to offer summer community college classes to 2020 high school graduates. This fellowship is an opportunity for Tammi and for UH to contribute to national conversations about transforming higher education, post-COVID," said UH President David Lassner.

Oyadomari-Chun has held key positions in Hawai‘i's government and nonprofit sectors, including assistant superintendent for the Office of Strategy, Innovation and Performance at the Hawai‘i State Department of Education; vice president for programs at Hawai‘i Community Foundation; policy analyst for the Office of the Governor; and executive director for Hawai‘i P-20 Partnerships for Education. Previously, she also conducted education and social policy research at the RAND Corporation and the University of Pennsylvania.

The Aspen Rising Presidents Fellowship responds to the growing need for a new generation of leaders well-equipped to meet future challenges. Nationally, nearly 80 percent of sitting presidents plan to retire in the next decade. While the traditional pathway to the presidency has excluded women and people of color, the incoming class of Aspen Rising Presidents Fellows is composed of 70 percent women and 61 percent people of color and represents institutions of varying sizes and locations.

“Evidence shows that substantial improvements in student success are achieved only when presidents have the commitment and skill needed to lead change within their institutions and through partnerships in the community,” said Josh Wyner, executive director of the College Excellence Program. “These fellows have been chosen because they embody that commitment and, we believe, will build their skills even further to become transformational presidents.” 

Together, the 2020–21 fellows are leaders at colleges that collectively serve more than 500,000 students. As well, 42 Rising Presidents Fellowship alumni have become presidents of community colleges that collectively serve an additional 500,000 students nationwide.

About the University of Hawai‘i

Established in 1907 and fully accredited by the Western Association of Schools and Colleges, the University of Hawai‘i System includes 10 campuses and dozens of educational, training and research centers across the state. As the sole public system of higher education in Hawai‘i, UH offers an array of undergraduate, graduate and professional degrees and community programs. UH enrolls about 49,000 students from Hawai‘i, the U.S. continent and around the world. For more information visit UHNews.org, www.hawaii.edu, Facebook or Twitter.

The Aspen Institute College Excellence Program aims to advance higher education practices and leadership strategies that significantly improve student outcomes. Through the Aspen Prize for Community College Excellence, the Aspen Presidential Fellowship for Community College Excellence, and other initiatives, the College Excellence Program works to improve colleges’ understanding and capacity to teach and graduate students, especially the growing population of low-income students and students of color on American campuses. For more information, visit highered.aspeninstitute.org and follow us on Twitter at @AspenHigherEd. 

Stanford Educational Leadership Initiative (SELI) strives to help education leaders further develop their ability to transform education systems and drive meaningful change. SELI programs bring together the strengths of Stanford Graduate School of Education and Stanford Graduate School of Business, as well as additional Stanford faculty and resources, to offer multidimensional and immediately impactful professional development programming for practicing leaders in PreK-12, higher education, and policy. By fostering collaboration and building relationships between existing colleagues and among new peers, SELI programs create networks supporting participants’ continued learning and organizational improvement. For more information, visit https://seli.stanford.edu/

 The Aspen Institute is a global nonprofit organization committed to realizing a free, just, and equitable society. Founded in 1949, the Institute drives change through dialogue, leadership, and action to help solve the most important challenges facing the United States and the world. Headquartered in Washington, DC, the Institute has a campus in Aspen, Colorado, and an international network of partners.