The University of Hawaiʻi at Hilo Model United Nations Team, Hui Na Lahui Huipu (Club United Nations), reinforced its reputation as a force to be reckoned with on the international stage by turning in another strong performance at this year’s Model United Nations Competition, which recently took place in New York.

UH Hilo, which last year captured the highest honor of Outstanding Delegation, earned Honorable Mention, which is essentially a third place award presented to teams who place in the top fifteen percent of the competition.

“12 of our 15 members were competing at Model United Nations for the first time, so they did extremely well,” said Dr. Phillip A. Taylor, political science professor, who served as the team’s coach and faculty advisor. “Instead of re-building, we re-loaded.”

This year’s team was led by head delegate Krista Aoki. Other members included business manager Mindy Alles, Ashley Branch, Taylor Coons, Euclitos Da Costa, Hannah Furumo, Soyoung Han, Marcus Hoeflinger, Aimehio Iyeke, Saerom Lee, Kirstie Naone, Michael Nurnberger, Corey Patton, Priya Rashid, and Ardena Saarinen.

UH Hilo’s delegation represented Hungary during the five intense days of simulated UN deliberations, which saw them present their country’s foreign policy positions on 24 different issues before 8 committees. Top tier finishes have become a habit for the UH Hilo team dating back to 2006. This is the second time the delegation has earned Honorable Mention. The team has also captured the second place award, Distinguished Delegation, awarded to teams in the top ten percent four times during that period.

The competition annually attracts teams from 300 universities and colleges from around the world. Student and faculty participants work in the conference setting to propose resolutions on a wide range of issues such as regional conflicts, human rights, economic and social development, women and children and the environment.

A University of Hawaiʻi at Hilo senior majoring in mathematics and computer science has been awarded a 2013 National Science Foundation Graduate Research Fellowship (NSF GRF).

Marissa Loving was among 70 math students chosen from more than 13,000 applicants for the prestigious award, which is open to U.S. citizens who are graduating college seniors as well as first- and second-year Ph.D. students. The fellowship includes a three-year annual stipend of $30,000, a $12,000 a year cost of education allowance to the graduate institution of the recipient’s choice, plus various opportunities for international research and professional growth.

Loving will use her award to attend the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign this fall where she gained first-round acceptance to the math Ph.D. program and was awarded the Graduate College Distinguished Fellowship. That award includes a full tuition and fee waiver along with a $25,000 stipend for three years. The two fellowships, combined with other awards, bring the total assistance Loving will receive for her doctoral studies to over a half-million dollars.

The NSF GRF recognizes and supports outstanding graduate students in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics disciplines pursuing research-based masters and doctoral degrees.

A UH Presidential Scholar, Loving’s research credentials include co-authorship of a paper entitled “Non-Stable K-theory for Leavitt Path Algebras,” which was accepted for publication last fall and will appear in the peer-reviewed Rocky Mountain Journal of Mathematics.

“The fellowships will allow me to focus on research, rather than on teaching, working or other commitments during my graduate studies,” Loving said. “It is with excitement that I look forward to what mathematics holds for me in the future.”

Student pharmacists from The Daniel K. Inouye College of Pharmacy (DKICP) at the University of Hawaiʻi at Hilo visited the Hawaiʻi State Capitol April 16 to deliver informational packets to Hawaiʻi’s legislators.

At risk is the accreditation for the College, which is being evaluated by committee members from the Accreditation Council for Pharmacy Education (ACPE) at the same time that the legislators head to conference to deliberate the fate of funding a permanent building for the College.

The conference committee is the final hurdle for legislation before heading to state House and Senate floor votes in early May. The state Senate has included the $38 million needed for the building in its budget, but the House has not.

The packets, including a CD with 1,000 letters of community support and petitions with 1,243 signatures, are a product of a group of community members called the Friends of The Daniel K. Inouye College of Pharmacy (FDKICP) Steering Committee, headed by Kelvin Sewake, a Hilo resident.

“The community has really come out in full support of the College, and for that we are truly grateful,” said Sewake, who also is the father of a student pharmacist. “The letters and petitions represent the hopes and dreams of the current pharmacy students as well as the bright future for all aspiring pharmacists.”

A Marine Science student in the University of Hawaiʻi at Hilo Marine Option Program (MOP) recently took top honors in the 30th Annual Marine Option Program Student Symposium, held April 13 at University of Hawaiʻi Maui College.

The Award for Best Overall Research Paper went to Marine Science senior Kristina Tietjen for her project entitled “Evidence for a New Genus of Triphoridae in Hawaiʻi Based on Scanning Electron Micrographs of the Protoconch.”

In addition, Marine Science senior and MOP Student Coordinator Laura Knight was awarded the prestigious Anna Toy Ng Memorial scholarship. This award was established to annually recognize the most exemplary MOP student from across the UH System for marine scholarship, ocean stewardship, and participation in MOP. Knight is a member of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA)-MOP Sea Turtle Rescue Team, was a NOAA Whale Count Site Leader for MOP, participated in the QUEST Scientific Diving program, and was awarded internships through the Kalākaua Marine Education Center (KM EC) to work as a research diver as part of NOAA’s Papahānaumokuākea Marine National Monument surveys.

Seven other UH Hilo students presented their work at the MOP conference, which included oral and poster presentations on research and internship projects. Students included Sandor Baranyi, Chelsey Bryson, Sean Cantero, Brittany Dolan, Hōkūokahalelani Pihana, Alanna Sutton, and Derek Watts. They all received full travel stipends from the UH Hilo MOP program to attend the symposium.

The UH Hilo MOP is a hands-on program open to students in any field of study who have an interest in the ocean. It is directed on the UH Hilo campus by the Kalākaua Marine Education Center (KMEC) and is a certificate granting program which offers courses on marine project development through the Department of Marine Science.

For more information or to join MOP, email uhhmop@hawaii.edu or call (808) 933-3907.

The University of Hawaiʻi at Hilo Jazz Orchestra performs Soul Session 2013 on Thursday, May 2 at 7:30 pm in the UH Hilo Performing Arts Center.

Under the direction of Trever Veilleux, the Jazz Orchestra is comprised of UH Hilo students. The concert features live rock-jazz-soul music, including performances of music by artists such as Frank Zappa, Dizzy Gillespie, James Brown, Chick Correa, Steely Dan, Duke Ellington and Meatloaf.

The concert also pays a tribute to the great soul singers of the 1960s, featuring special guest vocalists Ka'iulani Lum-Ho, Justin Chittams, Kimo Apaka, Lilinoe Kauahikaua, Josh Timmons, Scott Wuscher, Christina Hussey, Kawai Soares, and choreography by Dori Yamada.

Admission is $7 General, $5 Seniors, Students & Children, and is an open seating event.

For more information or to order tickets, contact the Box Office at 974-7310 or artscenter.uhh.hawaii.edu.

The University of Hawaiʻi at Hilo North Hawai‘i Education and Research Center (NHERC) and Hawaiʻi Preparatory Academy (HPA) invite the public to a “Symposium on Sustainability and Traditional Pacific Island Arts: The Art of Lauhala, Form and Function,” on May 3 & 4 at the HPA Gates Performing Arts Center. There is no charge for May 3, but there is a $55 fee for May 4.

The purpose of the symposium is to celebrate and educate people on the important role lauhala fiber work traditions played in the settlement and development of the Pacific region. The two-day event includes lectures, talk story sessions, a fiber arts exhibition, and weaving workshops and demonstrations given by some of Hawaiʻi's leading lauhala fiber artists.

Special focus will be given to the role native Hawaiian weavers from Hawaiʻi Island have played over the last century in the development and perpetuation of this fiber art form, especially in the making of lauhala hats. A highlight will be a talk story session with Kona resident and master weaver Aunty Elizabeth Lee, who is the founder and director of Ka Ulu Lauhala O Kona, an organization dedicated to perpetuating the art of lauhala weaving.

Call NHERC at 775-8890 for event details.

Two students from the University of Hawaiʻi at Hilo Management 490 class in the College of Business and Economics (CoBE) posted top scores during recent competition in the Business Strategy Game (BSG).

The Business Strategy Game is a computerized strategic management program in which students run a simulated company over a number of decision periods, respond to changing market conditions, react to the moves of competitors and choose alternative courses of action. The companies receive overall game-to-date score rankings based on their performance in four areas: earnings per share; return on equity; credit rating; and image rating (which in turn is affected by factors including product quality, market share, and promotional efforts).

Matt Luga’s Company A in Industry 3, and Robyn Taniguchi’s Company D in Industry 4 each compiled the maximum possible weighted score of 110 to tie for the best overall score worldwide for the week ending April 14, 2013.

“Matt and Robyn were among 29 individual competitors or teams who tied for first place among 5502 teams from 330 colleges and universities worldwide,” said Dr. Emmeline de Pillis, UH Hilo professor of management. “Put another way, they out-performed 99.47 % of the BSG competition from around the world.”

Luga, a senior majoring in accounting and business administration with concentrations in finance and management, is a resident of Hilo and a graduate of Kamehameha Schools Kapalama. He a member of the International Honor Society Beta Gamma Sigma, senior vice president of the professional business fraternity Delta Sigma Pi, and studied abroad at Korea University in Seoul, Republic of South Korea. His future plans include working abroad and obtaining an MBA in Finance.

Taniguchi, a Hilo resident and Waiakea High School graduate, is a senior pursuing a BBA in accounting and business administration with minors in Japanese studies and economics along with a certificate in international studies. She studied international business abroad at Rikkyo University in Tokyo, Japan for a year and a half. She is also the UH Hilo Student Association Senator for CoBE and vice president of the Accounting Club. Taniguchi’s future plans include getting her CPA license and working as an auditor.

A number of well-known island musical organizations will come together to perform at the Clarence Waipa Memorial Scholarship Concert on Sunday, May 5 at 2 p.m. in the University of Hawaiʻi at Hilo Performing Arts Center (PAC). The concert will feature music Waipa arranged or performed with numerous choral organizations during his lifetime.

Herbert Mahelona, music director at Kamehameha High School, Kea’au, and Michael Springer, UH Hilo graduate and a protégé of Waipa, have prepared special musical arrangements of repertoire taken from classical music, Hawaiian standards, and tunes that were standard fare for Waipa’s singers.

An orchestra of local musicians has been formed for the concert, with vocalists from the University Chorus and the UH Hilo Kapili Choir, under the direction of Amy Horst, and the Kamehameha High School chorus, directed by Mahelona. The Kamehameha Alumni Choir, also under Mahelona’s leadership, opened its doors to singers from St. Joseph High, Sing Out Hilo, and the Seventh Day Adventist Choir to round out the ensemble numbers on the program.

Waipa, who passed away in 2011, hailed from Keaukaha, and graduated from California State University in Los Angeles. He returned to Hilo in 1967 to teach music, art, theatre and Hawaiian history at St. Joseph High for over 30 years. During his lifetime, he trained many of the musicians who are working in choral music on the island of Hawai’i. The concert was created to ensure other generations would be enriched by Waipa’s musical legacy.

All tickets are open seating, priced at $12 General, $10 Senior, and $7 UH Hilo/HawCC faculty, staff, alumni, students, and children 17 and under. Tickets are available at the PAC Box Office, Tuesday through Friday, from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. or by calling 974-7310.

All proceeds from the concert will go toward Performing Arts scholarships at UH Hilo. Those wishing to make donations to the scholarship fund can do so by contributing to the UH Foundation, Performing Arts Center Scholarship Fund. For more information, contact Jackie Pualani Johnson at jpjohnso@hawaii.edu.

Hawaiʻi Congresswoman Tulsi Gabbard will address the University of Hawaiʻi at Hilo spring commencement as keynote speaker on Saturday, May 11, beginning at 9 a.m. at Edith Kanaka`ole Stadium.

Students have petitioned for a total of 765 degrees and/or certificates from the colleges of Arts and Sciences (460), Agriculture, Forestry and Natural Resource Management (27), Business and Economics (53), Ka Haka ‘Ula O Ke`elikõlani College of Hawaiian Language (46) and Pharmacy (120), while 33 others are candidates for various post graduate honors, and another 26 are seeking the Teacher Education Program certificate.

Gabbard came to Hawaiʻi two years after her birth in Leloaloa, American Samoa. She earned a Bachelor of Science in Business Administration in International Business from Hawaiʻi Pacific University in 2009. She was first elected in 2002 when she became the youngest person ever elected to the State Legislature by winning a seat in the House of Representatives at the age of 21. The following year, she enlisted in the Hawaiʻi Army National Guard and voluntarily deployed to Iraq in 2004.

She was awarded the Meritorious Service Medal during Operation Iraqi Freedom, was the first female Distinguished Honor Graduate at Fort McClellan’s Officer Candidate School, and became the first woman to receive an award of appreciation from the Kuwaiti military on her second overseas deployment. Between tours of duty, she worked as a legislative aide to U.S. Senator Daniel Akaka in Washington, DC. Today, she continues to serve as a Military Police Captain.

Her return to politics took place in 2010 when she won a seat on the Honolulu City Council. In January 2013, she was sworn into office to represent Hawaiʻi’s Second Congressional District.

Ashlee Kalauli, a mathematics major with a minor in chemistry, represents the Class of 2013 as student speaker. Born in San Diego, California and raised in Honoka`a, Kalauli attended Kamehameha Schools - Hawaiʻi in Kea`au where she graduated 5th out of 142 students in 2008 with a cumulative 4.0 GPA.

At UH Hilo, she has maintained a cumulative GPA of 3.87 while earning numerous academic honors and awards, including the Ke Ali`i Pauahi Foundation and Hawaiʻi Noyce Teacher’s Scholarships, the Pearson Undergraduate Mathematics Award, and the Pearson Outstanding Mathematics Senior Award. She was also among a select group of students chosen for the 2012 Pacific Undergraduate Research Experience in Mathematics (PURE Math) program.

Her extensive campus and community activities include being an Orientation Leader and a Student Coordinator for the University’s New Student Programs, math tutor, and host of the First Hawaiʻi Noyce Teacher’s Scholarship Math Day. A member of the UH Hilo women’s basketball team from 2009-2010, she also served as a referee for the 2009 Special Olympics Basketball Tournament.

Kalauli will return to the PURE Math program she excelled in last summer to resume her work as a program assistant. She has also been admitted into the University’s Master’s of Arts in teaching program, which convenes its next cohort in mid-July. After earning her masters, Kalauli plans to pursue a Ph.D. in mathematics with the eventual goal of returning to her alma mater.

For more information on Commencement, call (808) 974-7555 or email commence@hawaii.edu. For disability accommodations, contact Susan Shirachi at (808) 933-0816 (V) or (808) 933-3334 (TTY). Requests should be made at least 10 business days prior to the event.

The University of Hawaiʻi at Hilo English Department recently presented six students with the Spring 2013 Droste Awards for outstanding writing.

Senior Amber Koker's paper on “Reducing Animal Euthanasia” was named the Outstanding Work in Writing for the Majors. Sophomore Christopher Orcutt's paper, “Dr. Manhattan: The Watchmaker,” took the award for Outstanding 200-Level English Paper. Two students won awards for Outstanding Work in Fiction: Junior Brandon Perea's short story “Pueo,” and Senior Apollo Harris' short story “Ralph,” took the fiction awards. Each award is $250.

Senior Sarah Kekauoha received the $500 award for Outstanding Upper-Division English Paper for her research paper, “Sacagawea: The Name That Says It All.”

In addition, two English majors, Junior Jessica Kennedy and Senior Denarose Fukushima, received $250 book vouchers to the UH Hilo Bookstore.

The awards are made possible by a bequest by the estate of the late Howard and Yoneko Droste, longtime faculty members who taught a combined total of 45 years at UH Hilo.

As part of a nationwide trend that combines the teachings of proper dining and business etiquette, the University of Hawaiʻi at Hilo College of Business and Economics hosted its first etiquette dinner on Tuesday, April 23.

Graduating seniors, scholarship recipients, and other students gathered on campus with local business leaders for an “all locally grown” menu served with lessons in proper dining etiquette. The College’s Business Leaders Advisory Board sponsored the event and sold tables to local businesses who selected two representatives per table to network and dine with the students. Sponsors included Bank of Hawaii, Hilton Waikoloa Village, Taketa, Iwata, and Hara Certified Public Accountants, KTA Superstores, HPM, HELCO, Hilo Medical Center, Coldwell-Banker Day-Lum Properties, and Wesley Segawa and Associates.

Students, faculty and staff from The Daniel K. Inouye College of Pharmacy (DKICP) at the University of Hawaiʻi at Hilo teamed up to collect more than $7,000 to support the Hilo Medical Center Foundation Adopt-A-Room Project. The gift was presented to Julie Tulang, president of Hilo Medical Center Foundation, at DKICP’s 2013 Spring Awards Celebration May 1 at Sangha Hall.

The announcement was meant to surprise Dean John Pezzuto, said Daniel Watanabe, student pharmacist and 2015 class president.

“The entire College kept this a secret from the Dean so we could surprise you as a way to say ‘thank you’ for everything you do,” Watanabe told the crowd of about 200 people. “Please know that the College appreciates you and each and every one of us is proud to be able to say that you are the Dean of our College.”

Pezzuto, who has been Dean of the College since 2006, is a member of the Board for the Hilo Medical Center Foundation. The Adopt-a-Room Project aims to collect money to renovate 14 semi-private and 18 private patient-care rooms in the Medical Unit.

“Hilo Medical Center has been central to many DKICP student pharmacists learning experience,” Pezzuto explained. “I joined the Board as a way to give back to my community, and have been rewarded by the many good friends I have made there. This evening was definitely a nice surprise that came at a time when we all needed a boost. There were tears in my eyes.”

The students spearheaded the collection of the funds with the help of Student Support Specialist Tracey Niimi and faculty member Mimi Pezzuto. Presidents from all of the College of Pharmacy student organizations, including the class council presidents, met before spring break in March.

Lori Rogers, executive director of the Hilo Medical Center Foundation, stated, “The Foundation is excited to receive a donation from the faculty and students of The Daniel K. Inouye College of Pharmacy honoring Dr. John Pezzuto. The patients that have occupied the renovated rooms have been very pleased with the results. This is truly an endeavor that is making an impact with the community.”

This summer the University of Hawaiʻi at Hilo provides three different one-week environmental day camps for Hawaiʻi Island high school students. The application deadline is May 17.

East Hawaiʻi students entering grades 9 – 12 this fall are encouraged to apply for the 2013 Mānowai o Hanakahi summer program. This year’s program focuses on exposure to Hawaiʻi’s regions while participants develop skills used in data collection for ecological monitoring, spatial analysis and data visualization. Applicants can select from:

• June 10 - 14 Mālama Mauna Kea: discover landscapes, native ecosystems and the origins of our water

• June 24 - 28 Mālama Kīlauea: encounter lavaflows and discover the relationship between life and lava

• July 22 - 26, Mālama ke Kai: become familiar with coral tidepools and the delicate ecosystems they support

Applicants may apply for one or all camps. For more information, visit http://stem.uhh.hawaii.edu/Manowai or contact Erika Perry at 933-0707 or hperry@hawaii.edu.

In conjunction with the 150th anniversary of President Abraham Lincoln’s issuance of the Emancipation Proclamation, the University of Hawaiʻi at Hilo hosts the James Oliver Horton Symposium on Abraham Lincoln on Saturday, May 25 from 1:30 – 4:30 p.m. in UCB Room 100. A second day of the symposium will be held at UH Manoa on Sunday, May 26.

The symposium, named after James Oliver Horton, the Benjamin Banneker Professor of American Studies and History at George Washington University and Historian Emeritus of the Smithsonian Institution’s National Museum of American History, features a trio of renowned and respected guest speakers.

The President William McKinley Distinguished Professor of Law and Public Policy at Albany Law School, Paul Finkelman presents “How a Railroad Lawyer Became The Great Emancipator.” Finkelman, who has lectured throughout the U.S., Europe, Asia and Latin America has authored over 30 books, along with various legal opinions which have been cited by the U.S. Supreme Court.

Orville Vernon Burton, distinguished professor of humanities, professor of history and computer science at Clemson University, and the director of the Clemson Cyber Institute, speaks on “Lincoln, Emancipation, and Education.” A prolific and acclaimed author and historian, Burton’s The Age of Lincoln (2007) won numerous awards, was nominated for a Pulitzer, and had one reviewer proclaiming that, “If the Civil War era was America’s ‘Illiad,’ then historian Orville Vernon Burton is our latest Homer.”

University of Richmond President Edward L. Ayers presents “Where Did Freedom Come From?” Awarded the National Professor of the Year from the Carnegie Foundation, his numerous awards include the Bancroft Prize for Distinguished Writing in American History and the Beveridge Prize for the Best Book in English on the history of the Americas since 1492 for In the Presence of Mine Enemies, Civil War in the Heart of America (2004). Ayers is also a co-host of Back Story with the American History Guys, a nationally syndicated radio show that ties history to the present day.

The program will be followed by a light reception from 4:30 – 5:30 p.m. in UCB 127 where members of the audience will have an opportunity to meet and talk with the guest speakers.

Tickets for these limited seating events, including the reception, are $8 and available online at http://lincoln.hawaii-conference.com/ or by calling the UH Hilo Conference Center at 974-7555.

The symposium is largely underwritten by generous grants from the Abraham Lincoln Bicentennial Foundation, Hawaiʻi Council for the Humanities, and the Dorrance Scholarship Programs’ Charitable Fund. Additional funding and support for the symposium comes from UH Hilo, UH Hilo Student Activities Council and UH Manoa College of Education.

For more information about the symposium, visit http://lincoln.hawaii-conference.com/.

A student in the University of Hawaiʻi at Hilo Tropical Conservation Biology and Environmental Science (TCBES) Master’s Program has been awarded a 2013 fellowship from the National Science Foundation’s (NSF) Graduate Research Fellowship (GRF) Program. Corie Yanger was among some 2,000 students chosen to receive a fellowship from more than 13,000 applicants nationwide.

The program recognizes and supports outstanding graduate students in NSF-supported science, technology, engineering and mathematics disciplines pursuing research-based master’s and doctoral degrees at accredited U.S. institutions. The three-year award includes a $30,000 annual stipend, $12,000 cost-of- education allowance to the institution, international research and professional development opportunities and access to the XSEDE Supercomputer.

Yanger plans to use her award to conduct research on the impact of pathogenic fungi on native and invasive seeds. Her study will focus on identifying seed fungal pathogens in the ecosystem and the amount of damage they cause to better understand and manipulate the probability of seed survival.

“Once dispersed, seeds are susceptible to a range of predators that can cause extensive or even total seed loss, which would bring the process of plant regeneration to a halt,” Yanger wrote in her application. “Many studies have looked extensively at seed predation by introduced rodents, but few have examined the effects of other predator types like fungal pathogens, which can cause more seed loss than other predators.”

Yanger said Hawaiʻi provides a unique case study because native plants evolved without common animal predators such as rats, ants and slugs, which may have caused them to lose important chemical defenses. She is interested in learning if seed chemistry is related to fungal attack, and whether native seeds are being lost to introduced fungal pathogens. Her research will take place at nine lowland wet forest sites in East Hawaiʻi, representing a range of native canopy dominance from no native representation to a medium-high native presence.

Yanger plans to present her study and findings at local, national and international conferences in 2014-15 and to her hula halau to promote greater interest and support for forest preservation among cultural practitioners.

A student, staff, and faculty members were honored at the University of Hawaiʻi at Hilo 2013 Awards and Recognition Celebration held recently on campus.

Xietan Kawai Anuhea Dutro, a student fiscal/administrative assistant at Ka Haka `Ula O Ke`elikōlani (KHUOK) College of Hawaiian Language, was honored as Student Employee of the Year. Dutro has worked at the College since 2008 and is an integral part of its preparation and planning for events and activities as well as being the College’s representative on the Merrie Monarch Parade committee.

The Outstanding University Support Employee Award was presented to Shana Kaneshiro whose work as an office assistant in the Financial Aid Office positively affects the 8,200 students applying for financial aid each year. Kaneshiro redesigned all the FAO forms that can now be done online, and each year volunteers for the College Goal Sunday events in Hilo and Kona that help up to 400 students and their families complete the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA). She has served as president of the UH clerical support group Nā Laulima, and has been the campus clerical representative on the UH Hilo Chancellor’s Professional Development Committee since 2011.

College of Continuing Education and Community Service (CCECS) Program Coordinator Corinne Tamashiro, who began working for the College as a student in 1971, received the Professional Staff Award. A former Interim and Acting Dean, Tamashiro played a significant role in planning and establishing the North Hawai’i Education and Research Center (NHERC) in Honoka`a, and single handedly built UH Hilo’s summer session program into what it is today.

This year’s Taniguchi Excellence & Innovation Award went to Dr. Philippe Binder, professor of physics, and Dr. Ramon Figueroa-Centeno, associate professor of mathematics. Binder and Figueroa-Centeno were recognized for their work on three-dimensional visualization of complex mathematical objects in `Imiloa’s 16-meter state-of-the-art stereoscopic planetarium. Their work offers significant advances in the presentation of complex mathematical data sets, which allow data to be manipulated so that it can be better understood and become a powerful tool in physics and mathematics courses. The first of its kind to be presented in a planetarium environment, the data has been presented at a national level visualization conference and used in university classes.

The event also recognized retirees and employees receiving various years of service awards.

Students from Keaukaha Elementary School in Hilo learned about what pharmacists do and were able to make their own scented lotions at a special visit from the University of Hawaiʻi at Hilo The Daniel K. Inouye College of Pharmacy (DKICP) on April 11.

Mimi Pezzuto, faculty member at DKICP, took several first-year student pharmacists to the school to talk about pharmacy, Hilo Drug Company’s historical pharmacy collection, and explain about pharmaceutical compounding.

“Not everyone responds to drugs the same way,” Pezzuto said. “With compounding, pharmacists can provide better patient care by customizing a prescription that addresses each individual situation.

“I know of pharmacists who also create compounds for veterinarians and their animal patients,” she added. “We try to prepare our students to be as versatile as possible when they graduate, so this is an important skill for them to learn.”

The 46 elementary students also learned the importance of what goes on a label. They designed and colored their own labels, then made scented lotions.

“This was a very good experience for all the students,” said Lynn Fujii, a teacher at Keaukaha Elementary. “They were engaged and had fun. It was important for them to see that science can have practical applications.”

Pezzuto takes her first-year students from laboratory to local schools at least once a semester. Student pharmacists have given demonstrations at several local schools, and student organizations participate in community events such as Ocean Day and Onizuka Day. The compounding booth is always popular with the crowds, she said.

“This is one way we try to give back to our community, but also a way we try to spark interest in science at a young age,” Pezzuto explained. “I am hoping that some of these budding chemists will be my future pharmacy students.”

The University of Hawaiʻi at Hilo Performing Arts Center presents the Big Island Taiko Festival 2013 featuring Taishoji Taiko, Hui Okinawa Kobudo Taiko, Puna Hongwanji Taiko Club and Kona Daifukuji Taiko on Saturday, June 8 at 7:30 pm and Sunday, June 9 at 2 pm.

Taishoji Taiko, under the direction of Chad Nakagawa, was founded under Yoshihumi Ono at Taishoji Soto Mission in Hilo. “Their energetic, dramatic style will have you feeling the rhythm right to your core!” said Lee Dombroski, Performing Arts Center manager and festival producer.

Hui Okinawa Kobudo Taiko, under the guidance of Milton Yafuso and Troy Sakihara, practices and performs a drumming style based on Okinawan martial arts. “Our three-fold mission builds leadership and promotes and preserves the interest in and appreciation for the history and traditions of Okinawan culture and the arts,” said Yafuso.

The Puna Hongwanji Taiko Club, under the direction of Rev. Earl Ikeda, Paul Sakamoto and Lani Tak, was founded in 2003 by Ikeda as a community-focused group with drummers of all ages and experience striving to perpetuate taiko as a cultural and recreational activity.

Kona Daifukuji Taiko was founded in 1988 by Rev. Tamiya and his wife and is comprised of youth from elementary through high school under the direction of instructors Akemi Iwamoto and Justin Fernandez.

Tickets are general admission and priced at $10 General, $5 Seniors, UH Students (with valid ID) & Children 17 and under. Summer Box Office hours are Monday – Friday, May 28- June 7, 10 - 2 p.m. Call 974-7310 or order online at artscenter.uhh.hawaii.edu.

The University of Hawaiʻi at Hilo Campus Center Student Leadership Program recently presented various student organizations and individuals with the 2013 Ka Lama Ku Student Leadership Recognition Award for excellence and contributions to UH Hilo and the community.

The Laulima Certificate of Leadership was presented to the A.L.O.H.A. Project Committee comprised of students from The Daniel K. Inouye College of Pharmacy for their community outreach health projects. Rita Kahoane Aione of Kipuka the Native Hawaiian Center was recognized for motivating students to succeed in their majors with an individual Laulima Certificate, while Kahealani Walker and Tyson Fukuyama received Malama Certificates of Leadership for their volunteerism toward community service and outreach.

Three student organizations were recognized with a Ka Lama Ku Plaque. Colleges Against Cancer, which coordinates UH Hilo’s American Cancer Society Relay for Life, and the Samoan Club Tupulaga o Samoa mo a Taeao, who shares its heritage as part of campus and community wide outreach, received the Malama Award. Both are Registered Independent Student Organizations (RISO).

The Student Activities Council – a Chartered Student Organization, received the Laulima Award for collaboration and networking of campus-wide activities and mentoring fellow students on “Leading with Aloha.”

Maile Boggeln was awarded an Outstanding Ka Lama Ku Leadership Plaque for mentoring and coaching fellow students, collaborating and facilitating with several committees and her demonstrated commitment to student leadership.

The Ka Lama Ku Umeke Award was presented to students in the following leadership categories:

Alaka`i Leadersip Award: Steven Riddle (Campus Recreation IMUA Fitness Program) for volunteerism and mentoring; Leena Brown (Kinesiology and Exercise Science) for mentoring undergraduate students and research development; and Pua`ala Pascua (Kipuka Science and Math tutor) for perpetuating native Hawaiian culture and being a positive role model for her students.

Ike Papalua Award – To Have the Gift of Vision: Amanda Nicolas (National Community Pharmacists Association) for volunteerism with Compounding for Kids and The Daniel K. Inouye College of Pharmacy’s Bone Marrow Drive; Tiana Gillia for coordination of the yearly Filipino American Heritage Month and support of activities to recruit under-represented high school students to college; and Astronomy student Krystal Schlechter for volunteerism with community activities such as the Onizuka Day, Astro Day, and for her effort to revolutionize how the general public perceives astronomy.

Kuleana Award – Being Responsible and Accountable: Kelsea Machida, for perpetuating the mission and vision of Kipuka as a Tutor/Peer Advisor and role model; Break Thru Adventure (BTA) Leader Aiko Lepeka English for her leadership qualities, and knowledge of her native Hawaiian culture as applied to the goals and vision of BTA with service learning community outreach projects.

Malama Award – Taking Care of Others: Wendy Sera Mefeae for her work as an intern at the Women’s Center with Safe Zone educational training sessions on campus and in the community, being part of the Pacific Island Student Center’s first conference and volunteering with many activities in support of UH Hilo and Hawaiʻi Community College students.

The Ka Lama Ku Student Leadership Recognition Awards is sponsored by the Campus Center Student Leadership Development Program and the Campus Center Fee Board.

A student team from the University of Hawaiʻi at Hilo recently won the prestigious 2013 U.S. Microsoft Imagine Cup Championship held in San Jose, California. The team now heads to St. Petersburg, Russia for the Imagine Cup Worldwide Finals in July.

Imagine Cup is Microsoft’s premier student technology competition that honors technology innovations addressing the world’s toughest problems as student innovators from around the world use Microsoft resources to take their one-of- a-kind, ground breaking application ideas from concept to the marketplace. The national finals featured the top 10 U.S. teams pitching their ideas and solutions to investors, entrepreneurs, and technology professionals for a chance to win cash prizes and support for their businesses.

UH Hilo’s Team Poliahu, comprised of seniors Mike Purvis, Kayton Summers, Wallace Hamada and junior Ryder Donahue from the UH Hilo Computer Science Department, topped the field of competition with their application entitled “Help Me Help,” which focused on community help for disaster relief efforts. The program aids the community and emergency response personnel in disaster situations by allowing users to upload images of nearby hazards through the use of smart phones.

Team Captain Purvis said the idea grew out of a senior project to design software that could track native and invasive plant species.

“We realized tracking that kind of information could be applied to a larger scale with more impact,” said Purvis. “So we decided to rewrite our entire idea for disaster response.”

Team Adviser Dr. Keith Edwards, associate professor, computer science, said the student’s achievement is evidence of what hard work and creative thinking can accomplish.

“As a professor, I am always the most pleased when students are able to transcend the material taught in the classroom to develop knowledge and capabilities beyond what is presently known,” Edwards said. “The success achieved by these students is a perfect representation of how the tremendous creative possibilities at the University of Hawaiʻi at Hilo can have a worldwide impact.”