At the 2024 UHM graduation ceremony, university president David Lassner paused his speech in a respectful silence as several soon-to-be graduates shouted “I am not American” over and over again, invoking the 1993 speech of Haunani Kay Trask. Families in attendance who flew in from the mainland looked around uneasily, anxiously anticipating what would happen next. However, when the brief protest had calmed down, and the students retook their seats, Lassner cooly entered back into his farewell speech to the graduating class. Lassner, while not native to Hawaii, understood the nuance and spirit of the situation. He has been at the University of Hawaii since 1977 and has had time to immerse himself in the history and culture that is unique to Hawaii.
As Lassner departs into retirement, the University has been given at least a benchmark of cultural wisdom and understanding needed in a successor. However, after months of a shadowy recruiting process with virtually no student input, The Board of Regents have narrowed their choices down to two individuals who would be moving to Hawaii for the first time. The two finalists for the job, Wendy F Hensel and Dr. Julian Vasquez Heiling, do not fit the mold and neither should be president of a school system like the University of Hawaii.
The candidates both put forward resumes that could fill a small book. Both have bounced around the mainland, serving in administrative positions from California to New York. Hensel, who is a graduate Harvard Law School spent most of her career at Georgia State University before moving over to her current job as executive vice chancellor and university provost at City University of New York in 2022. Dr Heiling got his Ph.D. in Education Administration and Policy analysis at Stanford University and has held various positions at colleges in California, Texas, and Kentucky. His current position is the Provost and Vice President of Western Michigan University.
It’s not clear what the BOR’s goal was in their decision-making process, however the fact that no one from Hawaii is even being entertained as a finalist for the job feels intentional. Many students have felt left out of the equation in the selection process and lament that school leadership is being decided without student representation. In an interview with KHON a member of The Associated Students of the University of Hawaii compared the BOR’s lack of inclusivity to fascism on live television. While the word ‘fascism’ may be a bit of an exaggeration, the outrage of the student body is palpable.
As the only public institution of higher education, the UH system has close ties to the state government and the community at large. Welcoming in either of the newcomers poses several questions about how they will represent Hawaii and deal with uniquely Hawaiian issues. How would they react to community pushback over research at a sacred site? Will they uphold the current president’s goal of making UH a model indigenous serving university? It takes more than googling a few Hawaiian words like “Ohana” and “Aloha” for a slide show presentation to understand the spirit that lives within them. It takes more than owning a summer home on the Big Island to be kamaʻāina.
As for the candidates, the presidential position at UH is another line on their resumes. While it is unfair to deny that Hensel and Heiling are professionally prepared to be the president of a university, they most certainly should not be president of this university. The University of Hawaii has a rich culture and history that is tied to indigenous methods of learning and an immensely diverse student body. UH is not an American institution, at least not in spirit, and should not be viewed as such. The BOR should have looked inward and at least considered a president that would accurately represent Hawaii. While it may be too late to effectively change any minds on the BOR, the student body cannot support either shameful decision the it will make in late October.
