Today, the Church Board of Trustees approved the appointment of Dr. R. Kelly Haws as BYU–Hawaii’s Academic Vice President, effective July 1. For more than 40 years, Dr. Haws has served, taught, and inspired students and administrators within the Church Educational System (CES). Dr. Haws will immediately begin working closely with Dr. Isaiah Walker to ensure a smooth transition. Dr. Haws will also continue to serve as acting president of BYU–Hawaii until President John S.K. Kauwe III returns to service, which is expected to be July 1, 2026.
Dr. Isaiah Walker has served as academic vice president for five years and will return to his scholarly work and teaching in the BYU–Hawaii Faculty of Culture, Language & Performing Arts. Speaking of Dr. Walker’s contributions, President Kauwe said, “Isaiah has led us through a remarkable period of transformation: significant curriculum refinement, the hiring of dozens of outstanding new faculty, successful accreditation with NWCCU, developing and teaching the Holokai Foundations course, and many other efforts that have greatly blessed our students. I love him, and I am deeply grateful for his faithful and exemplary service. He is loved and respected by CES leadership and the Board of Trustees, who frequently praise the positive impact of his leadership on the success of our students and the mission of this university. His heart has always been with our students, and we are excited for him and our students as he returns to the classroom this fall.”
Regarding Dr. Haws appointment, President Kauwe said, “I have had the privilege of working closely with Kelly for several years. He is kind, wise, and fully committed to the mission of BYU–Hawaii and the Church Educational System. I am deeply grateful for what he and Connie have done to support BYUH this year while serving as acting president. I am delighted to have him join us to lead academics as we build upon the strong foundation that has brought us to this point and continue moving this important work forward.”
“I am confident Vice President Haws will excel in this new role, but he will be missed in the Commissioner’s Office, where he has served as assistant to the commissioner, as well as secretary to the CES Boards of Trustees, and managing director of CES since August 2018,” said Elder James R. Rasband, Commissioner of the Church Educational System.
From 1984 to 2017, Dr. Haws taught extensively and held key leadership roles within Seminaries and Institutes of Religion. His assignments included responsibility for the work in Africa, the Caribbean, and Canada, training throughout Asia and the Pacific, as well as operations worldwide. From 2017 to 2018, Dr. Haws served as director of correlation evaluation for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints before his appointment to the Commissioner’s Office.
Dr. Haws earned an associate degree from Snow College, where he also played basketball and served as student body president, a bachelor’s degree from Brigham Young University, and a master’s degree from Utah State University. He began doctoral work at the University of Utah in higher education administration before completing his doctorate at George Mason University.