The campus community met together for the annual University Ohana Meeting on Friday, September 9. Faculty, staff, missionaries and volunteers all met in the McKay Auditorium for the annual gathering ahead of the Fall 2011 semester. President Steven C. Wheelwright opened the presentation with a report on visits to Asia and the Pacific over the summer months. With the plan of expanding the campus, the university is seeking more prospective students who can come to campus prepared to “Learn, Lead, and Build”. “We want to expand the number of applicants to the university and eventually expand the number of students as we are able,” said President Wheelwright. University leaders met with over 7,000 youth and young single adults on trips to target areas in Asia and the Pacific during the past two months.
Representing the university’s close partnership with the Polynesian Cultural Center, PCC President Von Orgill provided a brief overview of how their 700 student employees are given many opportunities to grow and learn through their work at the center. “Their work at the center gives students supervisory and managerial exposure as well as great resume-building experiences, which help in their future careers,” said President Orgill.
Eric Beaver, president and CEO of Hawaii Reserves, Inc., gave a brief report on news and events in the community, specifically related to the planned hotel redevelopment project in Laie. He expressed appreciation for the support of community members and encouraged all in attendance to stay informed and involved in the important events happening in our communities.
Other key updates included the academic calendar schedule for 2012 presented by Max Checketts, vice president for academics, and an announcement of the new Pre-Campus Online Orientation for new students by Debbie Hippolite Wright, vice president for student development and services. The new academic calendar consists of three 14-week semesters. The summer semester will have a seven-week session of classes, followed by a five-week break, and then another seven-week session of classes.
Bill Neal, assistant to the president, discussed the university’s 42-word mission statement and invited all faculty and staff to memorize it. He then introduced new t-shirts that model the university’s mission catchphrase of “Learn – Lead – Build” and announced that anyone who can learn and recite the mission statement will earn a ‘mission’ shirt.
President Wheelwright closed the meeting by challenging everyone to not only memorize the mission statement, but to live it and reinforce its meaning with the students who come to BYU–Hawaii. He stated, “The invitation that the prophets have extended to all of us in this Ohana is to help students become the learners, leaders, and builders the Lord wants them to be.” With this invitation President Wheelwright urged the entire university Ohana to strive to help the students of BYU–Hawaii honor their commitments as they become the leaders of tomorrow.
Above: Bill Neal proudly displays his Learn – Lead – Build shirt after reciting the mission statement.
Photo by Monique Saenz