Commentary
'Doing the right thing' is Dobelle's mission at UH
By Karl Kim
Because of my position, people throughout the community have been asking me about the new University of Hawai'i president, Evan Dobelle. They want to know what is he like. They want to know his vision for UH.
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They want to understand what he is all about and is he really the "right stuff."
UH President Evan Dobelle is working to transform UH into a people-centered institution.
This is, then, in a very real sense, a report not just on Evan Dobelle, but on where he is taking UH. There are a number of key ideas that frame both the man and where he is leading us as an institution.
The moral imperative
Whether it is honoring our commitment to Native Hawaiians or responding to the economic crisis by fast-tracking new programs to retrain our people, Evan Dobelle is all about doing the right thing. Universities are places where people search for truth and knowledge. They cannot be owned or operated by special interests. Universities must be places where individuals are free to speak out on the issues of the day. The moral imperative, the challenge to do the "right thing," is what guides our university president and he has asked each of us — faculty, students and staff — to continue in our quest for truth and knowledge.
Excellence through diversity
The University of Hawai'i generates more than $200 million in extramural research grants annually, and enrolls more than 45,000 students in a broad array of undergraduate and graduate degree programs.
Manoa is the only comprehensive Research I institution in the state. It is a place that provides training and education for students, researchers, and scholars who come from around the world. As such, we have always valued and embraced diversity not just in terms of intellectual interests and abilities, but also in terms of race, gender, age, socioeconomic background and place of origin.
Universities are important
People come to a university to study, work and interact with others. Great universities are also great places to live and visit. The quality of the physical environment contributes not just to our capacity to learn and conduct world-class research, but also reinforces the sense of community.
Humans derive meaning from their physical surroundings. Part of building a stronger university, therefore, involves a commitment to planning and physical design, not just within our boundaries, but within the broader context of our community. So whether it is in Manoa, or Kaka'ako or Kapolei, UH must function as an integral component of its surrounding community.
A holistic view
With its ivory tower image and its medieval origins, it is tempting to view the university as a secluded, isolated institution. But in reality, the modern university is very much part of a larger, international community. Rather than set Manoa off by itself, or allow University of Hawai'i at Hilo to prove itself and make it on its own, the present administration is fully committed to operating as a system. We will not compete with ourselves. This means reducing inefficiencies and duplication throughout the system. It means ensuring that students can move across the system. This holistic view of higher education also means developing and expanding new relationships between UH and the Department of Education. It involves a cradle-to-grave view of the educational process.
Risk yields reward
Universities need to be places of innovation, which requires risk-taking. We make mistakes. We learn from them. We move on. If we have no tolerance for failure, if we don't allow our teachers, our students, our researchers to fail, we miss out on the opportunities to learn, grow and change.
There have been many interviews with Evan Dobelle. Most of these have focused on his background and his ideas about higher education and making a difference in Hawai'i. Much less has been said about how he has inverted the administrative structure of UH, putting students and faculty first. He is working to transform a bureaucratic culture accustomed to saying "no" into an efficient, responsive and people-centered institution.
We have, for too long, let budgetary retrenchment overtake our sense of purpose and meaning. Evan Dobelle has encouraged us to be hopeful, positive, and future-oriented. He asked us to join hands, not just within our academic circles, but in the community to help make Hawai'i a better, stronger, more vibrant society. He understands that education is the key to our success.
Karl Kim is interim vice chancellor and professor of urban and regional planning at the University of Hawai'i at Manoa.
