HONOLULU, HAWAII – University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa Chancellor Virginia Hinshaw has announced to the university community that, upon conclusion of her five-year appointment in June of 2012, she will be completing her service as chancellor of the University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa. Hinshaw was named chancellor after a nationwide search and assumed the position in 2007. Her letter to the community is available at www.manoa.hawaii.edu.
Well-known for sporting her signature hats festooned with UH memorabilia during the school’s athletic events, Hinshaw has lead the university’s flagship campus through difficult financial challenges due to state budget cuts, as well as triumphant celebrations. Among her achievements is helping the school secure a renewed 10-year accreditation from WASC (Western Association of Schools and Colleges) in July of 2011, and celebrating the football team’s WAC Championship and first trip to a major post-season bowl game in New Orleans on January 1, 2008.
“Chancellor Hinshaw’s decision to begin the transition to new leadership at UH Mānoa and to work with us in finding that future leader at our flagship campus is a testament to her commitment to and care for the university,” said University of Hawai‘i System President M.R.C. Greenwood. “We’ll conduct a nationwide search to fill her position and the Chancellor’s assistance and input will be valuable to us. I am grateful to her for all she’s accomplished at the University of Hawai‘i .”
Hinshaw will continue to serve as chancellor through the 2011-2012 school year.
Board of Regents Chair Eric Martinson said, “Chancellor Hinshaw will complete five years of extraordinary service to the university and will be tough to replace. She will leave the campus in good shape to attract the best candidate to fill her shoes.”
In addition to the maximum 10-year WASC re-accreditation, Hinshaw was instrumental in the transformation of the student experience at UH Mānoa, most visible in the renovation of residence halls at UH Mānoa and the expanded new Campus Center. She also played a leadership role in development of new facilities such as C-MORE Hale, the state-of-the-art home of UH’s highly regarded Center for Microbial Oceanography: Research and Education, and the new home of the University of Hawaiʻi Cancer Center in Kakaʻako, which will be completed in the fall of 2012. She also helped secure the recent $2 million donation to endow the Dean’s Chair at the Hawaiʻinuiākea School of Hawaiian Knowledge from community supporter and businesswoman Judith Pyle.
“The word ‘enthusiasm’ is one perhaps used more often than is warranted, but in the case of Virginia Hinshaw it is not only appropriate but it characterizes her entire service to the University of Hawai‘i and Hawai‘i ‘s people. In my years of association with the university, I can say without hesitation that her commitment and dedication to the university’s students, faculty, and staff is deep and abiding. She sets a standard that her successor can only hope to match,” said Governor Neil Abercrombie.
“Virginia Hinshaw has been a savvy, energetic and tireless advocate for Mānoa, improving the quality of the student experience, increasing educational opportunities for Native Hawaiians, and supporting the scholarly aspirations of our faculty. I’m most grateful for her extraordinary leadership and service,” said David McClain, UH President Emeritus.
Former Board of Regents Chair Howard Karr also worked closely with Hinshaw. “Virginia turned a lot of things around at UH Mānoa and she managed to do it during tough economic times,” he said. “We are better for having benefitted from her leadership and vision.”
President Greenwood said that a nationwide search for the next chancellor for UH Mānoa would begin shortly.
“To serve as chancellor of our flagship campus is an extraordinarily challenging job, and I respect her decision that completing her five-year commitment is an important milestone in her administrative career. I wish Chancellor Hinshaw the very best and I look forward to the further contributions she will make to our faculty and programs after a well-earned professional leave,” Greenwood said.