Alumni News

The 2023 Dean’s Award for Excellence in Extension goes to Nancy Ooki of the Dept. of Family and Consumer Sciences.

Since 2018, Nancy’s “My PI Hawai‘i” has trained Maui youths in fire safety and suppression, search-and-rescue, C.P.R., disaster psychology, and other topics in FEMA’s Teen Community Emergency Response Team. By the final disaster simulation, youths can demonstrate knowledge and skills in first aid, triage, communications, and damage assessment. 

Receiving this year’s Ka Pouhana Dean’s Award for Excellence in Mentoring is a testament to the abilities of Dr. Teresita Amore of the Dept. of Tropical Plant and Soil Sciences. Throughout her time at CTAHR, Tessie has served as a constant source of guidance for students, further emphasized by the many students she has mentored directly. Since earning her M.S. in 1986 and PhD in 1991 from CTAHR, she has and continues to serve the college as an outstanding teacher, colleague, and mentor.

The 2023 Dean’s Award for Outstanding APT Employee goes to Terilyn Sunada. Teri has been an invaluable member of CTAHR Human Resources for more than six years, consistently elevating our administrative services to new heights. She embodies the essence of exceptional customer service. With a profound understanding of her role, she effortlessly executes tasks with a smile and unwavering positivity. Colleagues describe her as kind, gentle, and possessing an outstanding demeanor, coupled with an unparalleled work ethic.

The 2023 Dean’s Award for Outstanding Civil Service Employee goes to Eunice Domingo. Eunice has been with CTAHR Hawaiʻi County for more than 30 years! She exhibits exceptional dedication and commitment to the achievement of Hawaiʻi County’s program objectives. She has played a pivotal role in implementing key initiatives and projects, and by keeping people accountable to meet deadlines. 

Dr. Joseph DeFrank, a Researcher Emeritus at UH Manoa, is CTAHR's 2023 Outstanding Extension Volunteer. He is an internationally renowned expert in tropical weed sciences and, on the local scale, the “go-to” person for weed management. In 2023, Joe volunteered at the Hawaiʻi School for the Deaf and the Blind, providing on-site non-chemical turf renovation that included installing drip and overhead irrigation, covering weedy turf with tarps, raking and killing weeds that germinated, and installing Bermuda grass seeds and fertilizer – these were strenuous tasks that required tremendous effort and time.