Seven Alumni Honored for 2006
(Honolulu, Hawaiʻi) - The University of Hawai‘i and the University of Hawai‘i Alumni Association (UHAA) announces the recipients of the 2006 Distinguished Alumni Awards (DAA). Established in 1987, the award recognizes outstanding alumni who have used their UH education to excel professionally, provide inspirational leadership to others, and provide service for the benefit of the community. The seven recipients will be honored at the annual awards dinner on May 18, 2006 at the Sheraton Waikiki hotel.
This year’s recipient’s are the Honorable Thomas Kaulukukui, Jr., respected judge and champion for the Native Hawaiʻian community; Dr. Samuel Koide, acclaimed research scientist and committed volunteer; Dr. Patricia Y. Lee, steadfast UH leader and accomplished attorney; Major General Robert G.F. Lee, protector of homeland security and nuclear engineer; Dr. Seiji Naya, esteemed economic advisor and scholar; Mr. Kent Tsukamoto, leader in accountancy and advocate for UH; and Dr. Victor Yano, healthcare pioneer and visionary leader.
"We are proud to honor these seven University of Hawai‘i alumni who have contributed so much to their professions, our community and to the university," said UHAA President Janet Yoshida. "Our Distinguished Alumni Award recognizes those who have not only succeeded in their lives and careers, but who provide inspirational leadership to others and bring high honor to themselves, their community and their university."
Any UH alumnus who has either completed 50 percent of his/her educational program within the UH System of 10 campuses or received a degree from a UH campus is eligible for nomination. The nomination process began October 2005 with nominations reviewed by a committee comprised of members of the UHAA Board of Directors. A listing of past Distinguished Alumni Award recipients can be found on the UHAA website at: www.UHalumni.hawaii.edu.
2006 DISTINGUISHED ALUMNI AWARD RECIPIENTS
The Honorable Thomas Kaulukukui, Jr.
Judge Thomas Kaulukukui, Jr. has led a life of service to the community. He has been a teacher and coach in the Hawai‘i public school system. He attended the William S. Richardson School of Law, practiced law, and became the first graduate of WSRSL to become a circuit court judge. Judge Kaulukukui served on the Hawaiʻian Homes Commission and worked as community affairs vice-president at the Queen’s Health Systems to improve the health of Hawaiʻians. He currently serves as the chair and managing trustee of the Queen Liliʻuokalani Trust, which aids orphaned and poor children of Hawai‘i. Judge Kaulukukui served on the board of several local non-profit organizations involved with employment training for the disabled, birth defects, counseling for youth, Pacific Islander issues, veterans affairs, and leadership education. He also served on state and federal commissions and posts. He is an experienced mediator and arbitrator. In his spare time, he pursues varied interests including writing poetry, practicing martial arts, playing the guitar, teaching leadership, and spending time with his grandchildren. Judge Kaulukukui received his JD in 1977 from the University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa and received a BS and MS from Michigan State University in 1967 and 1971, respectively.
Dr. Samuel Koide
Dr. Samuel Koide has had a long and distinguished career as an internist specializing in endocrinology at the Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center and as senior research scientist at the Center for Biomedical Research, Population Council at Rockefeller University in New York City. His foundational reproductive biology research identifying the root causes of immunologic infertility and his early studies on human hormonal pathways was instrumental in many of the breakthroughs in human fertility regulation. His international research collaborations in the fields of molecular biology, hormone action, and reproductive biology include the publication of over 300 scientific papers and the training of 30 post-doctoral fellows. Dr. Koide strives to improve the educational standards of science in secondary schools in New York. He and his family established enrichment funds at McKinley High School in Honolulu and Dobbs Ferry High School in NYC. He has been supportive of human and civil rights movements, actively participating in the women’s movement and the Japanese American Citizens League. Dr. Koide is a nationally ranked long distance runner in his age group, having completed 29 New York City Marathons and five Honolulu Marathons. He is a three-time winner in the senior age category of both races. He also has been a top 10 nationally-ranked triathlete in his age group. Dr. Koide received a BS in 1945 from the University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa and received his MD, MS, and PhD from Northwestern University in 1953, 1954, and 1960, respectively.
Dr. Patricia Y. Lee
Dr. Patricia Lee is an accomplished trusts and estates attorney at Goodsill Anderson Quinn & Stifel and has been nationally recognized in every edition of Best Lawyers in America since 1995. She serves as Honorary Consul of France in Honolulu and was recently awarded the Ordre National du Mérite by the French government for her service to the French community in Hawaiʻi. While a student at UH Mānoa, she served as ASUH senator, justice on the Student Court and State Representative to the NSA Congress in Ohio. Since then, Dr. Lee has served the university in various capacities, including as assistant professor of French and medieval French literature and most recently as chairwoman of the Board of Regents. Through her leadership and desire to improve the effectiveness of the BOR, Dr. Lee fostered greater interaction between the board and various constituencies, developed a board orientation manual for new regents, initiated a formal board self-assessment workshop, and streamlined the format of the board’s public meetings. Dr. Lee is a fellow of the American College of Trusts and Estates Counsel. She received a BA and JD from the University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa in 1965 and 1979, respectively. Dr. Lee received certificates from the Université de Paris (Sorbonne), an MA from Columbia University, and PhD from Northwestern University.
Major General Robert G. F. Lee
Major General Robert Lee has had an extensive and impressive civilian and military career, which was significantly heightened in the aftermath of September 11th and the war on terror. In March 2003, Robert Lee was promoted to major general, the highest rank attainable in the Hawaiʻi National Guard. As major general, he plays a vital role in homeland security and responding to natural disasters in Hawaiʻi. Major General Lee now serves as the Homeland Security Advisor to the governor, director of the State Civil Defense, and adjunct general for the State of Hawaiʻi Department of Defense in charge of the Army and Air National Guard. His 28-year civilian career is equally impressive. Prior to his retirement, he was the director of Nuclear Regional Maintenance for Pearl Harbor Naval Shipyard. As a nuclear engineer, Major General Lee formulated the plan for the first Nuclear Regional Maintenance Department in the U.S. Navy, which served as a model for submarine bases throughout the U.S. Major General Lee also serves on the boards of the American Red Cross Hawaiʻi Chapter, Aloha Council Boy Scouts of America, and the Salvation Army. He received a BS and MBA from the University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa in 1971 and 1983, respectively.
Dr. Seiji Naya
Dr. Seiji Naya received his BBA from the University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa in 1958 while representing the university as a two-time NCAA featherweight boxing champion. He received his PhD from the University of Wisconsin in 1965 and returned to the University of Hawaiʻi to teach and begin what would be over 40 years of extensive involvement in international economics and Asian development. During his career, Dr. Naya served as Rockefeller Foundation Visiting Professor at Thammasat University in Thailand during the 1970s and chief economist of the Asian Development Bank in the early 1980s. From 1994-2002, Dr. Naya served in the cabinet of the State of Hawaiʻi as director of Business, Economic Development and Tourism. He is currently is a distinguished visiting senior fellow at the East-West Center and emeritus professor at the University of Hawaiʻi. He has done extensive research and consultation in the area of ASEAN economic integration. Dr. Naya also chaired the Ehime-Hawaiʻi Association, a friendship society created to better relations between Ehime, Japan and Hawaiʻi after the tragic Ehime Maru sinking in 2001. This effort included a youth baseball exchange between the two locales. Dr. Naya received a BBA from the University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa in 1958 and received a MA and PhD from the University of Wisconsin-Madison in 1962 and 1965, respectively.
Mr. Kent Tsukamoto
Kent Tsukamoto is the only two-term president of the University of Hawaiʻi Alumni Association. As president and board member, Mr. Tsukamoto was instrumental in developing a strategic plan for the alumni association, installing a membership database, and increasing membership. He is currently managing partner of the Honolulu office of PricewaterhouseCooppers LLP where he is a strong advocate for the University of Hawaiʻi. He recruits UH graduates to work at PwC and was instrumental at PwC for starting the initiative to collaborate with the College of Business Administration to raise $200,000 for a Graduate Accounting Room on the Mānoa campus. In 1994, he was recognized as an Outstanding Alumni by CBA. Mr. Tsukamoto is recognized as a leading authority in taxation and is a frequent speaker and past president for the Hawaiʻi Society of CPAs and the Hawaiʻi Institute for Continuing Legal Education. He currently serves as treasurer for St. Louis School and is on the Finance Committee of the Blood Bank of Hawaiʻi. He has also served as chairman for the Executive Allocations Committee of Aloha United Way, treasurer and board member of the Rotary Club of Honolulu, Sunrise, and member of the finance committee of Waialae Country Club. Mr. Tsukamoto received his BBA from the University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa in 1978 and a MBT from the University of Southern California in 1986.
Dr. Victor Yano
After graduating from JABSOM in 1978 and completing one and a half years of postgraduate residency training, Dr. Victor Yano became the first MD-trained Palauan physician to return home to work. His leadership and vision revolutionized and dramatically improved health care by providing patients with options for the first time in Palau’s history. Prior to Dr. Yano’s return, the Department of Health managed Palau’s only hospital, outpatient department, and dispensary system. After one year of working in this system, Dr. Yano established the Belau Medical Clinic (BMC). Over time, he earned a reputation for being a competent and compassionate physician and healer. His example prompted the government of Palau to improve the public health care sector’s level of service. In 1995, Dr. Yano was the driving force in developing the Pacific Basin Medical Association which provides professional development and support to medical practitioners in the region. In January 2005, President Remengesau appointed Dr. Yano to head the Ministry of Health – Palau Government. In this position, Dr. Yano has improved patient care, fiscal accountability, and community participation. In collaboration with Belau Cares, a non-profit organization, Dr. Yano has raised over $40,000 to assist the hemodialysis center at Belau National Hospital and the Hawaiʻi Medical Referral Program. Dr. Yano has also hosted and mentored medical school students and residents from JABSOM for 25 years. He received a BS and MD from the University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa in 1974 and 1978, respectively.
For more information on the Distinguished Alumni Awards dinner, contact the Alumni Relations office at 1-877-UH-ALUMS (1-877-842-5867).
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About the UH Alumni Association. The UHAA was informally constituted in 1922, a few years after the first graduating class of 1911, and formalized into a system-wide umbrella organization for all UH-recognized alumni groups in 1988. Its members support the university and UHAA sponsors events that showcase the university’s excellence. Governed by a board of directors, UHAA includes a nationwide and international network of 37 affiliated alumni groups. The association's goal is to generate support for the university by encouraging interaction among UH graduates and friends. The work of the chapters and the support of the alumni association make the university a stronger learning institution and thus contribute to the strength of the community.
About the UH Foundation Office of Alumni Relations. The UH Foundation established the Office of Alumni Relations with the approval of the Board of Regents in December 2002. The Office of Alumni Relations works closely with the UHAA to serve the community of UH alumni and students in Hawaiʻi and worldwide. For more information about alumni programs, activities, and UHAA membership, please call the Office of Alumni Relations toll-free at 1-877-UH-ALUMS (1-877-842-5867).
About the UH Founders Alumni Association. In 1922 an informal UHAA was formed, representing the Mānoa campus, the only University of Hawaiʻi campus during that time. Over time, the original alumni association was reorganized and renamed the UH Founders Alumni Association to reflect its tradition of representing those who graduated from UH Mānoa prior to 1960. The purpose of the UH Founders Alumni Association is to "promote and award student scholarships." The group is now a chapter of the current UHAA incorporated in 1988 to represent the university’s 10-campus system.
About the University of Hawaiʻi Foundation. The University of Hawaiʻi Foundation is an independent, university-related, nonprofit organization whose purpose is to raise private funds according to priorities determined by the academic leadership of the University of Hawaiʻi and approved by the Board of Regents. Founded in 1955, the Foundation provides a full range of fund raising and alumni relations services for all 10 UH camp
