Advising Recommendations Implementation Committee (ARIC)
An Update on the Current State and Future Plan
May 6, 2016
The ARIC was formed on April 8, 2016, by Chancellor Straney and VCAA Platz to implement Motion #4 of the four motions developed by the Academic Advising Task
Force, that is, to make “an assessment and reevaluation on the Academic Advising
Task Force’s motions and recommendations in the late Spring 2016” (letter from the
Faculty Congress Chair with the four motions enclosed).
Members of the ARIC: Tam Vu, Chair, Janis Shirai, Bartley Frueh, Kurt de la Cruz.
The committee met on April 12 and April 19, 2016, followed by online discussions and reached agreements on the following items.
1. Assignments of interviewers and interviewees:
Tam Vu: Randy Hirokawa and three students
Janis Shirai: Marcel Tsang (CAFNRM) & Rachel Loo (Kipuka Native Hawaiian
Student Center) and one student
Bartley Frueh: Susan Brown, Cheryl Ramos and three students
2.
3.
Kurt de la Cruz: Kainoa Ariola and one-two advisors at the Advising Center
Methods of interview: at the discretion of the interviewers and the interviewees.
Tasks Completed:
(i) P er Chancellor’s request, the Committee first obtained a summary of how advising is currently distributed across campus in regarding to advising center and faculty responsibilities. The Committee found that current distribution of student academic advising responsibility is as follows.
Faculty Advisors (advising students in their major disciplines): students in each
college are equally distributed as advisees to faculty, but any student can
switch to a new advisor per the faculty ’s permission.
Advising Center (advising First-time freshmen & new transfers (plus students from previous years who feel more comfortable with Advising Center advisors)):
Kainoa Ariola-Sukisaki, Director
Kurt de la Cruz
Holly Garriques
Jodilyn Kunimoto
Lyssa Sakamoto
Comfort Sumida
Randy Hirokawa, Health Professions Student Center
Cheryl Ramos, Psychology & Kinesiology majors
NHERC, Stacie Higgins
UH Hilo Programs that serve special populations:
Kipuka Native Hawaiian Student Center: Rachel Loo and four other advisors:

Huihui Kanahele-Mossman (Kipuka Associate Director)
Alyssa Kaha (advises CAFNRM students)
Marcy Martinez (advises HawaiiCC students transferring to UH Hilo)
Ho'oleina Ioane (works for Kipuka & Housing in Living Learning
Community)
Minority Access & Achievement Program - Ginger Hamilton
Pacific Islander Student Center - Desha Staley-Raatior (grant funding ends on
9/30/16)
Student Support Services Program - Jeanne Batallones & Janis Shirai
The School of Education: did not replace their academic advisor after Travis
Nakayama left (Michelle Ebersole is currently advising students who want to
go into primary and secondary teaching).
(ii) The Committee then developed a list of questions for the subsequent interviews concerning the assessment and implementation of the motions as follows.
(1) Have you had a chance to review the four motions?
(2) What do you find to be the positive aspects of these motions?
(3) What do you find to be the shortcomings of these motions?
(4) Do you foresee any critical challenges related to the implementation of these motions? If so, what are they?
(5) Are there any suggestions or thoughts you could provide to this process?
(iii) On May 1 st : written documents from all interviews were shared through emails by all committee members.
(iv) On May 3 rd : the Committee met at 3 pm in the same Multipurpose Room to go over the written documents and reached an agreement on the method of summarizing the interviewees’ feedback: each committee member will write a
4. separate summary and share with each other through emails.
Future Plan
May 10 th , the Committee will meet at 3 pm in the same Multipurpose Room to combine the individual summaries into one document.
May 15 th : Tam Vu will finish the first draft of the report and circulate it among the committee members through emails.
From May 16 th until May 30 rd : each member will edit the draft using Microsoft
Word Track Changes and send to the next member in line.
May 31 st : the Committee will meet at 3 pm in the same Multipurpose Room to finalize and approve the report.