UH Hilo Chancellor’s Awards
Chancellor’s Award Winner
Shawn Laatsch
Shawn Laatsch, the planetarium manager of the Imiloa Astronomy Center of HawaiI, is the recipient of the Koichi and Taniyo Taniguchi Award for Excellence and Innovation. He is a co-winner with Richard Crowe, a professor of physics and astronomy.
As the planetarium manager, Laatsch installed and implemented the world’s first stereo 3-D digital planetarium. He was part of the team that developed amazing 3-D programs that bring the study of the stars to life for students.
He has presented several thousand planetarium shows and numerous lectures on a variety of astronomical topics—including being invited guest speaker in Moscow, Hamburg, Athens and Tokyo.
Over the past 25 years Laatsch has been actively involved in planetarium management program development and astronomy education in museum, university and K–12 settings. Laatsch has a passion for cultural and historical astronomy and sharing the wonders of the universe with people of all ages.
The Chancellor’s Awards honor outstanding service by UH Hilo employees.
Select a recipient for more about that individual.