Board of Regents Secretary David Iha to retire after 40 years of service to UH

KĀNEʻOHE, Oʻahu — David Iha, executive administrator and secretary to the University of Hawaiʻi Board of Regents, will retire on October 1 after more than 40 years of service to the University of Hawaiʻi system. Iha was recognized for his contributions to the university at the UH Board of Regents monthly meeting today at Windward Community College.

As part of an incentive early retirement plan, Iha will continue on a part-time basis assisting with the transition and with special Board of Regents projects for a period of time.

"On behalf of the Board of Regents, I extend my sincere gratitude to David for his exceptional dedication and service to the university and the State of Hawaiʻi," said UH BOR Chair Kitty Lagareta. "David‘s institutional knowledge and support has been vital to the Board in performing our duties, and his retirement is bittersweet for us. We are grateful that he has structured his retirement so that we will have the benefit of his tremendous knowledge and experience on a part-time basis for a while longer."

Iha has served as the executive responsible for planning, coordinating, and directing the administrative support services for the Board of Regents since 1998. Prior to that, he was provost at Kauaʻi Community College, a position he held for 16 years and for which he was awarded the 1986 State of Hawaiʻi Governor‘s Award for Employee of the Year.

"For four decades, including through two hurricanes as provost of Kauaʻi Community College, David Iha has provided calm, stable and farsighted leadership in support of student access to higher education for the benefit of Hawaiʻi‘s communities," said UH President David McClain. "I‘m most grateful for his many contributions to our university."

Iha was also director of administrative services at Kauaʻi Community College from 1970 to 1982, and served in various budget positions for the university system and the community college system. He has received numerous awards for his service to the university, including the UH Manager of the Year award in 1993 and the UH Alumni Association Distinguished Service Award in 1988.

During his tenure at UH, Iha held several regional and national positions in higher education associations, including the Western Association of Schools and Colleges, for which he was president and chair of the Board of Directors from 1993-1995, and the American Council on Education and American Association of Community Colleges.

Iha is an active participant in a variety of community activities, including the Kauaʻi Chorale and as Honorary President of the Kauaʻi Chapter of the Urasenke Foundation, a Japanese tea ceremony group. He also sits on the board of directors for the Hawaiʻi Public Schools Foundation and Community Links of Hawaiʻi.

A Kauaʻi native and graduate of Kauaʻi High School, Iha received a bachelor‘s degree from Wheaton College in Illinois and a master‘s degree from UH Mānoa. He served two years in the U.S. Army with assignments in Korea and Hawaiʻi.

The Board has appointed Presley Pang, UH associate general counsel, as interim executive administrator and secretary to the board.