UH Board of Regents approves establishment of three professorships at the Shidler College of Business

New doctoral degree in nutrition at UH Manoa also approved

University of Hawaiʻi
Contact:
Carolyn Tanaka, (808) 956-9803
External Affairs & University Relations
Gregg Takayama, (808) 382-3212
Office of the Chancellor
Posted: Jul 26, 2007

PEARL CITY, Oʻahu — At its monthly meeting held today at Leeward Community College, the University of Hawaiʻi Board of Regents (BOR) approved the establishment of three professorships at the Shidler College of Business at UH Mānoa.

The three professorships are the Jean E. Rolles Distinguished Professorship, the First Insurance Company of Hawaiʻi Distinguished Professorship, and the John and Sue Dean Distinguished Professorship. Each is named for the private donor who provided the monetary gift to establish the faculty endowment. The private gift naming opportunity is a result of the new BOR policy that was approved in concept at the January 2007 meeting. Each donor‘s gift is currently being matched by Jay Harold Shidler II for whom the Shidler College of Business is named.

Jean E. Rolles is the vice president of community relations for Outrigger Enterprises. The professorship in her name, totaling $500,000 with the matching donation from Shidler, will provide support to one faculty member for research, graduate research assistants, library and equipment acquisitions and other requirements of an active scholar and teacher. Born and raised in Honolulu, Rolles is actively involved in the Hawaiʻi community, serving on 13 boards including the American Red Cross, Nature Conservancy of Hawaiʻi, Pacific Asian Affairs Council and many others. She has also served as an ʻIolani Palace docent for over 30 years.

The John and Sue Dean Distinguished Professorship, also totaling $500,000 with the matching donation from Shidler, will allow the Shidler College of Business to recruit and retain faculty of the highest caliber. John Dean is the managing general partner for Startup Capital Ventures, a private equity fund that invests in venture capital funds and start-up technology firms in the U.S., overseas and Hawaiʻi. He is also general partner of Tuputele Ventures and chairman of the Entrepreneur‘s Foundation of Hawaiʻi, a nonprofit organization that helps develop a culture of community service and philanthropy. John and his wife Sue have been loyal supporters of the university through their family foundation and have contributed greatly to expanding the reputation of the Shidler College of Business.

The First Insurance Company of Hawaiʻi Distinguished Professorship provides an endowment totaling $1 million through the matching Shidler gift. Its intent is to create the opportunity to recruit and retain faculty of the highest caliber in the area of risk management. First Insurance Company of Hawaiʻi Charitable Foundation is committed to Hawaiʻi and developing post-secondary educational and career development opportunities to build a sustainable future for the state.

In other action, the BOR approved the establishment of a Doctor of Philosophy Degree (PhD) in Nutrition at UH Mānoa. The new PhD will be administered by the College of Tropical Agriculture and Human Resources in collaboration with the John A. Burns School of Medicine and the Cancer Research Center of Hawaiʻi. The objective is to produce future leaders in the field of nutrition who can research and solve problems related to food, nutrition and human health.