The Patsy T. Mink Leadership Alliance welcomes a Leeward Community College faculty member for its fifth cohort since 2016. Performing Arts Certification Program Coordinator Loretta Chen was one of 15 women leaders selected for her contributions to education, arts, community, women and youth.
Named in honor of the late Patsy T. Mink, who was both the first Asian-American woman and the first woman from Hawaiʻi to serve in the U.S. Congress, the program is offered through the Patsy T. Mink Center for Business & Leadership, a department of YWCA Oʻahu. The annual Leadership Alliance enables women who are rising in diverse industries including finance, healthcare, technology, law, education and more, to participate in a 10-month program that helps further their personal growth, professional impact and community change.
“Leadership isn’t a job description or position of power. It is, rather, a disciplined mental model, guiding principle and demonstration of an ability to serve,” said Chen. “I am honored and humbled to be part of this cohort of leaders to learn, share and serve the Hawaiian community and my new ʻohana.”
Chen was fully sponsored by five women who were featured in her book, Inspiring Women of Hawaiʻi, marking the first time the YWCA allowed individual sponsorship of a participant. Her sponsors are:
- Christine Camp (President/CEO, Avalon Group)
- Kathy Inouye (Senior Advisor, Kobayashi Group)
- Connie Lau (President/CEO, American Savings Bank/Hawaiian Electric Industries)
- Catherine Ngo (President/CEO, Central Pacific Bank)
- Crystal K. Rose (Founding Partner, Bays Lung Rose Holma)
Chen recently received recognition for an animated film she worked on, written by her brother, titled My Little Red Dot, which is now included as an entry in the Peace Studio’s 100 Offerings of Peace—a project co-founded by Hawaiʻi educator and activist Maya Soetoro-Ng.
