First Faculty Writers Retreat

 "I really enjoyed the writers' workshop yesterday at Pālamanui. Richard Stevens' intro was inspiring, the garden fresh air and greenery was restorative, all the company delightful, the snacks and lunch were perfect, and the writing project was very energizing.  Everything was exactly what I needed!"

 

    On August 27th at the Hawaiʻi CC Pālamanui campus in Kailua-Kona we held the inaugural Faculty Writers Group retreat. Seven faculty members met with me to hear our own Dr. Richard Stevens speak about writing and introduce us to the 600-acre Pālamanui Forest Reserve. We planted a tree together and took a short walk along the trail to an ancient lama tree to connect with the environment before eating lunch then sitting down to write.
    Our mission is to hold regular faculty writers retreats that will support, encourage, and educate faculty working on writing projects at locations around Hawai’i Island to foster knowledge of wahi pana and appreciation for Hawaiian history and culture as well as the food, wildlife, and population of modern Hawaiʻi.
    In sharing our writing projects, we discovered both a wealth of knowledge and experience in the room as well as a real need for support and encouragement. Attendees worked on a wide variety of projects and some new plans were even born that day. Here's a list of some the writing tasks we worked on:

• Letter of recommendation
• Tenure and promotion dossier
• OER textbook
• Book manuscript
• GE designation application
• Memoir

    The objectives of the project are to promote diversity at Hawai’i CC by providing opportunities for faculty from diverse backgrounds to succeed at professional writing; to feature the expertise of local Hawai’i Island authors both to inspire writing and to foster 'aina aloha based education, connection to 'aina, 'ohana , and communities; to facilitate mentoring relationships between senior and junior faculty members; and to rebuild a sense of community ​after Covid-19 with the goal of supporting and retaining a diverse faculty body.
    Research shows that writers retreats help to level the playing field in terms of structural inequities inherent in academics in general and for academic writing in particular and may help to further career progression by not only increasing writing productivity but providing an opportunity for intensive one-on-one mentorship that is sorely needed between senior and junior faculty members (1,3). "Retreats provide a positive model in leading and supporting colleagues: 'the retreats are a...very powerful leadership dynamic through which to support others." (1) 
    These writing retreats can open opportunities for faculty with writing and editing expertise to come forward into leadership roles (2). Diversity within the retreats provides differing viewpoints which underscore the rich learning experience. Writing retreats help to alleviate the isolation that many academics feel when working on large projects, like dossiers, and can help to improve the writing process (4).
    While it is early to make judgements about the overall success of the program, I can say that our first event brought together a diverse group of individuals, allowed for support and camaraderie to develop, and provided a venue to make progress on our writing projects. I can't wait to see what the rest of the year brings!

References:
Murray, R. & Kempenaar, L. (2020). Why do women attend writing retreats? Gender and Education, 32(8), 1001–1018. https://doi.org/10.1080/09540253.2018.1557321
Check, J., Fox, T., O’Shaughnessy, K., Tateishi, C. (2007). Professional writing retreat handbook: A how-to manual for replicating the NWP professional writing retreat model. University of California National Writing Project. https://eric.ed.gov/?id=ED520202 
Peters, G. (2016). How we can bridge the culture gap? The Journal of Staff Development, 37(5), 12-16. https://learningforward.org/publications/jsd/jsd-blog/jsd/2016/10/13/jsd-octobe
r-2016-mind -the-gap
Tremblay-Wragg, E., Mathieu Chartier, S., & Labonté-Lemoyne, E. (2021). Writing More, Better, Together: How Writing Retreats Support Graduate Students through Their Journey. Journal of Further and Higher Education, 45(1), 95-106. http://dx.doi.org. brandine.uhh.hawaii.edu:2048/10.1080/0309877X.2020.1736272

New Beginnings

Aloha kākou!

I started this blog back in 2018 after a Pamaomao trip to the Lumbee Tribe of North Carolina during which I committed to sharing with the kauhale my learning and experiences at HawaiʻiCC. As I move into my next journey as Interim VCAA, stepping in for Joni Onishi as she retires, I want to recommit to keeping this blog, but I would also like to change the tone and content.

One of the things I have learned, painfully sometimes, is that communication doesn't always happen the way we think it will or should. At HawCC, I have found an abundance of information, but the channels don't always take that info where it should go. There is no blame in this statement. It's just a reality of organizational life that communication is a constant struggle and can always be improved upon. 

So as I learn all the new things I need to know to do my job, naturally, the question keeps popping into my mind:

How will I make sure the right people know this?

Luckily, there are already many information pathways that exist for us, but as I sat in a meeting today, I realized that some info I'd been working with this last year had not made it to some critical areas. I think this happens sometimes because we are so reliant on email, and if you're anything like me, you are in serious email overload ALL. THE. TIME.

During the pandemic, I found myself talking on the phone to people a lot more, and I like it. I appreciate Zoom for it's convenience, but I miss face-to-face meetings. They're just...different. As we all know, the Coconut Wireless is a key way to get information. So this brings me back to my original question. My answer is that I will be talking to people more. While we can get rid of written communication, we can supplement it.

So call me anytime! My office number if 808-934-2514. Hopefully, you all have my cell, but I share it freely (just not on the Internet :). I look forward to hearing your voice

My COVID Year

Wow! It's hard to believe that an entire year has passed since I've updated my blog. This year was spent, like most of you, working from home and surviving COVID-19. I'm now back on campus in the afternoons, so please stop by my office! We've all been through so many changes over the last year. I can't wait to reconnect with all of you to hear about your struggles and challenges and your new experiences and accomplishments during this, the craziest of all years!

For me, getting used to working from home required some adjustment. While I had a newly empty nest, which left me with a bedroom to create my long awaited home office and art studio, I had to create all new routines and strategies for dealing with interruptions and different demands on my time. I'm sure you can relate! 

It was a struggle, but in December 2020, I finally completed my Hawai'i Life Styles Academic Studies Certificate! I continue to work very slowly toward an AA in Hawaiian Studies. My experience as a student at Hawai'i Community College has been amazing! My youngest daughter also started college, and due to Covid circumstances, both daughters are both back home with us. I have temporarily lost my new office/studio, but I'm happy we are together.

In an effort to connect with others and also take care of myself physically, spiritually, and emotionally, I did a ton of new things during the last year. It wasn't easy, but here are some of the positives:

• Started walking regularly and took part in the HawCC Walking Challenge
• Sent postcards out to dozens of friends around the world
• Took up painting
• Kept a journal
• Cut my husband’s hair (really short!)
• Tried oat milk (ok) and flaxseed milk (ugh) because the store was always out of soymilk
• Discovered TikTok
• Ordered my first produce box from a farm coop
• Stayed overnight in a treehouse in Volcano
• Sat on the seashore and watched a storm come in
• Fed baby mice with a paintbrush (don't ask!)

Here are some photos from this time in our lives:

Now I want to hear about you. How was your COVID year?

The Power of Habit

People ask me pretty often how I have time to [fill in the blank]. Reading is one of those things. In answer I always point out what I don't do in order to make time for what I choose to do. We tend to make time for what truly matters to us, whether it's volunteer work, exercise, TV, travel, etc. I'll admit it also helps that I no longer have young children demanding my time, and my retired husband takes care of our home, but I still have to make choices. When you come home from work, what do you do?

Because there are so many demands on our time, it's worthwhile to ask yourself if how you spend your time matches what you want your life to reflect. About a year ago, I realized that I needed to put time into de-stressing and focusing on my health, and I didn't have a choice about changing if I wanted to any semblance of balance and well being in my life. Once I realized I had the power to make choices that would really affect my life in a positive way, I started to set goals in other areas.

I wasn't as successful this time, presumably because I didn't have the same sense of urgency as before. One of my goals was to read more. Like most of you, I did most of my reading on vacation. Except for audiobooks, which I listen to while I'm driving to and from Pālamanui, I did very little reading outside of email and work stuff, and the pile of books next to my bed was growing. As luck would have it, Kate Sims, English Professor, gave me a copy of The Power of Habit just as the holiday break was starting.

This book is life changing. You may have read about how to form new habits. You may think you know what it takes. You may even have been successful in breaking old or creating new habits...but do you know why you were successful? I carried it around with me in my purse reading it at free moments when I normally would have been sitting and waiting for someone/something and wasting time on social media.

Before I even finished half the book I was putting in place new habits much more easily than ever before, and yes, one of them was regular reading. Below are some of the books I've read recently that I highly recommend.

Hawaiian Son








Daughter of Molokaʻi








Seeking the Sacred Raven
(available at the Pālamanui library!)

If you have the time and energy to read something new at this time, I highly recommend The Power of Habit. (Thanks, Kate!)

My Strengths

Years ago, before I got into higher ed, I was applying for a job that would be using CliftonStrengths. The job was right up my alley (working with high school students), but I'd never heard of CliftonStrengths before. I ordered the book, Strengthsfinder 2.0: Discover Your Strengths, which turned out to be a super fast read and came with a code to take the psychological/personality test online. According to this talent assessment, my top five strengths are:

1. Relator
2. Strategic
3. Empathy
4. Achiever
5. Activator

I have color coded them here to match the four domains of Executing, Influencing, Relationship Building, and Strategic Thinking. 

Long story short, I didn't get the job, but I did get involved with the organization as a student mentor. Learning about and using my strengths was central to that role, and I found it really enlightening.

Some years later, I read another book, Strengths Based Leadership: Great Leaders, Teams, and Why People Follow, and I took the test again. My top five results came out the same. For me, this showed the validity of the assessment where there are 34 identified strengths. I'm telling you about this because a number of administrators here at Hawai'iCC have recently taken the test to inform our leadership understanding and ability. No matter what your job, understanding yourself can make you better at what you do and better at communicating and working with others.

The unique thing about the CliftonStrengthsFinder assessment is that its approach to self-appreciation is based on identifying what you are naturally really good at. What's interesting is that there is no magic combination of strengths that makes a good leader (or teacher or whatever). If you've ever taken another psychological assessment, like the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI), part of the discussion around your type is how well your type "fits" with certain professions. Not so with CliftonStrengths.

It does, however, help you recognize your strengths and opportunities and how the combination of your top five work together to make you who you are. It can also help you to comprehend others. CliftonStrengthsFinder helps you understand why someone communicates the way they do, who might be the best person for a project, and how to pick a team that will not only get the job done but enjoy it and work together well.

For me, it's been most valuable in helping me understand myself and reframe my uniqueness so that I don't feel badly about what I can't do, am not good at, or don't enjoy. I can accept those things and focus on what I am naturally good at. I may still have to do things that are not easy for me sometimes, but now I know how to structure my work around my strengths, and I'm not so hard on myself about my weaknesses. I also appreciate the strengths of others more.

I recently ordered copies of Strengthsfinder 2.0: Discover Your Strengths for all my department chairs, so you may be hearing more about this soon. Take a look and see if you're interested!

Pi’ia

This two-day mini-conference was amazing - full of fun, enlightenment, and camaraderie. There were so many sessions to choose from: Hei (ritual string figures), `Aha `Awa (`Awa ceremony), Waiho'olu'u (natural dyes), Hula for children, Taga (ritual cordage regalia), Oli (chant), Lei Hilo (Hilo style lei), Kālai (carving), Lauhala (pandanus weaving), and `Ohe Kāpala (bamboo printing).

I attended the Lei Hilo and one of two different Lauhala sessions. While I've made many lei hilo (I even have a lei hilo tattoo on my left wrist in honor of the first lei I learned to make), I learned new techniques and worked with a different plant, the kupukupu fern, to make a kupe'e, or wrist adornment. Previously, I had only braided the fern for a lei po'o, or head lei.

 
 

Mahalo to Kumu Kekai and Aunty Kawehi for sharing their knowledge and aloha. I will never forget to ask the plants for their permission and mahalo (thank) them for their gifts.

Next, I learned from master weaver Lolay Muraki the most basic weaving techniques, which I found very challenging! The picture above belies the complicated techniques, full of non-intuitive folds. Most important, perhaps, was that we learned the proper way to gather the stalks, clean, and prepare them while honoring the plant that provides you with her materials for the long-term.

All of this alone would have made for a beautiful summer, but I learned something very important on the second day of the conference when I invited my daughter Kalli to participate with me in planting trees and learning about the Pālamanui Trails. Dr. Richard Stevens guided us out to meet Grandfather Lama, an ancient tree and one of the few remaining of what was once an abundant dryland forest. It has been eaten away by cattle and wild goats.

Inside a protected garden, Kalli and I joined a team of about 25, and we planted three to four native Hawaiian trees per person.

At the end of the day we were treated to a closing story of Marty Allen, an artist who devoted many years of his life to raising awareness of the wiliwili tree and promoting its care. Each of us walked away with a greeting card featuring one of his paintings. It was a beautiful experience that has ignited a desire in me to continue supporting native tree restoration on Hawai`i Island.

The real connection and learning came from contemplating how indigenous art is inspired and informed by the`aina (land). Working with the dirt to restore the forest, honoring those plantings with an `aha `awa and oli, and really seeing how what we did could make a difference made me want to go back again and again.

There is talk of another event like this one on the Hilo side of the island. If so, I cannot encourage you strongly enough to attend. You'll be glad you did!

My Kūkūʻena Hula Experience

In "Kūkūʻena: Guiding by Walking the Academic Path as a LearnerCommunity," Gail Makuakane-Lundin, one of the founders of the Kūkūʻena hula group, described the experience as one of igniting the spirit through connecting to Hawaiian culture. She said it gave new meaning to her hectic life. I can attest, as one of the newest members of the Kūkūʻena hula group, this is a perfect description of being a part of this circle of HawaiiCC and UHH administrators, faculty, staff, and students.

Last fall, my husband asked me if it was more of a commitment than I realized it would be. Yes, but it has been worth every minute. As he has watched me grow and become more confident in my modest hula practice and in chanting in ʻOlelo Hawaiʻi, he senses that I am making deep connections with practices, people, and places that are having a profound impact on my life. I am absorbing Hawaiian language, culture, stories, and ways of thinking, all intertwined together, and I am grateful for the opportunity.

The Kukuʻena hula group was first started in 2008 under kumu hula Dr. Taupōuri Tangarō. Members have weaved in and out of the group, some staying, some moving on, others being initiated. The wealth of knowledge and experience in the group is always in flux, so that we learn and teach one another as we receive more formal instruction from our kumu (now, Kainoa Ariola-Sukisaki).

Each of us is encouraged to explore the connections between group activities and our work lives. CeliaBardwell-Jones captured the struggle and frustration I felt with the challenge of learning hula for the first time: "I struggled my first year in learning the dances and the chants. Throughout this process, I kept reflecting on how my students felt learning a whole new subject matter and struggling in the same way I was in hula class." I remember the moment I made the realization that the way I was feeling - insecure and somewhat lost - must be how students feel sometimes.

The truth is there are moments of great joy when we are dancing and chanting in unison, or when we are joking as we learn together. These overshadow the times when I feel tired, clumsy, and irritated with myself. At the end of a practice, no matter how well or badly I performed, I do not regret the effort. I walk away from the warmth of my halau feeling enriched and part of something important, connected to generations of hula practitioners who came before us.

There is so much more I could write to reveal the special activities we do together, the ways my hula sisters and brothers have reached out to guide me, the way I feel when I watch more skilled and experienced dancers glide and step in unison...but it feels too sacred to describe in too much detail on a blog. I'm writing because my purpose for this public diary is to share my journey in supporting the Hawaiʻi Papa O Ke Ao initiative through my personal and professional activities.

Also, I hope to spread the word about Kūkūʻena to keep the group growing and active. Last year I received an invitation from Trina Nahm-Mijo who has been my mentor. If you've heard about us and wonder what we do, here's a synopsis. We meet Mondays and Wednesdays throughout the school year from about 5:00-7:00 pm. We share responsibility for the kuahu (altar). We go on field trips, take part in kipaepae when we can, and help with commencement. We memorize oli and mele, talk a lot about what we're learning and how it connects to students and our work, and we laugh. A lot. 

I can say that being a part of this group is one of the best things I’ve ever done.