TCBES Faculty
Norman Q. Arancon
Associate Professor, Horticulture
Contact: Tel: (808) 932-7030, Norman’s Email, Norman’s Website
Office Hours: Tuesdays/Thursdays 9:00 - 11:00 am. Please email to arrange appointment.
Specialization: Crop and environmental science.
Jonathan “Jon” Awaya
Professor, Biology
Contact: Tel: (808) 932-7180, Jon’s Email
Research: Elemental cycling and secondary metabolite biosynthesis in environmental microbes.
Courses: Fundamentals of Microbiology, Biology of Microorganisms.
Office Hours: Summer 2018 by appt.
Celia T. Bardwell-Jones
Associate Professor, Philosophy; Gender and Women's Studies Program
Contact: Tel: (808) 932-7230, Celia’s Email
Research interests: Feminist Philosophy, American Philosophy, Philosophy of Race and Cultural Diversity
Teaching: Metaphysics, Theories of Knowledge, Philosophy of Nature, Science, Technology and Society, Ethics
Office Hours: Tuesdays, Thursdays - 8:50am-9:50am in K229. I am also available for appointment.
James “Jim” P. Beets
Interim Dean, College of Natural & Health Sciences
Contact: Tel: (808) 932-7506 / (808) 932-7507, Jim’s Email
John H. R. Burns
Assistant Professor, Marine Science
Contact: Tel: (808) 932-7595, John’s Email, John’s Website
Research: coral biology, coral reef ecology, coral epizootiology, quantitative ecology, 3D modeling, data visualization
Courses: Oceanography, TCBES Core Courses, Data Visualization
Kathryn J. Besio
Professor, Geography and Environmental Sciences
Contact: Tel: (808) 932-7253, Kathryn’s Email
Courses: Geography and Contemporary Society; Cultural Geography; Food and Societies; Gender, Place and Environment.
Research: Tourism geography, qualitative research methods, research ethics, home gardens and local foods.
Leng Chee Chang
Associate Professor
Contact: Tel: (808) 933-2951, Leng Chee’s Email, Leng Chee’s Website
Steven “Steve” Colbert
Associate Professor, Marine Science
Contact: Tel: (808) 932-7596, Steve’s Email
Marta deMaintenon
Chair & Professor, Marine Science
Contact: Tel: (808) 932-7591, Marta’s Email
I am a marine invertebrate zoologist. My research is mostly on marine snails, with an interest in anatomy, ecology, systematics and taxonomy.
Jesse Eiben
Assistant Professor, Entomology
Contact: Tel: (808) 932-7153, Jesse’s Email, Jesse’s Website
Specialization: Ecology, evolution and conservation biology.
Armando García-Ortega
Associate Professor, Aquaculture
Contact: Tel: (808) 932-7031, Armando’s Email, Armando’s Website
Specialization: Aquaculture, Fish Nutrition & Feeding, Best Aquaculture Practices
Joseph H. Genz
Associate Professor, Anthropology; Coordinator, Pacific Island Studies Certificate, PISC
Contact: Tel: (808) 932-7267, Joseph’s Email, Joseph’s Website
Courses: Cultural Anthropology, Cultures of Oceania, Change in The Pacific
Research: Understanding and helping to ease tensions that have arisen between recent Micronesian migrants and other communities in Hawaiʻi. Cultural revival of voyaging and navigation in the Marshall Islands.
Timothy B. Grabowski
Unit Leader, U.S. Geological Survey-Hawaii Cooperative Fishery Research Unit; Adjunct Associate Professor
Contact: Tel: (808) 932-7575, Timothy’s Email, Timothy’s Website
Research: fish behaviorial and physiological ecology, fish reproduction and early life history, aquatic landscape ecology, fisheries management and conservation.
Courses: Fisheries Ecology, TCBES Core Courses
Mazen L. Hamad
Professor, Chemistry
Contact: Tel: (808) 932-7198, Mazen’s Email
Primary Discipline: Analytical Chemistry.
Research: Pharmaceutical systems.
Education: Ph.D. in Chemistry, University of Washington.
Patrick J. Hart
Chair & Professor, Biology
Contact: Tel: (808) 932-7182, Patrick’s Email, Patrick’s Website
Research: Ecology and conservation of Hawaiian forests and forest birds.
Courses: Biostatistics, General Ecology, Avian Biology, Field Ornithology.
Maria C. Haws
Director of PACRC; Associate Professor, Aquaculture
Contact: Tel: (808) 933-3289, Maria’s Email
Specialization: Aquaculture, coastal management, climate change adaptation.
Kevin D. Hopkins
Professor, Aquaculture
Contact: Tel: (808) 932-7033, Kevin’s Email, Kevin’s Website
Specialization: General agriculture.
Susan “Sue” Jarvi
Marina Karides
Chair & Professor, Sociology
Contact: Tel: (808) 932-7120, Marina’s Email
Courses: Island Feminism; Globalization, Fashion, and Gender; Social Stratification; Japan and Global Social Movements; Queer Studies
Research: Island societies and economic development; post-colonialism; race, class, gender, and sexualities; and global justice movements
Matthew “Matt” Knope
Assistant Professor
Contact: Tel: (808) 932-7715, Matt’s Email, Matt’s Website
Research: Evolutionary ecology of marine and terrestrial organisms.
Courses: Biostatistics, Natural History of the Hawaiian Islands, Advanced Tropical Island Ecology and Evolution.
Yiqing Li
Associate Professor, Tropical Forest Ecology & Management
Contact: Tel: (808) 932-7156, Yiqing’s Email, Yiqing’s Website
Specialization: Tropical forests.
Christopher Lu
Professor, Animal Science
Contact: Tel: (808) 932-7160, Christopher’s Email
Specialization: Ruminant nutrition.
Steven “Steve” P. Lundblad
Professor of Geology
Contact: Tel: (808) 932-7548, Steve’s Email
Disciplines: Sedimentary Geology, Geochemistry, Geoarchaeology.
Education: A.B, Geological Sciences, Harvard University 1985; M.S., Geological Science, University of Wisconsin-Madison, 1988; Ph.D., Geological Sciences, University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill, 1994.
Bruce W. Mathews
Dean, College of Agriculture, Forestry and Natural Resource Management; Professor, Soil Science
Contact: Tel: (808) 932-7036, Bruce’s Email, Bruce’s Website
Specialization: Environmental agronomy.
Sarah Marusek
Professor, Political Science
Contact: Tel: (808) 932-7129, Sarah’s Email, Sarah’s Website
Courses: Law and Legality; Legal Geography; Law and Identity; Rights; Constitutional Law; Criminology; Law, Property, Environment
Research: Development of 'everyday' jurisprudence in the areas of semiotics, spatiality, and constitutive legal theory.
Jon-Pierre “JP” Michaud
Associate Professor, Chemistry
Contact: Tel: (808) 932-7201, JP’s Email
Primary Discipline: Toxicology.
Research: Environmental chemistry.
Education: Ph.D. in Pharmacology, University of Arizona.
Jené Michaud
Chair & Professor, Geology
Contact: Tel: (808) 932-7552, Jené’s Email, Jené’s Website
Disciplines: Hydrology, geomorphology, geology.
Education: B.S., Geoscience, University of Washington; M.S., Hydrology, University of Arizona; Ph.D., Hydrology, University of Arizona.
Peter R. Mills
Professor, Anthropology; Director Heritage Management MA Program
Contact: Tel: (808) 932-7268, Peter’s Email, Peter’s Website
Courses: Archaeology, Archaeometry, Internship
Research: Non-destructive sourcing of Polynesian stone tools.
Cedric “Cam” C. Muir
Associate Professor, Biology
Contact: Tel: (808) 932-7500, Cam’s Email, Cam’s Website
Research: Agro-ecology, ecological genetics of crop species, food security.
Courses: Introductory Biology, Evolution, Intro to Cell and Molecular Biology, Genetics.
Stan T. Nakanishi
Assistant Professor, Biology
Contact: Tel: (808) 932-7193, Stan’s Email
Research: Investigating the neuromodulatory effects of compounds derived from Native Hawaiian plants.
Courses: Genetics, Intermediate Cell and Molecular Biology.
Rebecca “Becky” Ostertag
Professor, Biology; Program Chair, M.S. in Tropical Conservation Biology and Environmental Science
Contact: Tel: (808) 932-7573, Becky’s Email, Becky’s Website
Research: Long-term forest dynamics in relation to climate change, nutrient cycling, invasive species, and restoration ecology.
Courses: General Ecology, Conservation Biology, TCBES Core Courses.
Adam A. Pack
Chair & Professor, Psychology
Contact: Tel: (808) 932-7082, Adam’s Email
Research: Marine mammal behavior and mating systems, humpback whales, spinner dolphins, animal cognition.
Courses: Marine Mammal Behavior, Animal Cognition.
Ryan Perroy
Associate Professor, Geography
Contact: Tel: (808) 932-7259, Ryan’s Email, Ryan’s Website
Courses: Remote Sensing, Advanced Geo-Spatial Techniques, Climate Change, Introduction to Geostatistics, Field Methods.
Research: Exploring land degradation and recovery processes, such as erosion and invasive species, using sUAS and remote sensing, X-ray fluorescence, and traditional field methods.
Matthew Platz
Jonathan Price
Chair & Associate Professor, Geography
Contact: Tel: (808) 932-7241, Jonathan’s Email
Courses: Biogeography, Principles of Landscape Ecology, Senior Thesis.
Research: Utilizing GIS to identify biodiversity hotspots for native bird and plant species, search for rare species, and locate appropriate areas for the restoration of threatened and endangered species.
Michael H. Shintaku
Professor, Plant Pathology
Contact: Tel: (808) 932-7154, Michael’s Email, Michael’s Website
Specialization: Plant virology.
Shihwu Sung
Professor, Applied Engineering
Contact: Tel: (808) 932-7155, Shihwu’s Email
Specialization: Environmental Engineering.
Jolene T. Sutton
Assistant Professor, Biology
Contact: Tel: (808) 932-7183, Jolene’s Email, Jolene’s Website
Research: Conservation genetics and genomics; Immunogenetics; Genetic pest management
Courses: Genetics; Principles of Tropical Conservation Biology and Environmental Science
Li Tao
Assistant Professor, Biology
Contact: Tel: (808) 932-7179, Li’s Email, Li’s Website
Research: Regulation of cell division, with a focus on the use of in vitro biochemistry and in vivo cell biology to understand the mitotic spindle.
Courses: Biochemistry, Cell Biology and Fundamental Microbiology.
Grady Weyenberg
Assistant Professor, Mathematics
Contact: Tel: (808) 932-7937, Grady’s Email, Grady’s Website
Tracy N. Wiegner
Professor; Faculty Supervisor, UH Hilo Analytical Lab
Contact: Tel: (808) 932-7594, Tracy’s Email, Tracy’s Website