Three Molokaʻi women are proving that healthcare careers can start at home. Benevee Morris, Cherie Gonzalez and Olivia Pescaia all completed the through the , with tuition support from the federally funded . They now work in public schools across the island as health technicians for the , a partnership between UH ����ԴDz�’s (SONDH) and the �鶹��ý Department of Education and Public Charter School Commission.

“�鶹��ý Keiki has struggled to hire a nurse for the Molokaʻi position since I joined as �鶹��ý Keiki senior practice director over five years ago,” said Deborah Mattheus, SONDH endowed professor of school health. “These three health technicians have filled that void and have been such a wonderful addition to our team. I am so proud of them.”

Family hardship leads to new purpose

Morris’ journey into healthcare began after her husband suffered a heart attack in 2010, followed by years of medical treatment and a heart transplant in California.

“As I supported him through this journey, I gained a deep appreciation for everything the nurses and doctors did for us,” she said. “Meeting traveling nurses sparked my interest in pursuing a career in healthcare.”

After his transplant in 2021, Morris applied for the CNA program while still in California. Despite challenges during the pandemic, she and her classmates pushed through.

“I’m proud to say that in August of 2022, 100% of our class passed, and 90% of us have used our skills to secure employment,” she said.

She started with the Nā Puʻuwai Kupuna Program and Tūtū & Me before becoming the Hawaii Keiki health tech at Maunaloa Elementary School.

“It’s thrilling to support services like the �鶹��ý Keiki dental sealant program,” Morris said. “Our island has faced challenges with dental coverage and a shortage of dentists.”

Morris hopes to bring programs such as CPR education and vision screenings to her school in the coming year.

“I’m committed to being an advocate for our keiki here on Molokaʻi and will support anyone interested in pursuing a career in healthcare.“

From caregiver to health tech

I’m committed to being an advocate for our keiki here on Molokaʻi and will support anyone interested in pursuing a career in healthcare
—Benevee Morris

Inspired by the experience of caring for both her parents through serious illnesses, Olivia Pescaia, a graduate of Molokaʻi High and Intermediate School, enrolled in the CNA program to pursue a career in healthcare.

“I dropped my first class because I was unsure of myself and we were figuring things out as we went along,” Pescala said.

However, she rejoined the second cohort and completed the program in June 2023. Now the health tech for Molokaʻi Middle School, Pescaia finds meaning in her work.

“It feels rewarding to give back and help in ways I never imagined I could,” she said. “Even in small ways, helping the keiki gives me a sense of accomplishment, purpose and connection to my community.“

A movie sparks a mission

Cherie Gonzalez’s decision to enter healthcare was inspired by a movie.

“The nurses in the nursing home were being horrible to the patients. I know it was a movie, but we all know that can actually happen in real life,” she said. “I decided that I wanted to pursue a career in nursing because of this.”

With a toddler at home, she joined the CNA program through cable TV instruction and in-person labs at Molokaʻi General Hospital. “The experience I gained through this program has never left me and I use it every day,” she said.

After working as a dental assistant at Molokaʻi General Hospital and as a medical assistant at Molokaʻi Community Health Center, she joined �鶹��ý Keiki in 2021 and now serves at Kilohana Elementary School.

“It feels really good to be working in my community and with families I know personally,” she said. “Being able to make a difference with children in the school setting is great.”

Gonzalez encourages others to explore the field. “There’s so much more you can do in nursing. I would highly recommend the program,” she said.

New University of �鶹��ý President Wendy Hensel will visit each of the 10 UH campuses and six of the university system’s nine education centers during her first 90 days in office. Hensel began her role as the 16th president of the state’s public higher education system on January 1, 2025.

The schedule is below and specific details will be announced by individual campuses. Each visit will feature an open campus forum—welcoming participation from all campus community members—along with meetings with student, faculty and staff governance groups, as well as the administration’s leadership team. In a January 6 message to the UH community, Hensel expressed her commitment to building meaningful connections through pilina, a Native Hawaiian concept that has been shared with her.

“It is fitting that pilina encompasses not only relationships, but also more broadly interdependence, interwovenness, and deep connections that span place, time and generations,” said Hensel. “Although recognizing that my pilina with �鶹��ý and many of you is just beginning, it seems clear that it will be the foundation for the work we can and must do together for the thriving future �鶹��ý deserves.”

President Hensel campus/education centers visit schedule

• Tuesday, January 14 – —Read a recap of the visit.
• Wednesday, January 22 – —Read a recap of the visit.
• Thursday, January 23 – UH Mānoa
• Monday, January 27 – —Read a recap of the visit.
• Monday, February 3 – —Read a recap of the visit.
• Wednesday, February 5 – Leeward CC —Read a recap of the visit.
• Monday, February 10 – —Read a recap of the visit.
• Tuesday, February 11 – —Read a recap of the visit.
• Tuesday, February 18 – —Read a recap of the visit.
• Monday, February 24 – —Read a recap of the visit.
• Tuesday February 25 – and —Read a recap of the visit.
• Monday, March 3 – and —Read a recap of the visit.
• Wednesday, March 5 – and —Read a recap of the visit.
• Monday, March 24 –
• Tuesday, April 8 –

Hensel has emphasized her commitment to attending as many campus events as her schedule allows while acclimating to her new role and navigating her first legislative session, which runs from January 15 to May 2. She is also meeting with county, state and local business leaders. Her top priority is visiting the campuses and education centers.

“Understanding first-hand how each campus uniquely contributes to the beautiful mosaic that makes up our UH community will be invaluable,” said Hensel. “With this knowledge, we can build a strong system that is capable of achieving excellence together that is otherwise unreachable alone. I promise to take your lead, listen with an open heart and mind, and learn about who you are, and share who I am as a human being to set the foundation for all the other work that lies ahead.”

For more information about President Hensel, visit the Meet President Hensel webpage. She is also active on social media and encourages the UH community to connect with her on , (formerly Twitter) and .

Fifteen Kalaupapa, Molokaʻi residents spent three Wednesdays in September learning skills beneficial to the work they do, thanks to the support and guidance from the . Participants learned how to fix equipment they need to do their jobs with.

“This is the best college class I’ve taken,” said Rose Dudoit, one of the students. “The teacher was awesome. Many of us learn better through hands-on learning as opposed to traditional classroom instruction.”

The trip to Kalaupapa is one that staff members from the take at least once a year to share programming with residents and offer application assistance.

“During these visits we also gather input on what types of education programs they are interested in,” explained UH Maui College Molokaʻi Coordinator Kelley Dudoit. “The employees expressed interest in a hands-on small engine repair course so they can learn how to fix the equipment they work with.”

The residents learned these skills from Construction Technology Program Lecturer Lloyd Inouye. There are so many benefits to the participants in addition to being able to fix their equipment. It upskills the workforce, reduces waste and saves funds by fixing existing equipment rather than buying new.

Participants learn skills that benefit their lives outside of work, maximize their productivity and reduce delays in waiting for equipment to be fixed.

“We were thrilled to be able to offer this class to the workforce in Kalaupapa,” Kelley Dudoit said. “We realize that access to our programs may be difficult because residents spend most of their week in the settlement. It made sense to take the class to them. We’re grateful to the instructor, Lloyd Inouye, for his willingness to travel to the settlement to teach the course. We hope to be able to continue to strengthen our partnership and continue offering classes like these.”

For the first time since 2016, the University of �鶹��ý hosted a graduation ceremony to honor the graduates from the Friendly Isle.

This cherished tradition, usually observed every four years, had been delayed in 2020 because of the COVID-19 pandemic. The graduates are UH Maui College students who attend classes at the UH Molokaʻi Education Center and/or online.

Between 2021 and 2024, the center awarded 47 associate degrees and 52 certificates. Forty-two of the graduates participated in the 2024 commencement ceremony on May 10, which honors Molokaʻi residents who earned degrees at the Center or online at a UH campus.

Check out more stories of our UH spring graduates

Never stop learning

After a 23-year journey, 41-year-old Harriet Uʻilani Mokiao proudly earned her associate degree in liberal arts. Cheers and applause roared for Mokiao as she delivered one of the student addresses, emphasizing the significance of her path to achievement.

“We really need to live in the present having learned from the past. There’s an ʻōlelo noʻeau that reads ma ka hana ka ʻike, ma ka ʻike ka mana. Through work, through doing, comes knowledge and through knowledge comes power,” Mokiao said.

More than 50% of the graduates are Native Hawaiian and received degrees and certificates ranging from associate degrees in dental hygiene and early education to certificates in Hawaiian studies and construction technology.

The number of nurse aide graduates nearly doubled since the island’s last commencement with 23 students earning their certification, which will help to address a critical need on Molokaʻi.

Sonni Han, 17, is one of the graduates who earned nurse aide certification while attending Molokaʻi High School.

“A lot of kids think that they can’t do it because they come from Molokaʻi and they don’t have a lot of opportunities but this year I found that a lot of people want to help you, especially here at the college,” Han said. “If you just reach out to them theyʻll get you places where you didn’t think you could go.”

Historic milestone on Molokaʻi

Pūlama Lima is the first ever doctoral graduate on Molokaʻi to be hooded at the ceremony. Lima earned a PhD in anthropology from UH ����ԴDz�.

“Molokaʻi is our biggest teacher and the best way to show appreciation for that is to come home and devote yourself to community work,” Lima said.

As part of UH Maui College, the center offers a wide range of credit and non-credit courses and certificate and associate degree programs. Like other UH outreach sites, it provides selected courses from other UH community colleges and receives selected bachelors and masters degree programs from UH ����ԴDz�, UH Hilo and UH West Oʻahu via ����–I�ճ�.

A University of �鶹��ý career spanning almost 50 years is coming to a close for John Morton, the vice president for community colleges.

“It is truly bittersweet to congratulate and thank John Morton on his retirement,” said UH President David Lassner. “His contributions to public higher education across the islands have been remarkable and will be sorely missed. But after nearly 49 years of service, his retirement could not be more richly deserved. We thank [his wife] Willow for sharing John with UH and �鶹��ý, and wish them both all the best in their travels to come.”

“I guess I feel that I’ve been fortunate to have just a fantastic, unexpected career,” said Morton. “When I first joined the community colleges in 1970, it was not an intentional act.”

That’s when he started teaching chemistry and political science at , and has been committed to the colleges’ social justice mission ever since. In 1984, Morton became the provost of , and oversaw the buildout of the new campus near Diamond Head.

In 2002, he led the planning, development and implementation of UH’s first unified student information system, and in 2005 Morton was named vice president of , with responsibility for up to 34,000 students in an academic year.

That responsibility came with plenty of goal-oriented targets. Under his tenure, significant building projects such as the campus and the were designed and constructed.

Morton said, “It takes a long time sometimes for these dreams to become realities, but you gotta be patient, you gotta be persistent, and it’ll happen.”

Championing access to education

Morton has championed access to community colleges through programs such as �鶹��ý Promise, which provides need-based last-dollar scholarships to qualified students, and a workforce education and training program called HINET, which stands for and provides assistance for food, transportation, books and other expenses.

One of his big goals has been to improve college completion rates.

“We’ve been successful. We’re more than double the number of graduates than we used to,” Morton said. “We’re way more than double the number of Native Hawaiians. Twenty-eight percent of our enrollment is Native Hawaiian. We’ve got campuses that are over 40 percent Native Hawaiian enrollment.”

He enjoys contact with students, especially at commencement ceremonies. A special one is held every four years on Molokaʻi for the , which is part of .

“I remember one in particular where a young woman was graduating. And then her mother was graduating and then her grandmother was graduating, all three in the same ceremony,” Morton said. “And to have that kind of an impact on a family across multiple generations, in a remote part of that county, I think really captures what community colleges are about and what they do to contribute to the state and its people.”

He says UH has an important role to play in the future of the state.

“It’s only from a collective effort of public policymakers, business and industry, and the university working together that we will be able to create the kind of economy and social structure that will allow �鶹��ý to prosper for all of our citizens.”

—By Kelli Trifonovitch

and the UH Maui College education centers on Molokaʻi and ����Բ�ʻ�� and in Lahaina and Hāna will reopen Thursday, September 13 following the closures due to Tropical Storm Olivia.

UH officials closed the campus and education centers Tuesday night before the storm arrived.

While the campus and centers will resume classes and operations Thursday, safety should remain everyone’s top priority. Monitor conditions, including road closures, in your area.

Please follow the , other official agencies and local media for the latest weather news.

All members of the UH community are urged to sign up for to receive emergency text alerts. If you have already signed up, log in to ensure that your contact information is up-to-date:

Notifications affecting UH campuses will be posted on the Emergency Information webpage, as well as on social media:

• UH emergency information website

Please stay informed and updated:

The and all UH education centers in Maui County are closed as of 4:30 p.m. on Tuesday, September 11 and will be closed Wednesday, September 12 in anticipation of the arrival of Tropical Storm Olivia. This includes the education centers on Molokaʻi and ����Բ�ʻ�� and in Lahaina and Hāna. To be clear, all Tuesday night classes scheduled after 4:30 p.m. are cancelled.

UH Maui College officials will determine when the campus and centers will reopen. UH continues to monitor Olivia and will determine whether to close Oʻahu campuses as it progresses.

Staff of Maui and Oʻahu should prepare their offices and facilities for a prolonged power outage:

• Turn off and unplug all electrical equipment and appliances (except phones), including: refrigerators (remove all items, defrost and wipe down), microwave ovens, coffee makers, battery chargers, computers, printers, fax machines, network devices (routers, switches, hubs, etc.), clocks, radios and window air conditioning units
• Move valuable items off the floor
• Backup computer files
• Cover electronics/furniture with plastic if possible
• Close all windows and blinds
• Secure important/confidential documents and valuables
• Remove perishable food from buildings, trash cans and refrigerators
• Update telephone and e-mail messages for the closure period

Please follow the , other official agencies and local media for the latest weather news.

All members of the UH community are urged to sign up for to receive emergency text alerts. If you have already signed up, log in to ensure that your contact information is up-to-date:

Notifications affecting UH campuses will be posted on the Emergency Information webpage, as well as on social media:

• UH emergency information website

Please stay informed and updated:

The State of �鶹��ý announced on August 21 at 5:20 p.m. that all government offices and facilities in Maui and �鶹��ý Island (Big Island) counties are closed starting Wednesday, August 22, due to the threat of Hurricane Lane, a category 4 storm currently on track to move dangerously close the islands. That means all University of �鶹��ý campuses and all non-essential university operations on �鶹��ý Island, Maui, Molokaʻi and Lānai will be closed until further notice. Please stand by for updates as UH campuses and non-essential operations on Oʻahu and Kauaʻi may also close as the storm approaches. Residence halls at UH Hilo will remain open for student residents.

Hurricane Lane could make landfall on any or multiple islands, and may bring strong winds, heavy rains, flooding, high surf and storm surges. All students, faculty and staff are asked to keep informed of the latest developments and prepare for the possibility of the need to shelter in place or move to a public shelter. Prepare yourself and your families for the potential effects of the storm. Officials recommend a 14-day emergency supply.

• More on Hurricane Lane on �鶹��ýNews

Students in residence halls will receive more specific communications and instructions from their respective student housing office. However, please do not hesitate to contact them with any questions or concerns at UH ����ԴDz�: vcs@hawaii.edu; UH Hilo: (808) 932-7403.

Please follow the , other official agencies and local media for the latest weather news.

All members of the UH community are urged to sign up for to receive emergency text alerts. If you have already signed up, log in to ensure that your contact information is up-to-date:

Notifications affecting UH campuses will be posted on the Emergency Information webpage, as well as on social media:

• UH emergency information website

Please stay informed and updated:

Taye Mowat is a busy Molokaʻi High School junior, who is also taking a college course this semester: English 100. She admits, it was nerve-wracking at first.

“I was kind of like, I don’t know if I can handle sports and school, plus a college class. I like it though,” said Mowat.

“We do a lot of essays and writing, learning grammar a little more in college, so I can see my improvement in writing essays.”

Mowat is one of about 20 Native Hawaiian students at Molokaʻi High participating in the Hoʻokele Program, a partnership between the University of �鶹��ý Maui College , Kamehameha Schools, and Molokaʻi High. The dual credit program pays for tuition, fees and books, and students earn both college and high school credits.

“We hope to expose kids now, while in high school, to college,” said Hoʻokele Program Coordinator Kalei Adolpho, “And once you get the first couple of classes down, we are hoping that theyʻll just take off from there.”

Earning college credits in high school makes higher education more affordable, while more importantly, gives students confidence that they can succeed in college.

“In high school, they’ll get on your case to turn in your work but college, it’s all up to you. So I’m glad I got that experience,” said Mowat.

Read more Early College stories on UH News