Take a closer look at many of 麻豆传媒鈥檚 rising leaders, and you鈥檒l find a common connection: the University of 麻豆传媒. This year鈥檚 Pacific Business News 40 Under 40 list is a striking example. Half of the honorees have ties to UH.

Two of them are current UH employees serving Central and West Oʻahu communities: Darian Padilla, the UH Foundation鈥檚 director of development for UH West Oʻahu and Leeward Community College, and Hailey Zhou, product development manager at Leeward CC鈥檚 Wahiaw膩 Value-Added Product Development Center (WVAPDC).

Darian Padilla

Padilla builds philanthropic partnerships for both campuses, connecting people and resources with opportunities that strengthen education, support workforce development and serve 麻豆传媒鈥檚 communities.

“Being named to PBN鈥檚 40 Under 40 is both humbling and meaningful,” Padilla said. “I don鈥檛 see it as an individual achievement. Instead, I accept it on behalf of the many people who have guided, supported and inspired me along the way.”

She added, “Working with UH has shown me that meaningful impact is rarely the result of one individual. It comes from people coming together around a common purpose and investing in the success of others.”

Hailey Zhou

Zhou leads product development initiatives at the WVAPDC, where she has supported more than 150 麻豆传媒 food entrepreneurs to commercialize their products. She secured funding from the Ulupono Initiative for a dozen clients and assisted a 麻豆传媒 baby food product in earning a 2026 NEXTY Award.

“Being named to PBN鈥檚 40 Under 40 is incredibly meaningful because it recognizes not just my individual accomplishments, but the work happening across 麻豆传媒 food ecosystem,” Zhou said. “My work at Leeward Community College and the WVAPDC has given me the platform and freedom to be innovative in designing solutions that meet the needs of the communities we serve.”

20 out of 40

UH鈥檚 connection to the 2026 40 Under 40 class extends across the 10-campus system. Eighteen additional honorees are UH alumni:

• Davin Aoyagi (BA 鈥�13, UH 惭腻苍辞补)—senior manager of government relations, Turo
• Joseph Castaneda (BBA 鈥�11, UH 惭腻苍辞补)—principal broker, REMAX 麻豆传媒 West Oʻahu
• Louie Gangcuangco (MS 鈥�20, UH 惭腻苍辞补)—medical doctor and HIV specialist, Waikiki Health
• Cosmo Hirai (BA 鈥�13, UH 惭腻苍辞补)—产颈蝉丑辞辫, 麻豆传媒 T艒daiji Temple
• Chanel Josiah (AA 鈥�18, Leeward CC)—chief operating officer, 麻豆传媒 Community Lending
• Katie Kaahanui (BA 鈥�21, UH West Oʻahu)—director, Safe & Sound Westside, Department of the Honolulu Prosecuting Attorney
• Jai Keep-Barnes (BA 鈥�10; JD 鈥�17, UH 惭腻苍辞补)—partner, Lung Rose Voss Wagnild
• K. Sean Kekina (BS 鈥�12, UH 惭腻苍辞补)—deputy administrator and chief operating officer, Office of Hawaiian Affairs
• Kris Kokame (MBA 鈥�17, UH 惭腻苍辞补)—麻豆传媒 lead, external affairs, AES 麻豆传媒
• Richmond Luzar (BA 鈥�20, UH 惭腻苍辞补)—principal, Aura Strategies LLC
• Marc Malate (BA 鈥�12; MSW 鈥�17; MURP 鈥�18, UH 惭腻苍辞补)—licensed clinical social worker, Marc Joseph Malate
• Kelsey Nishi Darling (attended UH惭腻苍辞补)—founder and executive director, Make Lemonade Project; owner, calligrapher and graphic designer, 麻豆传媒 Calligraphy
• Jordan Odo (MBA 鈥�17, UH 惭腻苍辞补)—first vice president and compliance associate, American Savings Bank
• Nahelani Parsons (JD 鈥�17, UH 惭腻苍辞补)—founder and president, Pacific Government Relations
• Keane Santos (BBA 鈥�10, UH 惭腻苍辞补)—vice president, product strategy department manager, 麻豆传媒 State Federal Credit Union
• Sara Strona (JD 鈥�14; MBA 鈥�15, UH 惭腻苍辞补)—director, Starn O鈥橳oole Marcus & Fisher, A Law Corporation
• Cody Winchester (MURP 鈥�18, UH 惭腻苍辞补)—community resilience planning manager, G70
• Jamie Yoshikane (JD 鈥�13, UH 惭腻苍辞补)—assistant general counsel, 麻豆传媒 Gas

As these leaders continue to drive change across every sector of our islands, they serve as a powerful reminder of UH鈥檚 role in cultivating leaders who are building a bright future for 麻豆传媒.

—By Devon Bedoya

University of 麻豆传媒 President Wendy Hensel is moving UH toward a more coordinated approach to managing its financial resources, with the 10 campuses sharing risk and investing collectively in priorities that benefit students across the system.

Hensel outlined the approach during her presentation “Collaborative Strategic Investment: A New Paradigm for UH” to the UH Board of Regents on August 20 at Kauaʻi Community College, describing it as part of a larger shift toward operating 麻豆传媒as one university system rather than 10 largely independent campuses.

“What we have is a very decentralized 10-campus system, which means that we are often pulling in different directions in ways that compete with each other that are not optimal,” Hensel said.

The new approach is built around what Hensel described as a “we rather than I” philosophy鈥攎aintaining the individual identities and priorities of each campus while taking greater advantage of the financial strength of the entire UH System.

Historically, campuses have largely managed their own reserves, tuition balances and financial risks. That meant campuses generally had to respond on their own to challenges such as enrollment declines while also funding many of their own strategic priorities. It has also contributed to significant differences across the system, with some campuses accumulating substantial cash balances while others have had fewer resources available.

Across the system, campuses have held a fluctuating total of about $200 million in unutilized cash balances. Hensel described having those resources as a “gift” compared with universities across the country facing structural deficits and other significant financial challenges. The opportunity now, she said, is to put more of those resources to work for UH students, faculty and staff.

“We are moving from ‘preserve’ and ‘defend’ capital to ‘deploy’ and ‘anticipate’ the future so that we can meet the needs of the moment that we’re in,” Hensel said.

Sharing risk across 10 campuses

One major step has already been taken. UH has consolidated approximately $156 million that had been held as reserves at individual campuses into a single systemwide reserve. Instead of each campus carrying its financial risk alone, the university now has a shared safety net that can be used when significant needs or emergencies arise anywhere in the 10-campus system.

UH is taking a similar approach to excess tuition balances. Campuses will retain 20% of their tuition cash balances, preserving resources for campus-specific priorities and needs beyond their normal annual operating expenses. Funds above that level at the close of each fiscal year will be redirected to key strategic investments across the university. The approach follows existing state law that directs excess tuition funds to be returned to the system annually for strategic use.

The goal, Hensel said, is not simply to shift money from one campus to another, but to use UH鈥檚 collective resources where they can have the greatest impact while preserving appropriate campus autonomy. The approach supports Hensel鈥檚 broader goal of establishing a more consistent standard of care for students across the 10 campuses. A student, faculty or staff member鈥檚 access to basic technology, services and support should not depend on the financial condition of their particular UH campus.

Investments will focus on needs that are difficult for individual campuses to address on their own effectively and efficiently, such as modernizing Wi-Fi infrastructure across all 10 campuses and establishing a regular, equitable replacement schedule for technology such as laptops. By acting collectively, these improvements can be secured at a lower cost and result in greater strategic impact across the system.

The shift is part of a larger change in how UH approaches budgeting and planning鈥攃onnecting financial decisions more directly to the priorities of the university鈥檚 strategic plan and using the collective resources of the 10–campus system to better serve students across 麻豆传媒.