Department News - Spring 2005

Prof Xiaojun Wang Receives Gregory Chow Best Paper Award 2005

Professor Xiaojun Wang, who specializes in macroeconomics, labor, and Chinese economic issues, has been awarded the Gregory Chow Best Paper Award for Junior Scholars. Each year the award recognizes exceptional papers presented at conferences of the Chinese Economist Society. For more information about the award, please visit the official CES site. Pictures of the award ceremony are also available (Chinese language only). If you're interested in Professor Wang's award-winning paper, an abstract is available for download (PDF). Congratulations, Professor Wang!

Congratulations to Iolani's Economics Team!

On May 23rd, a team of four seniors from Iolani High, led by their coach Richard Rankin, defeated the last challenger to win the 2005 National Economics Challenge in New York. This is the first time the school has brought home the trophy in this competitive event. Head to the article describing their win in The Honolulu Advertiser online for more details!

Econ Graduate Speaks at 2005 Spring Commencement Ceremony

Brandon Lee, '05, addressed the graduates at spring commencement. Brandon has provided a copy of his speech, which you can read online in PDF format. Good luck, Brandon, and to all our graduates! Welcome to the life of an alum!

Award Recipients Announced for 2005-06 Academic Year

Chris Grootaert Endowed Scholarship
2005		Lisa Abalos

Wytze & Barbara Gorter
Leadership
2005		Stephanie Koo
2005		Florante Pumaras
Best Student
2005		Brianne Kosavanna

Hawaii Economics Association Recipients
2005		Chad Ahia
2005		Ayako Tsuchida

Wall Street Journal Recipients
2005		Jordan Higa

Burnham O. Campbell Recipients
2005		Dolores Sanchez

Congratulations!

Alumnus Dr Chritiaan Grootaert Establishes Scholarship Fund

Dr Grootaert, who graduated from the UHManoa Department of Economics in 1978, has contributed generously to establish a UH scholarship fund for undergraduates, with priority for Native Hawaiian students of Economics. The positive effect of this scholarship is already being felt: the first award recipient is Lisa Abalos, an Economics major graduating Fall 2005. Her goal is to give back to the island community as an Economics instructor at her alma mater, Kamehameha Schools. Congratulations, Lisa, and thank you, Dr Grootaert!

An article in the Pacific Business News online magazine describes the creation of the award. The University of Hawai'i Foundation, who helped to facilitate the formation of this scholarship, also discusses the scholarship, its founder, and the first award. To see a brief sketch of the decades of work Dr Grootaert has contributed to important economic causes, check out our own short biography.

Checking in from the Galapagos Islands!

Former UHManoa Economics professor Lou Rose and his wife, Joan, a retired art critic for the Honolulu Advertiser, have been traveling around the globe since their retirements. They've taken the time to send out a series of articles about the places they've been and the astounding things they've seen, rich with pictures and tips for would-be travelers. This month, they're writing from the Galapagos Islands, home of unmatched ecological variety and the birthplace of Darwin's treatise on evolution. Take a look at the article here, at The Honolulu Advertiser online.

Career Night Event with Teachers and Students

On Wednesday, April 27, from 5 to 7pm there will be a career night to help students explore and understand the wide variety of options available to them with an economics degree. Fellow students will share their experiences on the job market, in internships, and applying for grad school. The schedule of speakers will be as follows:

Introduction: Gary Kikuchi, Economics Club Faculty Advisor

Faculty Speakers: Professor Carl Bonham, Professor Byron Gangnes, Professor Denise Konan

Guest Speakers:Jim Dote, State of Hawaii Government Recruiting Office
Cy Feng, Department of Business, Economic Development & Tourism
Rhonda Provus, Bank of Hawaii

Student Panel:Ayako Tsuchida, Graduate School
Richard Cheong, Internship / Career Path
Walter Villalba, Internship - Legislature

Additional Information: Merrill Lynch internship - send resumes to milton.t.kawasaki@ml.com
State of Hawaii Attorney General's Office - send resumes to rodney.j.tam@hawaii.gov
Wells Fargo Financial

We hope you'll be able to join us!

UHM Economics Announces Seiji Naya Student Awards and Seiji Naya Asia-Pacific Research Fund

To celebrate and honor the long career of Professor Emeritus Seiji Naya, the Economics Department has established three scholarship programs for first- and third-year students, and an academic travel fund. More information about the awards can be found here.

Professor Naya served as an educator from 1969 through 2004. In that time, he established close ties between the department and Thammassat University in Bangkok, served as director of the state Department of Business, Economic Development and Tourism (1995-2002), and played an influential role in Asia-Pacific economic discourse.

Econ Alum Profiled in Malamalama

Asian-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) ambassador Lauren Moriarty was among the University of Hawaii alumni showcased in this month's Malamalama. Ambassador Moriarty has taken her degree to a variety of foreign locales in the course of her work and now resides in Washington, D.C., with her family. We wish her many more years of success!

Congratulations to HCEE Teacher of the Year, Richie Kibota!

The Hawaii Council on Economic Education (HCEE) has announced their choices for Economics Teacher of the Year, and high school teacher Richie Kibota was selected. Mr. Kibota graduated from the Economics program at UH Manoa with a BA, and now teaches at Iolani School. He has coached students to six economics competitions, both here in Hawaii and on the mainland. The full report on the awardees is available here.