University of Hawaii Mānoa

UH's 2015-2025 Strategic Plan states that it would "Increase enrollment across our undergraduate and graduate programs through recruitment strategies for targeted populations, including Native Hawaiian, underrepresented populations in the state, adult learners, transfer students, local students, and students from WICHE member states."

The UH Office of Public Health Studies Diversity Plan states that it would "Cultivate and sustain a diverse and multicultural student body that is reflective of Hawai‘i’s communities by recruiting, retaining, and graduating ethnic minority students that are under-represented in higher education."

Immediately following the Supreme Court's ruling on affirmative action, UH President David Lassner released a statement describing the Court's decision as "beyond disappointing." He relayed the University's commitment through the following statement, "Notwithstanding the new ban on use of race in admissions decisions, UH stands firmly committed to provide higher education opportunities for all, especially those historically underrepresented in our student bodies, as well as to continue to diversify our faculty, staff, and leadership."

They university hosted a virtual seminar on "Antiracist Parenting 301." The organizers provided each family with one free "race-conscious" book "to encourage parents and caregivers to engage with kids about race in becoming antiracist."

UH's "Implicit Bias Initiative" walks readers through a step by step guide in order to help in overcoming their own implicit biases. The initiative states, "The first step is to acknowledge that implicit bias exists and to document the ways in which implicit bias affects important outcomes in our community..."

The UH Office of Public Health Studies Diversity Plan states that the Office's Personnel Committee "will coordinate and provide a workshop every semester to the students, faculty, and staff on relevant topics, including sexual harassment and gender equity, LGBT communities,.." Additionally, "Workshops will guide the faculty in how these topics can be incorporated into their teaching."

The University's Department of Psychology released a "Statement on Anti-Black Racism and Violence" in October 2020. The statement began with the assertion that Americans are living in a “racism pandemic.” It recommenced that, "Racism has been a persistent and debilitating problem for racial minorities from the founding of this country, and disproportionally affects Black people in all facets of life."  Furthermore, the statement recognized the "countless innocent Black lives that have been gruesomely taken and willfully ignored by the justice system throughout American history." The Department stated its plan "to provide training for those interested in writing anti-racist legislation testimonials, invite diversity speakers to speak on Black Lives Matter and anti-racism," and to create "safe spaces for students from historically marginalized groups to share the racism they experience" while pledging "to track and be transparent about our progress in promoting anti-racism in our department, and invite community members to provide feedback at any time."

The Office of Faculty Excellence provides a number of workshops, including "Managing Bias & Assumptions." The training is for faculty to understand the "various biases and assumptions [they] all face in [their] daily work lives." The workshop offers "tips and tools on how to better manage potential biases and assumptions." 

The UH Office of Public Health Studies Diversity Plan states that its curriculum "includes culture and diversity-related competencies" and that "...faculty will strive to provide students with opportunities to collaborate with diverse communities as a part of their courses."

High School seniors accepted to the University can enroll in the Office of Multicultural Student Service's Hawai'i Undergraduate Initiative. Interested students must meet at least one of the requirements for eligibility, which include graduating from a "Hawaiʻi Title I School, Pell-Grant Eligibility," being "a member of an underrepresented community at the University of Hawaiʻi at Manoa," or "first generation to go to college." Students participating in the initiative are required to choose one dual-enrollment class from a list that includes "English 101, Ethnic Studies 101, and Educational Foundations 310." In Ethnic Studies 101 students learn the "basic concepts and theories for analyzing dynamics of ethnic group experiences," and focus particularly on "those represented in Hawai'i, and their relation to colonization, immigration, problems of identity, racism, and social class."

The University is an affirmative-action institution, which is reflected in its hiring procedures. The policy states that "before initiating recruitment, the Dean/Director/Provost or official designee shall refer to the current Affirmative Action Plan ... to determine if there is underutilization in the job group for which recruitment is to be carried out" and "if there are underrepresented groups, affirmative recruitment efforts should be made in addition to the minimum advertising specified."

During the semi-annual New Faculty Orientation, "new faculty are apprised of the diversity of our student body and the challenges of teaching in a multicultural academic environment."

On June 9, 2020, UH News published an article titled "UH leaders call for justice and an end to racism," which states that "Leaders from across the 10 campuses of the University of Hawaiʻi affirmed their support for the mass public demonstrations and the Black Lives Matter movement here in Hawaiʻi and beyond, in the aftermath of the death of George Floyd." The article also includes links to anti-racist statements made by department heads throughout the university.

In 2020, the University of Hawaiʻi Hamilton Library released a "Statement on Racial Justice" which explained it "stands with our black faculty, students, and all people of color across the US and Oceania." It also condemned and called "for an immediate end of police brutality and the dismantling of systems of oppression." Furthermore, the library condemned "federal and state actions that try to limit First Amendment rights for Black communities and communities of color while providing white supremacists an unrestricted platform." Finally, the Library committed to "continuing the difficult conversations and work needed to transform the current social order to a more just future for us all."

UH's Center for Research on Education, Diversity, and Excellence "promotes educators’ use of research-based strategies of effective practice for culturally and linguistically diverse students."

The Minority Health Research Training Program in Health Disparities, through UH and the National Institute of Health, "provides research training for 12 undergraduate and graduate students annually in community research in tropical medicine, infectious diseases, and social and behavioral health sciences." Eligible students "must be underrepresented in higher education and biomedical research defined by ethnic backgrounds including Native Hawaiians and other Pacific Islanders, Blacks and African Americans, Hispanic Americans or Latinos, American Indians and Alaska Natives; rural and low socioeconomic background, and other categories as defined by the NIH."

Formerly known as the Diversity and Equity Initiative Award, the SEED (Student Equity, Excellence, and Diversity) IDEAS (Inclusion, Diversity, Equity, Access, and Success) Initiative Award "facilitates diversity through dimensions that address culture, race, ethnicity, national origin, sexual orientation, gender, religion, and disability." Through the award, the University seeks to "facilitate the implementation of diversity initiatives" with projects "to meet the core value of the University of Hawaii system goal for diversity."

The university offers a course titled "Critical Race Theory and Philosophy" (PHIL 322) which is an "introduction to the work of philosophers whose writings aim to contribute to movements for racial justice."

UH's 2015-2025 Strategic Plan states, "Here at home in Hawai‘i, and across the United States, we face uncertainty, with challenges ranging from income inequality and social justice to health care and education."

The purpose of UH's Commission on Inclusion and Diversity is to "facilitate the creation of a university community that understands and celebrates social diversity and eliminates bigotry." The Commission focuses on three areas of diversity: "curriculum change, recruitment and retention of students, faculty and staff, and the campus climate."

UH's Department of Social Work is "committed to teaching and learning, challenge the status quo, advocate for social justice, that fight against racial, xenophobic, sexual violence in the society."

UH created a "Antiracist Parenting Resources" flyer which links to several external websites and includes a link to an organization called "Anti-racism resrouces [sic] for white people."

The University has an "Office of Multicultural Student Services" which is a program that conducts outreach activities and encourages "individuals from underrepresented groups and underserved communities to seek higher education." It also hosts experiential activities for University students and the larger community that promote "social justice and cross-cultural understanding in Hawaiʻi’s multiethnic society."

In January 2024, the University hosted the 2nd annual "Racial Healing" summit. The event was aimed at "promoting racial healing and reflection on the history, present, and future of Hawaiʻi."

Led by the Native Hawaiian Place of Learning Advancement Office, the University has "A Truth, Racial Healing & Transformation Campus Center" aimed to "bring about transformational and sustainable change." The center has committed to "preparing Racial Healing Circle facilitators," "creating online learning resources," and "investigating Hawai'i's complex story." The center regularly hosts events for students and the public.

The University sponsors an "Implicit Bias Initiative" with the mission to "engage in critical research, develop evidence-based resources and increase community awareness of implicit biases in Hawai‘i" and "promote a comprehensive understanding of implicit biases and their influence."

A 2021 report on the University by the Senior College and University Commission determined that "the institution maintained an array of nondiscrimination and affirmative action programs and policies, each contributing to mitigating bias and fostering a more inclusive campus climate."

The provost announced that there will be a "critical assessment of our policies and procedures with an eye towards equity and anti-racism through the work of the UH Mānoa Commission on Racism & Bias at the campus level, and through our participation in the Equity Action Framework with the National Association of System Heads (NASH) at the UH System level".

In spring of 2020, Provost Bruno officially established the "UH Mānoa Commission on Racism and Bias," which "examin[es] how we have responded to racism and bias at UH Mānoa and propos[es] ways to move forward together."

The University Library released a "Statement On Violence against Asian and Asian American communities" which contained the "Asian Pacific American Librarians’ Association’s 2021 COVID-19 anti-xenophobia and anti-racist information resources" on how to combat racism.

In January 2021, the University's Department of Anthropology released a "Position Statement on Race and Racism" addressing the political climate following the events on January 6th. The Department stated it "stands strongly beside the Black Lives Matter (BLM) movement and denounces arguments and actions taken against it." The statement denounced the federal government's "differential treatment" of BLM protests in 2020 compared to the then "recent invasion of Capitol Hill by white nationalists and others seeking to overturn the election." The Department stated, "There is clear evidence for the need of an honest and open rethinking about the ways that race and racism continue to shape our institutions of public life, including the university." Furthermore, the Anthropology Department emphasized its commitment to those who "have been impacted by racist behaviors at all levels" stating it is "ready to fulfill [its] kuleana (duty/responsibility) to confront abiding structures of racism and other systems of oppression based multiply on indigeneity, class, gender, sexuality, and disability."

The Commission on Racism and Bias' Policy Subcommittee reviewed "policies related to discrimination" and "provided substantive recommendations to update policies to be more effective." As of 2024, University policy revisions that "incorporate these recommendations" are underway.