The University of Hawaii unveiled the preliminary designs today for its future Daniel K. Inouye Center for Democratic Center, which is slated for the Manoa campus. Check out the video on Vimeo here. The state-of-the-art center is meant to honor the late senator and focus on U.S. history and government, public service and leadership, democracy […]
Alia Wong
Alia Wong previously covered education news for Civil Beat.
A Honolulu native, Alia returned to the islands in May 2012 after graduating from Boston University with degrees in journalism and Latin American studies.
Alia was a longtime intern at Civil Beat before landing her position as a reporter-host. One of her stories, “A Lost Child of Kalaupapa,” won her the 2011 Society of Professional Journalists Hawaii Chapter award for best online feature writing.
But not all her intern assignments at Civil Beat have been as glamorous. During the summer of 2012, she had to tour (read: smell) some of Oahu’s nastiest bathrooms for her story The Dirty Dozen: The State of Honolulu’s Public Restrooms.
She sincerely hopes her editors remember she’s no longer an intern.
Before the birth of Civil Beat, Alia wrote for Honolulu Weekly. She also had a number of jobs while in Boston, including as a fellow in Boston University’s writing center and a research assistant on a long-term project that analyzed the relationship among the Mexican Revolution, international cinema and transnational politics.
Alia is a self-proclaimed globetrotter and will do anything she can to travel to new places. She developed a fascination with Latin America while in high school and hasn’t been able to keep herself away since. Most recently she traveled to Ecuador, where she lived and studied for six months.
You can follow Alia on Twitter at @aliaemily
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UH Manoa One of ‘Least Desirable’ Colleges in Country, Online Analysis Suggests
The University of Hawaii at Manoa is one of the least popular schools in the country, according to an analysis by eCollegeFinder.org, an online resource for prospective college students. The website recently put together a map showing the “Most Desirable” universities in each state — in other words the schools that received the most undergraduate […]
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East Hawaii Charter School Gets $618K from State to Plan New Campus
Gov. Neil Abercrombie has released $618,000 for the Big Island’s Volcano School of Arts & Sciences to plan and design a new campus in Volcano Village. The campus is slated for an existing 3.5-acre site at Keakealani School, which the charter school is currently leasing from the state for its middle-school classes. The idea is […]
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UH Presidential Finalist Wiercinski Makes First Public Appearance, Garners Criticism for Military Background
In his first public forum with the University of Hawaii community, Francis Wiercinski, one of two finalists for UH presidency, was met with criticism over his ties to the military and his lack of experience in academia. Wiercinski most recently founded a consulting firm focused on strategic engagement and business development throughout the Asia-Pacific region. […]
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Hawaii Sen. Jill Tokuda Receives National ‘Champion for Charters’ Award
Hawaii state Sen. Jill Tokuda, chairwoman of the education committee, received a “Champion for Charters” award this evening for her leadership on local efforts to improve charter school governance and accountability. Tokuda was one of several elected federal, state and local politicians — including US. Sen. Mark Kirk, U.S. Rep. George Miller and New York […]
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UH Presidential Finalists to Participate in Public Forums Statewide
The University of Hawaii has released the public forum schedule for its two presidential finalists: Incumbent UH President and former Director of Information Technology David Lassner and Frank Wiercinski, a former commanding general with the U.S. Army. The two candidates will be touring each of the university’s 10 campuses to meet with students, faculty and the […]
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First-Ever Student from Lanai Receives Full-Ride Gates Millennium Scholarship
For the first time ever, a student from the tiny island of Lanai has earned the prestigious Gates Millennium scholarship. Tyler Vega Pascua, a senior at Lanai High and Elementary School, was one of 1,000 recipients chosen this year. The scholarship means Pascua will have a free ride all the way through her doctorate should […]
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New Resolution Urges UH to Strengthen Sexual Violence Prevention Efforts
The University of Hawaii at Manoa’s handling of sexual violence on campus is under lots of scrutiny now that it’s being formally investigated by the U.S. Department of Education as part of a high-profile probe into potential violations of Title IX at 55 colleges across the country. Title IX prohibits gender discrimination at colleges that receive […]
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UH Makes Public Names of 2 Finalists for University Presidency
Drumroll, please. Nearly a year after embarking on its search for the next University of Hawaii president, the Board of Regents committee charged with leading the effort has narrowed its list down to two candidates. And as promised, the committee has made the names public. They are David Lassner, the university’s long-serving IT executive who’s currently […]