Gov. Josh Green is moving to shake up the University of Hawaiʻi’s top governing body, tapping Keith Amemiya and Marie Laderta for seats on the Board of Regents. The nominations, announced Tuesday, still need approval from the Hawaiʻi State Senate. If confirmed, both would begin five-year terms on July 1, stepping into key roles as the board navigates leadership changes and big-picture priorities across the islands.
Amemiya Brings Insider UH Chops and Business Clout
Amemiya arrives as the familiar UH insider with deep business roots. A longtime civic and business figure, he currently serves as senior vice president at Central Pacific Bank and has held leadership posts with Tradewind Group and the Hawaiʻi High School Athletic Association.
He also knows the UH system from the inside. Amemiya previously served as executive administrator and secretary to the Board of Regents and is a graduate of the William S. Richardson School of Law. Those details were outlined in a news release from the Office of the Governor.
Laderta Brings Deep State Hallway Experience
Laderta comes in as the veteran of Hawaiʻi’s bureaucratic maze, with nearly three decades in state government and the judiciary. Her résumé includes time as a deputy attorney general, deputy director of the Department of Taxation and director of the Department of Human Resources Development.
She now serves on the Labor and Industrial Relations Appeals Board and played a role in implementing the state’s ignition interlock law in an administrative adjudicator capacity. Those career details were reported by the Honolulu Star-Advertiser.
About the Board
The Board of Regents is the 11-member volunteer body that sets policy, oversees finances and charts long-term strategy for UH’s 10-campus system. Seats are allocated by county, with five for Honolulu County, two for Hawaiʻi County, two for Maui County, one for Kauaʻi County and one student regent. Regents serve without pay, a structure detailed on the University of Hawaiʻi website.
Next Steps: Senate Confirmation
The nominations now head to the Hawaiʻi State Senate, where committee hearings and public testimony will decide whether Amemiya and Laderta get the green light. Earlier this spring, the Candidate Advisory Council forwarded a slate of finalists that included both nominees, and the five-year appointments are scheduled to begin on July 1 if they are confirmed, as reported by Hawaii News Now.
What Is at Stake
If approved, the two will walk straight into a full agenda. The board is overseeing a national search for a standalone UH Mānoa chancellor while also weighing systemwide pressures that range from student housing and tuition to research priorities and workforce needs.
How regents balance the independence of individual campuses with a unified system strategy will help shape UH’s role in the state’s economy and higher education pipeline. Recent announcements about the Mānoa chancellor search highlight the regents’ central influence on leadership decisions, according to UH News.
Message From the Governor
“Keith and Marie are exactly the kinds of leaders we need guiding the future of our UH system,” Green said in the appointment announcement, citing Amemiya’s education and business ties alongside Laderta’s long record of public service. He argued that their backgrounds will help UH “serve our students, strengthen our workforce and drive innovation across our state.” The statement appears in a news release from the Office of the Governor.
If the Senate signs off, Amemiya and Laderta will officially join the board on July 1. Until then, they remain nominees, and residents who want to weigh in can keep an eye on board and legislative calendars for hearing dates and testimony instructions.
