Nicole Alia
Salis Reyes

Nicola Reyes of Educational Administration in the College of Education explicitly shares the vision of the UHM Strategic Plan: “the education of students is the core mission of the University; it is the reason we exist.” To be a faculty at home on Oʻahu means she is serving those who represent the potential and future of what our institutions of higher education could be. Her students respect that her pedagogy is grounded in social justice, saying that “her deep passion it and for education have shaped my future research.” A graduate student reflects on Dr. Reyes as not merely an “expert on qualitative research, but genuinely invested in fostering a collective and communal learning environment.” Graduate students speak to her mentoring practices of inviting them into co-presenting and co-authoring with her, providing an experience of “what it means to be a serious faculty mentor and researcher” inspiring students “to emulate the radical care with their own future students.” In the words of one: “She turned my Ph.D. experience from black and white into color.”