STAND. COM. REP. NO. 3590

                                   Honolulu, Hawaii
                                                     , 2000

                                   RE:  GOV. MSG. NO. 277
                                        




Honorable Norman Mizuguchi
President of the Senate
Twentieth State Legislature
Regular Session of 2000
State of Hawaii

Sir:

     Your Committee on Health and Human Services, to which was
referred Governor's Message No. GM277, submitting for study and
consideration the nominations of:

DISABILITY AND COMMUNICATION ACCESS BOARD

     G.M. No. 277       KENNETH C.C. CHANG, JAN LORI FRIED,
                        AARON S. FUJII, GRETCHEN S. LAWSON, and
                        MARK B. MACANAS, for terms to expire
                        June 30, 2001;

                        RONALD K. AWA, HAROLD R. DECOSTA, DEAN M.
                        GEORGIEV, STEPHEN G. LARACUENTE,
                        DONALD A. MEDEIROS, and CHRISTINA M.
                        PILKINGTON, for terms to expire June 30,
                        2002; and

                        ANTHONY S. AKAMINE, RICHARD R. CHAVES,
                        FRANCINE M.L. AONA KENYON, LUCY MILLER,
                        Ph.D., PATRICIA M. NIELSEN, and OSCAR C.
                        PAEZ, JR., for terms to expire June 30,
                        2003,

begs leave to report as follows:

     Upon review of the background information submitted by the
nominees, your Committee finds that the nominees are qualified to
serve in the positions to which they have been nominated.  Your
Committee further finds that the nominees are being appointed
based on their professional credentials, integrity, and a desire

 
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for public service, and that they possess skills, abilities, and
experiences that are assets.

     Kenneth C.C. Ching is President and Principal Architect of
Innovative Architectural Designs, Inc., and President of
Residential Planning Consultants, Inc.  He is a Member of the
Neighborhood Board No. V (Kapahulu, St. Louis Heights), and has
been active in many community organizations, such as the Central
Oahu Care Givers Support Group, Honolulu Japanese Junior Chamber
of Commerce where he is a past President, and Diamond Head Lions
Club.

     Jan Lori Fried is an Assistant Professor at Kapiolani
Community College.  She is the current recipient of the Rotary
Grant for University Teachers to Serve in Developing Countries,
and serves on the Hawaii Supreme Court Committee on the
Certification of Court Interpreters, Hawaii State Coordinating
Council on Deafness, and Aloha State Association of the Deaf.
She has been a Board Member of the Hawaii Services on Deafness.

     Aaron S. Fujii is a Project Manager for Mitsunaga &
Associates, Inc.  He has been Vice President for Ka Lima Kokua,
Inc., and a member of the Manoa Youth Organization.

     Gretchen S. Lawson is Executive Director of the Kona
Association for Retarded Citizens.  She has been Director of
Vocational Services for Goodwill Industries of Honolulu,
Executive Director of the KCAA Pre-Schools of Hawaii, and Chair
of the West Hawaii Health and Human Services Council.  She is a
member of the West Hawaii Committee of the State Planning Council
for Persons with Disabilities.  She received the Vocational
Rehabilitation Award for Best Practices in the Pacific Region in
1994.

     Mark B. Macanas is a graphics technician for the Maui
Bulletin.  He has been a member of the Civil Air Patrol.

     Ronald K. Awa is an architect with Awa & Associates.  He has
been with the Vision Design Assistance Team of the City and
County of Honolulu, and the Architectural Access Committee.

     Harold R. DeCosta is a retired union officer and owns a
business.  He has served on the St. Louis Education Foundation
Board.

     Dean M. Georgiev is a health and life insurance agent.  He
belongs to the Hawaii Association of Insurance and Financial
Advisors.  He has been a member of the Waipahu Neighborhood
Board.

 
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     Stephen G. Laracuente is a special education resource
teacher at the Hawaii Center for the Deaf and Blind.  He holds a
Professional Special Education Certificate from Hawaii to teach
the hearing impaired and deaf.  He is President of the Aloha
State Association of the Deaf, and the Treasurer and a Board
Member of Hawaii Services on Deafness.  He has been with the
Hawaii Center for the Deaf and Blind Advisory Council and Straub
Rehabilitation Council.

     Donald A. Medeiros is Managing Director of Maui Economic
Opportunity, Inc.  He is past President and current member of the
Maui Non-Profit Executive Directors Association.  He has been
Committee Chair of the Maui Aloha United Way Fund Distribution
Committee.

     Christina M. Pilkington is a coordinator for the Americans
With Disabilities, County of Kauai.  She is with Kauai
Developmental Education Services.  She has been Area Director for
Kauai Special Olympics and has received the Easter Seals Advocate
Award.

     Anthony S. Akamine is with Starcom Sports Radio and Starcom
Wireless.  He is the past Chairperson of the Commission on
Persons with Disabilities.  He belongs to the International
Association of Administrative Professionals.

     Richard R. Chaves is a retired bank executive with the Bank
of Hawaii, where he served as Vice President and Americans with
Disabilities coordinator.  He has been a Member of the Commission
on Persons with Disabilities.  He is versed in employment law.

     Francine M.L. Aona Kenyon is a data entry clerk with
Staffing Partners.  She has been with the Hawaii Services on
Deafness, Hawaii State Coordinating Council on Deafness, Aloha
State Association of the Deaf as Board Member, and Hawaii Centers
for Independent Living as Board Member.

     Lucy Miller, Ph.D., is a marriage and family therapist in
private practice.

     Patricia M. Nielsen is Vice President of ParaTransit (Handi-
Van).  She has been Accessibility Program Manager for Tri-Met
(public transportation system in Portland, Oregon).  She has
received the Project ACTION Cooperation Award for Excellence in
Promoting Accessible Transportation, and has participated in the
National Transit Institute Disability Awareness Program.  She is
a Board Member of the National Easter Seals Project ACTION.


 
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     Oscar C. Paez, Jr., is an architect with the Department of
the Navy, Public Works Center, Pearl Harbor.  He has been Vice
President of the Filipino American League of Engineers and
Architects.  He has been with the Architectural Access Committee.

     Testimony in support of the nominees was received from the
Disability and Communications Access Board.

     As affirmed by the record of votes of the members of your
Committee on Health and Human Services that is attached to this
report, your Committee, after full consideration of the
background, character, experience, and qualifications of the
nominees, has found the nominees to be qualified for the
positions to which nominated and recommends that the Senate
advise and consent to the nominations.

                                   Respectfully submitted on
                                   behalf of the members of the
                                   Committee on Health and Human
                                   Services,



                                   ______________________________
                                   SUZANNE CHUN OAKLAND, Chair

 
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