Green weighs three finalists for Big Island regents seat

Gov. Josh Green was weighing three Hawaiʻi Island finalists for one of the Big Island’s two seats on the University of Hawaiʻi Board of Regents, a choice that could reach far beyond campus politics and into tuition, programs and workforce training for East and West Hawaiʻi families.

The finalists are Chad Cabral, Makai Freitas and Wendy Laros. Whoever is selected would serve a five-year term starting July 1, 2026, after confirmation by the Hawaiʻi State Senate. The regents seat matters because the 11-member board holds exclusive jurisdiction over the internal structure, management and operation of the University of Hawaiʻi system, which is the state’s sole public higher education provider and includes UH Hilo and Hawaiʻi Community College.

For Hawaiʻi Island, the question is not just who has the strongest résumé, but who is best positioned to press the case for a campus system that reflects the realities of a county divided by geography and opportunity. The board includes five members from Honolulu, two from Hawaiʻi County, two from Maui County, one from Kauaʻi County and one student member, so one Big Island seat can influence how loudly island concerns are heard when the board weighs tuition, capital projects, academic offerings and student support.

Cabral brings the deepest direct ties to island education and youth development. Born and raised on Hawaiʻi Island, he graduated from Hawaiʻi Community College and UH Hilo, later earning a master’s degree in higher education administration. He has more than 20 years of nonprofit experience across Hawaiʻi County and now leads the Boys and Girls Club of the Big Island. His background points to a regent who could keep a close eye on student pathways, from local classrooms to campus enrollment to career preparation.

Freitas would bring a different set of priorities shaped by West Hawaiʻi labor and public service. He serves as a Hawaiian Homes commissioner for West Hawaiʻi and spent two decades as a longshoreman and union organizer. That mix could resonate with families looking for stronger workforce pipelines, more practical training and a regent who understands how education connects to paychecks, transportation and housing pressures on the island.

Laros, president and CEO of the Kona-Kohala Chamber of Commerce, represents 460 businesses and serves on community college and UH Hilo advisory boards. Her profile suggests a candidate focused on how the university feeds the local economy, especially in Kona and along the Kohala coast, where employers depend on trained workers and where students often stay only if the system matches island needs.

The Regents Candidate Advisory Council delivered the finalists to Green on April 9, after a March 18 application deadline set under Act 72, Session Laws of Hawaiʻi 2013. Brigitte Yoshino chairs the council, which thanked applicants for their service. Green had also appointed Keith Amemiya and Marie Laderta to the board on April 14, pending Senate confirmation, as the university enters a period of renewed turnover and long-range policy decisions.