Leighton K.F. Liu

Associate Professor

Office: SoA 301N

Phone: (808) 956-8311

Fax: (808) 956-7778

E-mail: leighton@hawaii.edu

Area of Specialty: design, graphics, vernacular architecture

Education

Master of Fine Arts in Visual Design, University of Hawai‘i at Mänoa (1971)

Bachelor of Fine Arts in Visual Design, University of Hawai‘i at Mänoa (1968)

Work Experience

Since the fall of 1971 I have been a faculty member in the School of Architecture, serving as associate professor (1983-present); assistant professor (1976-83); and instructor (1971-76). In addition to teaching, I have taken on numerous responsibilities such as faculty senate chair (2005- present); personnel committee (member & chair, 1980-present); academic advisor (1976-present); gallery coordinator (1971-75; 95-2004); coordinator of student affairs (1994-98); scholarships and awards chair (1986-96); graduate program chair (1990-93); administrative assistant (1976-83); and chair of numerous other committees, programs and special events. I have served as a presenter, moderator or participant at many national and international conferences and have written several articles in various journals. Before joining the architecture program, I worked as a shop director/technical consultant (1969-70) and as a lecturer (1968-69) in the UHM Department of

Art. Since 1968 I have also been the principal of my own firm—dba Leighton Liu Design (1968- 88) and Design Strategies (1988-present)—specializing in graphic design, exhibition design, sculpture, architectural and interior design.

Awards

In 1996 I received the UHM Board of Regents Excellence in Teaching Medal, and in 1992 I received the National Educator Honor Award from The American Institute of Architecture Students in Washington, DC. I also received Merit Teaching Awards from UHM in 1977, 1982, and 1986.

International Experiences

A firm believer in travel as an invaluable educational experience and as the best way to learn about other cultures, I have traveled extensively in Europe, Asia and Southeast Asia, visiting 28 different countries in the process. I have directed eight highly successful architectural study abroad programs in Europe and I have escorted four different tour groups (commercial tours) to Europe and Africa. I was instrumental in setting up most of our school’s travel scholarships and internships in foreign offices. On the UH Mänoa campus, I have served on the Study Abroad Council and its Proposal Review Committee (1988-2003); the Office of International Affairs’ International Agreement Fund Committee (1996-98); the OFDAS Honors and Awards Committee (1998); the Graduate Division’s ad hoc review committee for Fulbright Scholarships (1997); the Mildred Towill Scholarship selection committee (1990); the Advisory Council on the International Relations of the University of Hawai‘i (1975-77); and the Study Abroad Committee and European Subcommittee (1974-77). In addition, I have spent 14 summers working at The American School in Japan’s Summer Day Camp program, which annually serves approximately 1,300 Japanese students at the elementary and middle school levels. My responsibilities there have ranged from teaching English, to serving as an activity specialist, developing new programs, assisting with staff development, and directing special events.

Service Activities

Throughout my career, I have been extremely active in service activities at the school, university and community levels. At the campus level, I presently am a member of the All Campus Council of Faculty Senate Chairs (ACCFSE) and the search advisory committee for a new dean for the School of Architecture and the search advisory committee for the UHM Vice Chancellor for Students (recently completed). I have helped to conduct program reviews for the Office of the Vice President for Academic Affairs and the Office of the Vice President for Student Affairs as well as the Graduate Division; I was a member of the Senate of the Graduate Division (1990-93) and the A&S Faculty Senate (1972-75); I have served as a departmental liaison for the Cooperative Education Program’s Walt Disney Imagineering design competition since its inception in 1991; and as a member of the Academic Grievance Committee (1978-80), I helped draft the current UHM academic grievance procedures for students. At the community level, I have served on the executive board of the Judiciary History Center (1994-98); I was a member of an art advisory committee for the State Foundation on Culture and the Arts (1994-97); and I have served as a juror, consultant or designer on a pro bono basis for numerous groups, including the Hawai‘i State Department of Education, The American Institute of Architects, Waipahu Cultural Garden Park, the Governor’s Turn-of-the-Year Conference VII, the Hawai‘i Food Bank, Punahou School, the Jean Charlot Foundation, the Boy Scouts of America, and the Friends of Foster Gardens.