Board of Directors

May Okihiro is a pediatrician and community researcher at the Waiʻanae Coast Comprehensive Health Center. She is also an associate professor at the University of Hawaiʻi John A. Burns School of Medicine (UH JABSOM), Department of Pediatrics. Dr. Okihiro is passionate about reducing pediatric health disparities in Hawaiʻi, especially childhood obesity and asthma. She actively promotes health and wellness of Hawaii’s families through her research, advocacy and clinical work and has served on Hawaii’s Obesity Prevention Task Force since its inception in 2012.

Dr. Jennifer José Lo is medical director of Hawai‘i Health Partners (HHP), a subsidiary of Hawai‘i Pacific Health (HPH). Dr. Lo and her team work to improve health care quality, efficiency, enhance patient experience, and reduce the overall total cost of care by providing guidance to HHP clinicians, overseeing clinical ancillary programs, and supporting other HPH initiatives. She previously served as medical director at the Boston Public Health Commission and the Greater Roslindale Medical and Dental Center. She has also practiced as primary care physician for the last 20 years, initiating her career at clinics in Hale‘iwa and on Lāna‘i. Jennifer was raised in Northern California and received her medical degree from the University of California, San Diego School of Medicine, and completed her residency training at the University of Hawaii Family Medicine Residency Program.

Taase Law Office

Ti practices as a Criminal Defense Attorney at Taase Law Office. Previously, Ti served as the Deputy Public Defender for the State of Hawai‘i. He has been a part of hundreds of jury trials, close to one hundred bench trials, and has argued twice before the Hawai‘i Supreme Court. He brings experience as a law clerk and bailiff responsible for the execution of the court’s calendar. He has committed his professional life to public service.

Justin Puckett is the Hawai‘i Market Leader for Humana. In this role, Justin is responsible for the development, expansion, and management of Humana’s business presence and financial success in Hawai‘i. This role has broad responsibilities in strategic growth, P&L management, product, provider engagement, and STARS, among others.

Justin’s purpose and passion is to transform how healthcare is perceived and delivered. Prior to Humana, Justin was at Hawai’i Pacific Health (HPH) an integrated delivery network, where he was the Director of Value-Based Care Transformation and Performance. Before joining HPH, Justin spent seven years at Kaiser Permanente, where he served in roles focused on finance, strategy, analytics, and government programs, including serving as the financial and analytical leader for the Hawai’i Region’s Medicare and Medicaid business lines.

Additionally, Justin was a co-founder & CFO of Pear Suite, Inc (TS LA 2022), a cloud-based platform that enables healthcare workers to identify and address patients’ health and social service needs in a scalable, cost-effective, and person-centered way.

Justin obtained his Executive MBA at the University of Hawai’i in May 2021. During his free time, Justin enjoys spending time with his family, reading, running, hiking, snowboarding, and playing soccer.

Jonathan Ching is currently the Head of Government Relations for Kaiser Permanente Hawai‘i. In this role, he develops and shapes strategies regarding issues with government relations in collaboration with regional leadership. He also represents Kaiser Permanente before community, governmental, and regulatory bodies. Jon previously worked for the Office of Hawaiian Affairs, former Hawai‘i Lieutenant Governor Shan Tsutsui, and clerked for former Hawai‘i Supreme Court Associate Justice Richard Pollack. He obtained his B.A. from Lewis & Clark College and earned his law degree from the William S. Richardson School of Law.

Jon recently completed a one-year term as the Chair of the Governing and Nonprofit Boards for Ho‛okāko‛o Corporation, which is a private, non-profit organization that operates three public conversion charter schools. He also recently joined the Project Vision Hawaii O‘ahu Advisory Board. He previously served on the Young Ambassador Board of the Blue Planet Foundation and as the Vice-Chair of the City & County of Honolulu Neighborhood Commission. Jon is a member of Pacific Business News’ 40 under 40 Class of 2020, which recognizes young business leaders in the state of Hawai‘i, and a member of the Pacific Century Fellows Class of 2024.

With more than 20 years of experience in Research Administration, Tammy brings extensive expertise in both pre- and post-award grant development and implementation. Her background includes directing and consolidating two community hospital Institutional Review Boards (IRBs), developing comprehensive IRB policies and procedures, and providing guidance on informed consent and research compliance.Tammy has a deep understanding of the complexities involved in managing multiple IRBs and has successfully negotiated clinical trial agreements with Clinical Research Organizations and pharmaceutical companies. She has served as a member of the Data Safety Monitoring Board, an appointed advisor to the University of Hawai‘i’s Financial Conflict of Interest Board, and a member of the University’s Committee on Human Subjects. Most recently, Tammy contributed to the successful submission and approval of a new Primary Care Residency Program for The Queen’s Medical Center.

Hale Makua

Carissa serves as the Manager for Health Pathways for Hale Makua Health Services and has over a decade of experience promoting community health, nutrition and wellness.  She has extensive knowledge of health marketing and is passionate for community engagement and bringing people together to foster collaboration and spur innovation. She previously served as Community Engagement Lead for Blue Zones Hawai‘i (Central Maui) and nutrition education wellness and promotions for the University of Hawai‘i at Mānoa.

Joyce Lee-Ibarra, MS, is founder and principal of JLI Consulting LLC, where she provides thought partnership and organizational capacity building to mission-driven organizations seeking to flex their learning muscles effectively. Her areas of expertise include equity-centered evaluation, facilitation, and qualitative community research. She previously served as Board President for the Hawaii Appleseed Center for Law & Economic Justice, and is a member of the ALICE Research Advisory Committee for Hawaii. Joyce received a BA in Anthropology and Molecular & Cell Biology from the University of California-Berkeley, and an MS from the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health.

Misty Pacheco is an Associate Professor in the Kinesiology and Exercise Sciences Department at the University of Hawaiʻi at Hilo, as well as a founding member of Maikaʻi Health Corporation, an innovative community health center in East Hawaiʻi built with a public health foundation and focused on education and training. Misty has nearly 17 years’ experience in the health field, having worked in the private and public health sectors, nonprofits, and global public health. She also served in the Peace Corps as a public health volunteer in Kenya. Dr. Pacheco’s research focuses on Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander (NHOPI) health disparities. Her current studies investigate HIV and oral health.

University of Hawai‘i, William S. Richardson School of Law, Medical-Legal Partnership for Children in Hawai‘i

Dina is a licensed attorney in the state of Hawai‘i and serves as a Faculty Specialist for the University of Hawaii at Mānoa, William S. Richardson School of Law. She was the co-founder and director of the Medical Legal Partnership for Children in Hawai‘i and co-director of the Health Policy Law Center. In earlier roles, she served as a community organizer, educator and advocate for social and community justice. She has extensive development and fundraising experience, all of it on behalf of the public sector.

Danette Wong Tomiyasu is an experienced leader in public health policy and systems with over 35 years of experience in governance and community-centered public health. She previously served as Deputy Director of the Health Resources Administration at the Hawaiʻi Department of Health, providing executive and fiscal oversight of core statewide public health programs and leading strategic planning, policy development, legislative engagement, and cross-sector collaboration. Her career spans government and nonprofit organizations, advancing prevention strategies, strengthening public–private partnerships, supporting workforce development, and promoting access to services across diverse populations. Dani holds an MBA in Healthcare Administration and BA in Psychology.