Kamehameha Schools CEO Dee Jay Mailer has announced plans to retire at the end of 2014, giving the school’s board of trustees ample time to recruit a successor.
Mailer, who joined Kamehameha Schools as chief executive in January 2004, said in an email to faculty and staff that she was coordinating her retirement with the trustees and in connection with the unveiling of a new 2015-2030 strategic plan for the schools.
"Every strong organization plans for leadership succession well in advance," Mailer said in her email. "I believe more firmly than ever that the 2015-30 strategic plan should be supported by a new CEO, who will be inspired by the aspirations of the community for the coming 15 years, and will bring additional perspectives to the plan’s execution."
School officials say another announcement from the board is expected once the steps for choosing a successor are in place.
Micah Kane, chairman of the schools’ board of trustees, credited Mailer for supporting the school’s Hawaiian preference admissions policy, allowing the school to fulfill its mission of providing educational opportunities for Hawaiians.
"Her achievements as CEO have significantly expanded Kamehameha Schools’ reach within the Hawaiian community and our state, and have prepared Kamehameha Schools for continued and meaningful growth as we develop and implement our next strategic plan for 2015-30," Kane said in a news release. "The board is grateful for her immense contributions to Kamehameha Schools and her distinguished service as CEO."
Under Mailer’s leadership Kamehameha Schools advanced its 2000-15 strategic plan with significant growth in the number of Native Hawaiian children and families served and in the amount Kamehameha was able to spend on education, the school said. During her tenure, Kamehameha Schools’ endowment increased to more than $9 billion from about $6 billion.
Additionally, the school credited Mailer’s guidance with helping expand work with Hawaiian organizations and communities.
"We have led so many efforts, big and small, while unwavering in our protection of what we hold paramount, the will of our alii," Mailer said in her email. "These accomplishments are yours. They have energized and inspired me.
"They have given me the focus and drive to meet challenges that stand in our way and now give me the confidence to retire."
Before joining Kamehameha Schools, Mailer served as chief operating officer of the Global Fund, an independent, public-private partnership and multibillion-dollar trust based in Switzerland. Before that she held executive leadership positions at Health Net Inc. in Woodland Hills, Calif., and was CEO of the Kaiser Permanente Medical Care Program in Honolulu.
Mailer is a 1970 graduate of Kamehameha Schools and has a Bachelor of Science degree in professional nursing and an M.B.A. from the University of Hawaii at Manoa.
