The former University of Hawai'i was created by the Territory of Hawaiʻi in 1907 as a land-grant college of agriculture and mechanical arts and held its first classes in 1907.

The University of Hawaiʻi – West Oʻahu in Kapolei primarily serves students who reside in Honolulu's western and central suburban communities.

The board oversees all aspects of governance for the university system, including its internal structure and management.

[9] The university's governing board includes a current student appointed by the governor of Hawaiʻi to serve a two-year term as a full voting regent.

Senator Daniel Inouye and Tammy Duckworth both are veterans of the US military who were injured in the line of duty then later entered government service.

In addition, she was the first person to successfully develop a water-soluble form of chaulmoogra oil that was used for decades to relieve the symptoms of Hansen's disease (leprosy).

Ryuzo Yanagimachi, principal investigator of the research group that developed a method of cloning from adult animal cells, is still on the faculty.