Keck Director Taft Armandroff Appointed to MKMB
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University of Hawaii at Hilo Chancellor Don Straney is pleased to announce the appointment of W.M. Keck Observatory Director Dr. Taft E. Armandroff to the Mauna Kea Management Board. The Mauna Kea Management Board advises the Office of Mauna Kea Management and the University of Hawaii at Hilo Chancellor in the management of the University of Hawaii's managed lands on Mauna Kea.
Dr. Armandroff has been the Director of the W.M. Keck Observatory since 2006 and is a widely recognized research astronomer in the fields of dwarf spheroidal galaxies, globular clusters and dark matter. In addition to directing the multifaceted Keck observatory operations, Armandroff is very involved in Big Island community outreach. He oversees Keck Observatory's monthly public lectures on astronomy, the free community  Solar System Walk held each year in Waimea, Keck Astronomers- in- the-Schools program, Akamai workforce initiative supporting three students each summer, and shares astronomy discoveries from Mauna Kea with the local community. Armandroff is also an appointed member of the Hawaii Innovation Council.
Dr. Armandroff is a graduate of Wesleyan University with a B.A. in astronomy with high honors. He also earned an M.S., M. Phil., and a Ph.D. in astronomy from Yale University.
Dr. Armandroff joins Chair Greg Mooers, First Vice Chair Herring Kalua, Second Vice Chair/Secretary Lisa Hadway, Pat Bergin, Dr. Greg Chun and Hannah Kihalani Springer on the Mauna Kea Management Board.
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 ABOUT
The Office of Mauna Kea Management is charged with day-to-day management of the Mauna Kea Science Reserve as prescribed in the Master Plan. The adoption of the Mauna Kea Science Reserve Master Plan by the University of Hawaii Board of Regents in June 2000 marked a critical milestone in the management of Mauna Kea.
Meetings and public hearings spanning a period of nearly two years went into the formulation of the Master Plan, which established management guidelines for the next 20 years. The Master Plan reflected the community's deeply rooted concerns over the use of Mauna Kea, including respect for Hawaiian cultural beliefs, protection of environmentally sensitive habitat, recreational use of the mountain, and astronomy research.
It places the focus of responsibility with the University of Hawaii at Hilo (UHH). The UH-Hilo Chancellor established the Office of Mauna Kea Management and the Board of Regents established the Mauna Kea Management Board in the fall of 2000. The Mauna Kea Management Board in turn formed Kahu Ku Mauna, a council comprised of Hawaiian cultural resource persons to serve as advisors.
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 OMKM Mission
To achieve harmony, balance and trust in the sustainable management and stewardship of Mauna Kea Science Reserve through community involvement and programs that protect, preserve and enhance the natural, cultural and recreational resources of Mauna Kea while providing a world-class center dedicated to education, research and astronomy.
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