Heather Takamatsu

Heather Takamatsu serves as Associate Professor and Counselor in Student Services at University of Hawai'i - Leeward Community College, actively supporting student success through direct counseling and institutional leadership.

Her academic credentials include:

• BEd in Elementary Education, University of Hawai'i at Mānoa
• MS in Counseling Psychology, Chaminade University

Professor Takamatsu specializes in community college student development, integrating counseling psychology with academic advising. Her work focuses on crisis intervention through the Behavioral Intervention Team, first-year student transition programs, and holistic academic support systems that address both educational and personal barriers to success. She employs developmental frameworks from her elementary education background to scaffold student growth.

As a core member of campus support structures, she contributes to New Student Orientation, STAR programming, and institutional policy through the Academic and Institutional Support Committee. Her counseling practice emphasizes culturally responsive interventions for Hawai'i's diverse student population, with particular attention to first-generation college students and those experiencing academic distress.