Helen Turner

Dr. Helen Turner serves as Vice President for Strategy and Innovation and Professor of Biology at Chaminade University, with affiliate faculty status at the John A. Burns School of Medicine. Her decade-long leadership has transformed Chaminade into a national model for undergraduate STEM preparation, specifically targeting historically disenfranchised students and those overcoming socioeconomic or cultural barriers to inclusion.

Her research centers on systemic innovation in STEM education, evidenced by the Ho'oulu Program achieving 96% Native Hawaiian retention and 100% graduation rates, alongside Chaminade's Data Science Center—the foundation for Hawaii's first undergraduate Data Science degree. She pioneers inclusive excellence frameworks that address pipeline disparities through culturally responsive curriculum design and community-engaged scholarship.

Dr. Turner directs major federally funded initiatives including the NSF INCLUDES Data Science grant, Hawaii EPSCoR (as co-PI), NSF S-STEM scholarships, and the Howard Hughes Medical Institute (HHMI) Inclusive Excellence program. Her strategic partnerships with HDSI and state-of-the-art 2000 sq. ft. Data Science facility enable decision-support services for community organizations while training underrepresented talent.

She established Chaminade's Data Science Center—which encompasses certificate programs, summer immersion courses, and faculty recruitment—alongside the Ho'oulu Program. These initiatives operate within a campus ecosystem where 52% of STEM graduates pursue advanced degrees and 80% retain STEM careers, with Native Hawaiian retention reaching 90.5% under her leadership.