Previous LAAC Members
The Language Access Advisory Council assists the Executive Director of the Office of Language Access by providing input on: implementation and compliance with Hawai`i’s language access laws; the quality of oral and written language services provided under the law; and the adequacy of a state agency or covered entity’s dissemination and training of its employees likely to have contact with Limited English Proficient (LEP) persons, its policies and procedures for language services, its competency in working effectively with in-person and telephone interpreters, and its understanding of the dynamics of interpretation between clients, providers, and interpreters.
Dominic Inocelda, Chair
President, Inter-Agency Council on Immigrants/Refugees (IAC)
Mr. Inocelda is the president of the Inter-Agency Council for Immigrant Services which was instrumental in the passage of the language access bill. He has a master’s degree in social work from the University of Hawai`i. He is employed by the Susannah Wesley Community Center where he has served in various program management and administrative functions since 1982. He has worked with limited and non-English speakers, the elderly, public housing residents, and persons with serious mental illnesses.
Gerald Ohta, Vice-chair
Affirmative Action Office, Hawaiʻi State Department of Health
Mr. Ohta has been working for the Hawai`i State Department of Health as its Affirmative Action Officer since 1981. He has worked with schools, universities, enforcement agencies, and others to improve access for limited English-speaking persons. Mr. Ohta brings to the council his knowledge of contacts with advocates, organizations, and agencies in other parts of the U.S.
Helena Manzano
Executive Director, Office of Language Access (OLA)
LAAC – Ex Officio Member
Helena Manzano is the Executive Director of the Hawai‘i State Office of Language Access (OLA). Prior to her appointment to OLA in 2015, she was at the State Department of Human Services (DHS) managing the agency’s Limited English Proficiency (LEP) Project, which supports and coordinates policies and practices that improve access to DHS programs and services for LEP persons. From 2009 to 2013, she was a planning specialist for the State Department of the Attorney General’s Crime Prevention and Justice Assistance Division. Her work involved planning for and administering the State’s VAWA (Violence Against Women Act) and VOCA (Victims of Crime Act) federal grants for criminal justice initiatives and victim services. Her nonprofit sector experience include: program manager of culturally / linguistically appropriate services for underserved victims of domestic violence and sexual assault; clinical case manager for children and adults with mental health issues; and counselor at a residential treatment facility for women and children suffering from drug and substance abuse. Born in Manila, Philippines, Helena immigrated to Hawai‘i in her early teens with her parents and 3 siblings. She is bilingual in Tagalog and English and has a Master’s in Social Work degree from the University of Hawai‘i at Manoa.
Lito Asuncion
Member at-large
Mr. Asuncion works as a program planner for the Hawai`i County Office of Aging. He previously worked as an immigration information specialist for the Hawaii County Office of Management, and as a program evaluator/trainer for the Hawai`i/American Samoa Bilingual Education Support Center.
Mary Santa Maria
Public Health Educator, Hawai`i State Department of Health, County of Maui
Ms. Mary Santa Maria is a Public Health Educator with the Maui District Health Office and the Chronic Disease Prevention Branch of the State Department of Health. She is involved with language access, medical interpreting training, and health services access for Limited English Proficient persons at community and state agencies. She holds a master’s degree in public health from the University of Hawai`i at Manoa. She is a trained interpreter and conducts interpreter training programs through the UH Maui College Edventure program.
Rebeca ZamoraHawai`i Interpreter Action Network
Ms. Rebeca Zamora is the newly appointed member of the Language Access Advisory Council representing a professional interpreter organization. Rebeca was born and raised in Costa Rica and is a registered Spanish court interpreter with the Hawai`i State Judiciary. She has been a member of Hawai`i Interpreters Action Network (HIAN) since 2009.
Currently she works for the Hawai`i Immigrant Justice Center as a community consultant in the Hispanic Family Violence Awareness Project, and with Lionbridge Technologies interpreting at individual hearings for the Executive Office for Immigration Review.