In 2017-18 the Hawaiʻi State Legislature created a “last dollar” scholarship program for the UH Community College System. The “last dollar” concept means that Hawaiʻi Promise covers any remaining financial needs for qualified students that are not covered by other financial aid. The aid covers all direct education costs including tuition, fees, books, supplies and transportation for eligible students. To be eligible for Hawaiʻi Promise, a student must qualify for in-state tuition, be enrolled in a degree seeking program at one of the community colleges and carry at least six credits per semester. The program was established with $2.5 million in state funding. In academic year 2017-18 1,443 Community College Students received Hawaiʻi Promise grants totaling $1.7 million.lii
Universities in general and research institutions in particular play a role in economic development through general and applied research, extramural funding, and collaboration with industry sectors. The University of Hawaiʻi Office of Innovation and Commercialization tracks the University’s performance in research and commercialization activities.
The Office of Innovation and Commercialization is guided by the Hawaiʻi Innovation Initiative (HII) articulated in the University’s strategic plan whose goal is to “Create more high-quality jobs and diversify Hawaiʻi‘s economy by leading the development of a $1 billion innovation, research, education and training enterprise that addresses the challenges and opportunities faced by Hawaiʻi and the world.” liii
The Innovation Initiative has three strategies:
The areas of focus related to the third strategy are:
In 2019, the University received $421.9 million in extramural awards, 66.5% of which was from the Federal government 15.7% from the state of Hawaiʻi, and 17.8% from other sources. UH Mānoa (74.6%) and the UH System (11.5%) accounted for 86% of the awards, with UH Hilo (4.1%), UH West Oʻahu (1.9%) and the Community Colleges (8.0%) accounting for the remainder.
In Fiscal 2018, the University had $276.4 million in research and development expenditures about 60% of which were from Federal programs, down -11.6% compared with the average for the prior five years. The following chart shows total research and development expenditures for the University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa compared to its defined set of peer institutions.
| FY 2018 | Previous 5 year Average | University of Hawaiʻi Mānoa | $276,388 | $312,817.2 | University of New Mexico | $251,322 | $234,994.0 | Oregon State University | $272,433 | $246,060.0 | Mississippi State University | $244,102 | $224,586.0 | Colorado State University | $374,955 | $321,704.2 | University of Kentucky | $393,034 | $345,548.6 | University of Illinois Chicago | $361,690 | $356,042.2 | University of Utah | $552,306 | $445,926.6 | University of South Florida | $581,561 | $499,451.6 | University of Arizona | $687,066 | $610,087.4 |
|---|
Source: University Office of Innovation and Commercialization
The University Office of Innovation and Commercialization tracks “inventions disclosed,” U.S. patents issued, licenses and options executed, royalties and the number of new start-up companies from university activities. The following chart summarizes these activities since 2015 and the goals for 2019-2020.
| FY 2015 Actual | FY 2016 Actual | FY 2017 Actual | FY 2018 Actual | FY 2019 Actual | FY 2020 Goal | FY 2021 Goal | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Inventions Disclosed | 59 | 50 | 52 | 41 | 41 | 52 | 55 |
| U.S. Patents Issued | 8 | 11 | 8 | 7 | 5 | 19 | 20 |
| License/Options Executed | 2 | 12 | 12 | 14 | 7 | 12 | 13 |
| Active Licenses/Options | 97 | 102 | 107 | 117 | 135 | 137 | 144 |
| Royalties Received (000s) | $265,974 | $408,513 | $288,752 | $150,172 | $206,687 | na | na |
| Start-Ups/New Companies | 2 | 8 | 6 | 2 | 7 | 8 | 8 |
University policy (EP 12.205) specifies the conditions determining patent rights. Essentially, the University has exclusive patent rights when a patent is developed through any research, development or program funded by the University or with the use of its equipment, facilities, or personnel. The inventor has exclusive patent rights only if the invention or discovery has been made independent of any University support. A waiver of the University’s claim for patent rights may be given with the approval of the President for inventions that were made with the aid of University facilities or funds. The University of Hawaiʻi Office of Innovation and Commercialization sponsors a program titled “UH Innovation Impact Challenges.” The goal of the program is to “create University + Industry/Community/Government partnerships that leverage UH expertise and creativity to inspire cross-disciplinary collaboration, foster the development of novel and innovative solutions to address Hawaiʻi’s challenges, and create opportunities that impact Hawaiʻi’s economy.”
The UH Office of Innovation and Commercialization has also developed an “Innovation and Entrepreneurship Pathway” with programs to foster development from idea generation to market readiness. Extramural funding through grants, contracts, and awards is a major source of revenue for the University; rules, regulations, and incentives for faculty to engage in the pursuit of extramurally funded projects are likely to be key factors for success in growing these awards.
The University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa is the largest research enterprise in the state, with an essential role in achieving economic diversification. The University, in partnership with the business community, plans to create innovation clusters that link fundamental scientific discovery with applied research and economic development. Research at the Mānoa campus has been recognized for pioneering work in oceanography, astronomy, Pacific Islands and Asian area studies, linguistics, education, tropical agriculture, cancer, and genetics.
In FY 2019 UH Mānoa colleges and departments were awarded $314.5M in research contracts and grants. The three programs with the highest awards were the School of Ocean and Earth Science and Technology ($91.1M), the John A. Burns School of Medicine ($53.1M), and the College of Natural Sciences ($36.6M). These three programs accounted for 57.5% of the total awards for the Mānoa campus.lv
| Unit | $ Award |
|---|---|
| School of Ocean and Earth Science and Technology | $91,118,186 |
| John A. Burns School of Medicine | $53,062,041 |
| College of Natural Science | $36,609,301 |
| College of Education | $27,932,378 |
| Cancer Center | $23,137,759 |
| Institute for Astronomy | $18,722,579 |
| College of Social Science | $15,766,251 |
| College of Tropical Agriculture and Human Resources | $14,032,537 |
| All others | $34,148,775 |
Source: UH Office of Research Services Annual Report 2019 Extramural Awards and Expenditures Figure 9a
Some of UH Mānoa’s individual departments have been particularly successful in obtaining research contracts and grants. The following list includes individual departments that have received more than $5M in awards in FY2019. (Where the Department and College are the same, the award was given to the College as part of its overall award).
| Department | College | Award Amount |
|---|---|---|
| Center for Disability Studies | College of Education | $11,787,886 |
| College of Education | College of Education | $7,301,949 |
| Department of Botany | College of Natural Sciences | $26,135,975 |
| Social Science Res. Inst. | College of Social Sciences | $5,045,332 |
| Urban and Regional Planning | College of Social Sciences | $7,246,975 |
| Institute for Astronomy | Institute for Astronomy | $18,772,579 |
| Department of Pediatrics | John A. Burns School of Medicine | $5,231,460 |
| Department of Psychiatry | John A. Burns School of Medicine | $5,031,083 |
| John A. Burns School of Medicine | John A. Burns School of Medicine | $9,640,161 |
| Hawaiʻi Institute Of Geophysics & Planetology | SOEST | $10,431,509 |
| Hawaiʻi Institute of Marine Biology | SOEST | $6,139,984 |
| Hawaiʻi Natural Energy Institute | SOEST | $9,174,636 |
| Joint Institute for Marine and Atmospheric Research | SOEST | $19,255,606 |
| SOEST | SOEST | $13,558,093 |
| Sea Grant College Program | SOEST | $6,288,450 |
| Cancer Epidemiology | UH Cancer Center | $11,903,090 |
| UH Cancer Center | UH Cancer Center | $5,478,281 |
Source: UH Office of Research Services Annual Report 2019 Extramural Awards and Expenditures Figure 9a
Research at the University of Hawaiʻi Hilo is focused on place-based, applied research of short- and long-term opportunities to benefit the people of Hawaiʻi Island and the State. Areas of focus include:
Research laboratories include:
Research grants and awards for the University of Hawaiʻi at Hilo totaled $17.2M in FY 2019, with the College of Arts and Sciences receiving the largest share of the awards ($5.5M or 27.9% of the total).
| Unit | $ Award |
|---|---|
| College of Arts & Science | $5,492,465 |
| Vice Chancellor Student Affairs | $3,925,512 |
| Vice Chancellor Research | $2,076,445 |
| College of Agriculture and Forestry | $1,527,095 |
| Hawaiian | $1,324,631 |
| Chancellor UHH | $1,148,825 |
| Hawaiʻi SBDC | $818,278 |
| All others | $873,901 |
Source: UH Office of Research Services Annual Report 2019 Extramural Awards and Expenditures Figure 9b
The Economic Development Administration within the U.S. Department of Commerce has funded a public-private partnership between the University and Sultan Ventures to expand XLR8UH, a targeted fund that provides seed funding for seed-stage startups in Hawaiʻi. The program has a five year goal of investing in 27 startups that, in turn, are expected to raise more than $76 million in additional funding.lvi
Within the University of Hawaiʻi Community College system, Career and Technical Education (CTE) programs and General Pre-Professional programs annually assess their performance based on three criteria: ARPD lviii
The programs are rated “healthy,” “cautionary,” or “unhealthy,” based on those definitions and the program’s performance. When assessing demand, a program could be unhealthy based on producing too many or too few graduates for the demand in that county.
Each of the ARPDs includes a narrative analysis of the program, an action plan, and resource implications. The action plans do not uniformly contain assignments of responsibility or timelines for completion.
The following table summarizes the most recent ARPDs for CTE programs:
| Program Demand Healthy | Program Demand Cautionary | Program Demand Unhealthy | Program Efficiency Healthy | Program Efficiency Cautionary | Program Efficiency Unhealthy | Program Effectiveness Healthy | Program Effectiveness Cautionary | Program Effectiveness Unhealthy | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hawaiʻi CC | 71% | 14% | 14% | 52% | 44% | 4% | 29% | 64% | 7% |
| Honolulu CC | 88% | 0% | 12% | 24% | 72% | 4% | 48% | 48% | 4% |
| Kapiʻolani CC | 71% | 14% | 14% | 67% | 33% | 0% | 62% | 24% | 14% |
| Kauaʻi CC | 67% | 11% | 22% | 33% | 56% | 11% | 50% | 44% | 6% |
| Leeward CC | 80% | 0% | 20% | 63% | 38% | 0% | 53% | 47% | 0% |
| UH Maui College | 67% | 13% | 21% | 43% | 48% | 9% | 42% | 38% | 21% |
| Windward CC | 33% | 0% | 67% | 50% | 33% | 17% | 0% | 83% | 17% |
| Healthy | Healthy % | Cautionary | Cautionary % | Unhealthy | Unhealthy % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hawaiʻi CC | 16 | 57.1% | 11 | 39.3% | 1 | 3.6% |
| Honolulu CC | 13 | 65.0% | 5 | 25.0% | 2 | 10.0% |
| Kapiʻolani CC | 12 | 57.1% | 9 | 42.9% | - | - |
| Kauaʻi CC | 6 | 33.3% | 12 | 66.7% | - | - |
| Leeward CC | 11 | 68.8% | 4 | 25.0% | 1 | 6.2% |
| UH Maui College | 10 | 41.7% | 14 | 58.3% | - | - |
| Windward CC | 1 | 16.7% | 3 | 50.0% | 2 | 33.3% |
In its Draft Academic Master Plan submitted to the Board of Regents in February 2020, the UH System identified the following as “future critical state needs:”
One measure of the University’s effectiveness in meeting current needs in Hawaiʻi is to align the output of its academic programs (degrees and certificates) with projected occupational demands. Such an analysis does not diminish the value of a liberal arts education. Liberal arts graduates, whatever their field of study, join the workforce and learn necessary job-related skills through experience and training. An English Literature graduate, for example, might be employed as a teacher, writer, editor or, indeed, find a profession in business or other fields. Analyzing the alignment of output (degrees and certificates) with occupational demands, however, provides a rough measure of how well the University is attracting students interested in occupations currently in demand as well as a gauge of graduates who are academically prepared for initial entry into them.
The University of Hawaiʻi Community College Career Explorer application (using Hawaiʻi State Department of Labor and Industrial Relations Research and Statistics based on SOC codes) estimates annual openings for positions requiring degrees and certificates at the college level. The following table correlates the number of annual openings for groups of related occupations to the number of degrees and certificates granted by the University related to them. The “ratio” number is the percentage of the openings that relate to UH programs. Low ratios indicate areas of opportunity — where the University is not strongly correlated with demand. High ratios indicate programs that could be characterized as providing too many graduates for the annual number of openings. A detailed analysis for specific occupations and degrees is in appendix 8.
| Annual Openings | Total 4 Year Degrees | + / - Openings | Ratio | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pilots, Copilots. Flight Engineers | 238 | 0 | (238) | 0.0% |
| Education | 2,304 | 182 | (2,122) | 7.9% |
| General Business Related | 3,439 | 499 | (2,940) | 14.5% |
| Sales / Marketing / PR | 861 | 162 | (699) | 18.8% |
| Architects | 126 | 27 | (99) | 21.4% |
| Information Technology | 631 | 148 | (483) | 23.5% |
| Health | 1,057 | 251 | (806) | 23.7% |
| Social Services | 273 | 94 | (179) | 34.4% |
| Engineers | 587 | 260 | (327) | 44.3% |
| Accountants and Auditors | 722 | 379 | (343) | 52.5% |
| Creative Industries | 352 | 354 | 2 | 100.6% |
| Travel Industry | 96 | 110 | 14 | 114.6% |
| Interpreters and Translators | 47 | 115 | 68 | 244.7% |
| Environment | 166 | 442 | 276 | 266.3% |
| Annual Openings | Total UH | + / - Openings | Ratio | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Anthropologists/Curators | 26 | 7 | -19 | 26.9% |
| Urban Planning | 45 | 22 | -23 | 48.9% |
| Social Services | 185 | 105 | -80 | 56.8% |
| Education Administration | 245 | 186 | -59 | 75.9% |
| Nursing / Health Practioners | 209 | 200 | -9 | 95.7% |
| Educational Guidance | 163 | 186 | 23 | 114.1% |
| Educational Guidance | 52 | 124 | 72 | 238.5% |
The University of Hawaiʻi Community College Annual Reports on Program Data (ARPDs) catalog the number of graduates for each career and technical education (CTE) program by campus correlated to the number of job openings for associated job codes (SOCs). The following table consolidates the number of degrees and certificates for all the community colleges and correlates them to related statewide job openings. Similar to the analysis done for baccalaureate and master’s degrees, the “ratio” indicates how well aligned the program is to job openings requiring an associate degree or certificate, with a low ratio indicating areas of opportunity and expansion and a high ratio potentially indicating an oversupply of graduates relative to openings. A more detailed analysis showing graduates by campus is in appendix 8.
| New and Replacement Positions |
Total Degrees / Certificates |
+ / - Openings | Ratio | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Agricultural Technology | 200 | 0 | -200 | 0.0% |
| Integrated Industrial Technology | 7 | 0 | -7 | 0.0% |
| Business | 2,941 | 7 | -2,934 | 0.2% |
| Business Aministration | 2,532 | 18 | -2,514 | 0.7% |
| Sustainable Science Management | 481 | 7 | -474 | 1.5% |
| Applied Business and Information Tech | 417 | 8 | -409 | 1.9% |
| Electrical Installation and Maintenance Tech | 1,035 | 30 | -1,005 | 2.9% |
| Medical Assisting | 553 | 18 | -535 | 3.3% |
| Communication Arts | 115 | 5 | -110 | 4.3% |
| Dental Assisting | 214 | 10 | -204 | 4.7% |
| Carpentry Technology | 1,026 | 52 | -974 | 5.1% |
| Plant Biology and Tropical Agriculture | 212 | 12 | -200 | 5.7% |
| Agriculture and Natural Resources | 223 | 14 | -209 | 6.3% |
| Human Services | 1,230 | 78 | -1,152 | 6.3% |
| Music and Entertainment Learning Exp | 149 | 10 | -139 | 6.7% |
| Cosmetology | 439 | 30 | -409 | 6.8% |
| Aeronautics Maintenance Technology | 277 | 19 | -258 | 6.9% |
| Construction Technology | 382 | 27 | -355 | 7.1% |
| Refrigeration and Air Conditioning Tech | 155 | 11 | -144 | 7.1% |
| Engineering Technology | 53 | 4 | -49 | 7.5% |
| Tropical Forest Ecosystem and Agroforestry Management | 52 | 5 | -47 | 9.6% |
| Computing, Electronics and Network Tech | 446 | 43 | -403 | 9.6% |
| Mobile Intensive Care Tech | 93 | 9 | -84 | 9.7% |
| Marketing | 495 | 48 | -447 | 9.7% |
| Sheet Metal and Plastics Technology | 121 | 12 | -109 | 9.9% |
| Digital Media Arts | 19 | 2 | -17 | 10.5% |
| Substance Abuse Councilling | 160 | 19 | -141 | 11.9% |
| Paralegal | 179 | 22 | -157 | 12.3% |
| Administration of Justice | 369 | 47 | -322 | 12.7% |
| Facilities Engineering | 46 | 6 | -40 | 13.0% |
| Small Vessel Fabrication and Repair | 15 | 2 | -13 | 13.3% |
| Management | 793 | 114 | -679 | 14.4% |
| Diesel Mechanics Technology | 128 | 19 | -109 | 14.8% |
| Nursing: Associate Degree | 910 | 147 | -763 | 16.2% |
| Teaching | 649 | 105 | -544 | 16.2% |
| Information Technology | 416 | 69 | -347 | 16.6% |
| Auto Body Repair and Painting | 121 | 21 | -100 | 17.4% |
| Agriculture | 23 | 4 | -19 | 17.4% |
| Automotive Mechanics Technology | 639 | 119 | -520 | 18.6% |
| Dental Hygiene | 75 | 15 | -60 | 20.0% |
| Accounting | 901 | 182 | -719 | 20.2% |
| Information and Computer Science | 594 | 128 | -466 | 21.5% |
| Machine, Welding & Industrial Mech Tech | 81 | 18 | -63 | 22.2% |
| Fashion Technology | 117 | 27 | -90 | 23.1% |
| Radiologic Technologist | 67 | 16 | -51 | 23.9% |
| Physical Therapist Assistant | 66 | 16 | -50 | 24.2% |
| Fire Science | 143 | 36 | -107 | 25.2% |
| Culinary Arts | 1,474 | 372 | -1,102 | 25.2% |
| Television Production | 71 | 21 | -50 | 29.6% |
| Digital Media Production | 220 | 70 | -150 | 31.8% |
| New Media Arts | 57 | 19 | -38 | 33.3% |
| Fire and Environmental Emergency Response | 143 | 48 | -95 | 33.6% |
| Emergency Medical Technician | 93 | 35 | -58 | 37.6% |
| Business Technology | 324 | 129 | -195 | 39.8% |
| Welding Tecnology | 81 | 34 | -47 | 42.0% |
| Early Childhood Education | 205 | 88 | -117 | 42.9% |
| Occupational and Environmental Safety | 35 | 18 | -17 | 51.4% |
| Nursing: Practical Nursing | 169 | 87 | -82 | 51.5% |
| Electronics Technology | 65 | 34 | -31 | 52.3% |
| Creative Media | 19 | 10 | -9 | 52.6% |
| Respiratory Care Practioner | 30 | 16 | -14 | 53.3% |
| Veterinary Techology | 101 | 56 | -45 | 55.4% |
| Health Information Techology | 58 | 33 | -25 | 56.9% |
| Architectural Engineering and CAD | 52 | 45 | -7 | 86.5% |
| Hospitality and Tourism | 302 | 303 | 1 | 100.3% |
| Agripharmatech | 59 | 74 | 15 | 125.4% |
| Occupational Therapy Assistant | 20 | 29 | 9 | 145.0% |
| Medical Laboratory Technician | 0 | 13 | 13 | na |
As noted in other parts of this analysis, healthcare is a large and growing segment of the economy and job force, accounting for about 74K jobs. Growth in this sector will be driven by an aging population and the expanding application of technologies and applications. In 2019, the Hawaiʻi Healthcare Workforce Initiative reported 2,200 open positions with 16% average turnover. lix
The April 2020 issue of Hawaiʻi Business magazine contained a feature article titled “Path to the Future” and introduced it, noting “Schools and businesses are partnering in unprecedented ways to develop the state’s future workforce.” lx The article highlights programs in the UH Community College System, including:
Program managers identified key factors in the success of these programs:
The University’s continuing education programs are well-suited to provide workforce training responding to the specific needs of industry. Government- and union-funded programs, in particular, support workforce training programs that can be delivered through a partnership with the University. Total enrollment in continuing education programs, however, has declined significantly. Enrollment in academic year 2018-19 was 22,941, down 64.8% from a high of more than 65K in 2010-11. Data in appendix 11 show continuing education enrollment trends for the four-year and community colleges.
Unions. Local 5 (hospitality workers), Ironworkers, Laborers and other unions offer training and apprenticeships to their members. Local 5 training programs are funded through contractual contributions from the hotels to HARIETT (the Hotel and Restaurant Industry Employment and Training Fund). The fund provides no-cost training for union members in a broad range of occupational areas including language skills, computers, culinary programs (ServSafe, bartending, menu planning, food cost, supervision, and others), refrigeration, landscaping, welding and other skills. HARIETT contracts training through private providers and the University of Hawaiʻi Community College System continuing education programs. When working with the Community Colleges, HARIETT pays the college for a certain number of seats in the class; if the seats are not filled with union members, the college may re-sell the seats through its continuing education program. lxi
Carl D. Perkins Career and Technical Education Program (Perkins V). The Perkins program is a federal fund investing in secondary, post-secondary and adult education career and technical education. In Hawaiʻi, available funds are split between DOE programs and the University of Hawaiʻi career and technical education programs. The recent reauthorization of the Perkins Program now requires a needs assessment to align local CTE programs with identified in- demand, high-growth, and high-wage career fields. CC funds are distributed to the colleges as grants awarded through a competitive process. lxii
State of Hawaiʻi Employment and Training Fund (ETF). ETF is a flexible workforce training program administered through the State of Hawaiʻi Department of Labor and Industrial Relations (DLIR). The UH Community Colleges participate as training providers along with private sector training programs. Funds are generated through a percentage of the employment tax. Employees are referred by employers for training in their field of employment. The fund supports two types of programs:
The University of Hawaiʻi has developed an online tool, Career Explorer, which integrates data from the U.S. Department of Labor (O*Net), Economic Modeling Specialists International (EMSI) and other sources to provide administrators, students, and counselors with timely assessments of career opportunities linked to opportunities, skill sets, and lifestyles.lxiv Development of applications such as Career Explorer provide an opportunity to better align programs with economic sector needs and with student interests and abilities. To be optimally effective, counselors and students both need to be aware of Career Explorer and similar apps, which requires an ongoing training and awareness initiative.
Nationally, 36.7% of undergraduate students were enrolled in a distance education course or courses in 2018; the proportion for Hawaiʻi is roughly comparable (35.2%). There is a wide disparity in the incidence of online education with rural and Western states tending to have the highest incidence of online enrollment while more urban and Eastern states have the lowest. lxv
Percent of Students Taking at Least One Online Course, Top Five and Bottom Five states
| New Hampshire | 68.3% | Arizona | 60.0% | West Virginia | 58.0% | Utah | 55.8% | Alaska | 52.8% | Rhode Island | 14.4% | New York | 17.2% | Massachusetts | 20.8% | Connecticut | 21.3% | Vermont | 23.3% |
Regarding credits taken by distance within the University of Hawaiʻi system, the University of Hawaiʻi West Oʻahu has, by far, the highest percentage of credits taken through distance learning (52.8%), with UH Hilo (14.3%) and UH Mānoa (8.3%) well below this level in Fall 2019. Students enrolled in the Community College system took 22.8% of their credits by distance. There has been steady growth in the percentage of online credits across the system since 2010.
| 2010 | 2019 | UH Mānoa | 3.2% | 8.3% | UH Hilo | 6.7% | 14.3% | UH West Oʻahu | 39.1% | 52.8% | UHCCss | 14.1% | 22.8% |
|---|
| 2010 | 2019 | Hawaiʻi CC | 19.2% | 26.2% | Honolulu CC | 7.0% | 10.7% | Kapiʻolani CC | 14.3% | 21.9% | Kauaʻi CC | 8.3% | 14.6% | Leeward CC | 16.4% | 30.7% | UH Maui College | 16.5% | 22.2% | Windward CC | 9.1% | 24.0% |
|---|
The University’s policies on distance and online learning are designed for the purpose of advancing “the University of Hawaiʻi’s mission of extending access to higher education throughout the State of Hawaiʻi, enhance educational services to UH students, and reach new constituencies throughout the world.”lxvi
Distance learning is especially well suited to serve non-traditional students who are unable to come to a physical classroom during usual classroom hours. These include working adults, military personnel, and people residing on another island without access to an on-island course. As a matter of convenience, online courses offer students the option to take a course without dealing with long commutes, parking shortages or other impediments associated with a face-to- face course.
Distance learning courses can be categorized as:
The University’s policy on distance learning lays out ten principles for providing guidelines to ensure that distance education Is fully integrated into UH academics. The principles are included in appendix 12. Recognizing that the development of distance learning is relatively new, the policy establishes a Distance Learning Program Planning Group and Campus Distance Coordinators to address system and campus issues as they arise.
With the expansion of distance courses (especially in the wake of the COVID-19 shutdown) campuses have been developing support structures, online videos and training courses (such as the Teaching Online Prep Program – TOPP) for assisting instructors creating an online course.
Instructional designers at the campus level provide faculty support in modifying courses for distance delivery.
Online support for faculty across the system is available through a dedicated website: www.uhonline.hawaii.edu. The site provides tutorials for the Laulima learning management system, producing videos, web conferencing, collaborative discussion tools and others.
The UH Online Innovation Center (formerly the Digital Media Center) provides personal instructional design services, though with a very limited staff. Accessing the service is similar to faculty accessing Information Technology (IT) support through the IT help desk. To request the Center’s support, faculty can submit a form identifying the type of support they are seeking.
The University has also contracted with Quality Matters, a non-profit organization, to support faculty in delivering quality distance learning courses. The University underwrites the fee for the intensive, online Quality Matters program.
Individual campuses have the discretion in supporting faculty development in distance learning through release time or overloads.
Just as faculty need support in learning the pedagogy of distance education, students need support in self-evaluation to determine their readiness to learn by distance and to access resources needed to successfully transition to distance learning.
The www.uhonline.hawaii.edu/students website provides guides for the various distance delivery systems. An online self-assessment helps students understand their learning habits and how they align with distance delivered courses.
The pandemic crisis caused a massive change in course delivery throughout the University of Hawaiʻi system, shifting from a large majority of courses taught face-to-face to nearly all courses taught by distance in spring semester 2020. The shift was made quickly, without time to fully prepare faculty and students for the change. The result of this dramatic and unexpected change provides the system with an unintended test of widespread adoption of distance delivery. Two initial observations based on interviews:
UH experience along with the experience of Institutions with extensive distance learning programs have developed practices that contribute to success.
Community Colleges. With the increasing need for technical skills to operate in today’s business environment, Community College academic programs and continuing education departments have explored short term “mini” certificates. While these certificates are often outside of degree tracks, they introduce the participants to UH programs, potentially “sampling” the University for these prospective degree seekers. Additionally, offering these certificates within the UH system provides a competitive advantage for the University by limiting exposure to competing institutions which may offer them. Certificates may fill the following student needs:
University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa Pathways. UH Mānoa approved several combined degree pathways to encourage competitive undergraduate students to begin graduate-level coursework in the senior year (and apply up to nine credits of those courses toward the undergraduate degree). The pathways are designed so that students can complete both the bachelor’s and master’s degree within five years.
Pathway programs are now approved in Civil Engineering, Computer Engineering, Computer Science, Economics, Electrical Engineering, Ethnic Studies/Educational Foundations, Ethnic Studies/Educational Administration, Global Environmental Science/Urban & Regional Planning, Global Environmental Science/Public Health, Mechanical Engineering, Psychology/Educational Psychology, Second Language Studies and Travel Industry Management. Most of these programs are vital to the state’s future manpower requirements.
There is no integrated marketing plan pulling together the units within the system.
With a very limited budget, communications is the primary focus of the University’s efforts, with little emphasis on other elements of marketing (market research, market segmentation, product development, targeting, etc.).
With its emphasis on communications, the System office has an extensive media relations and communications program, primarily using free media. In 2018, the System office budgeted $200K for a systemwide campaign focusing on the value of a 10-campus system. Currently, there is a $150K budget for a separate systemwide marketing campaign managed by the Office of Academic Planning and Policy. To address some of the issues that the University is facing — especially enhancing its reputation as a high-quality educational institution and attracting new student populations to increase enrollment – will require a well-funded, well-researched, and ongoing marketing program.
Parchment.com is a “digital credentials service” that offers an online tool analyzing prospective student choice for pairs of colleges to which the student has been admitted. The methodology is included in the footnote. 6 The following table shows percentages of admitted students choosing UH Mānoa or a comparable school for each pair: lxvii
| School | Student Chose | Student Chose UH Mānoa |
|---|---|---|
| University of Nevada Las Vegas | 72% | 28% |
| Boise State | 62% | 38% |
| Oregon State | 63% | 37% |
| Washington State | 53% | 47% |
| UCLA | 75% | 25% |
| Arizona State | 64% | 36% |
| Hawaiʻi Pacific U. | 50% | 50% |
| Chaminade | 28% | 72% |
| BYU Hawaiʻi | 60% | 40% |
6 The parchment.com site uses a "revealed preference" tool. For each school's percentage, the denominator includes all members who were admitted to both of these schools. The numerator includes those students who chose a given school. In other words, students who were admitted to both schools reveal their preference for one over the other by attending that school. To test for statistical significance at the 95% level, Wilson's method is employed.
As with any large, public university, the University of Hawaiʻi system has programs that range widely in published rankings. While the standards for rankings also vary widely, they provide a public measure that affects enrollment and marketing. The University publishes rankings through press releases. Tracking the rankings of UH programs over time provides an indication of changes in public perception.
| Program | Rank | Ranking authority |
|---|---|---|
| Agriculture and Forestry | 201-251 | QS WUR by Subject Ranking |
| Arts and Humanities | 242 | QS WUR By Subject Ranking |
| Biological Sciences | 301-350 | QS WUR By Subject Ranking |
| Business & Management Studies | 451-501 | QS WUR By Subject Ranking |
| College of Education | 69 | USNWR |
| College of Social Science | 101 | USNWR |
| Communication and Media Studies | 151-200 | QS WUR By Subject Ranking |
| Communications | 51-75 | Shanghai Jiao Tong University |
| Earth and Marine Sciences | 101-150 | QS WUR By Subject Ranking |
| Earth Sciences | 51-75 | Shanghai Jiao Tong University |
| Economics and Econometrics | 451-500 | QS WUR By Subject Ranking |
| Education and Training | 201-250 | QS WUR By Subject Ranking |
| English Language and Literature | 201-251 | QS WUR By Subject Ranking |
| Environmental Studies | 251-300 | QS WUR By Subject Ranking |
| Geography | 37 | 2020 Times Higher Education |
| Geography | 101-151 | QS WUR By Subject Ranking |
| JABSOM | 351-400 | QS WUR By Subject Ranking |
| JABSOM | 56 | USNWR |
| JABSOM | 62 | USNWR |
| KCC Culinary Arts | 43 | bestchoiceschools.com |
| KCC Culinary Arts | 7 | Grad Reports 25 Best AS Culinary Arts Programs |
| Law | #2—Greatest Resources for Minority Students | Princeton Review |
| Law | #3—Most Chosen by Older Students | Princeton Review |
| Law | #3—Most Diverse Faculty | Princeton Review |
| Law | #5—Best for State and Local Clerkships | Princeton Review |
| Life Science and Medicine | 401-450 | QS WUR By Subject Ranking |
| Linguistics | 50 | QS WUR By Subject Ranking |
| Maui Culinary Arts | 1 | GradReports 25 Best AS in Culinary Arts Programs |
| Modern Languages | 101-152 | QS WUR By Subject Ranking |
| Natural Sciences | 277 | QS WUR By Subject Ranking |
| Oceanography | 9 | Shanghai Jiao Tong University |
| Physics & Astronomy | 301-351 | QS WUR By Subject Ranking |
| School of Nursing/Dental Hygiene | 74 | USNWR |
| School of Nursing/Dental Hygiene | 99 | USNWR |
| Shidler School of Business | 106 | USNWR |
| Travel Industry Management | 18 | Thebestschools.org |
| UH Hilo | 181-190 | Quacquarelli Symonds |
| UH Mānoa | 200 (world ranking) | Round University Ranking (RUR) |
| UH Mānoa | 65 (U.S. Ranking) | Round University Ranking (RUR) |
| UH Mānoa | 66 | Quacquarelli Symonds |
| UH Mānoa Teaching | 156 (worldwide ranking) | Round University Ranking (RUR) |
| UH Mānoa Teaching | 59 (U.S. Ranking) | Round University Ranking (RUR) |
| UH Mānoa International Diversity | 178 (worldwide ranking) | Round University Ranking (RUR) |
| UH Mānoa International Diversity | 59 (U.S. Ranking) | Round University Ranking (RUR) |
| William Richardson School of Law | 96 | American Bar Association |
QSWUR = Quacquarelli Symonds World University Rankings
USNWR = US News & World Report
UH Mānoa communications describe its “widely recognized strengths in tropical agriculture, tropical medicine, oceanography, astronomy, marine biology, engineering, volcanology, microbiology, comparative philosophy, comparative religion, Hawaiian studies, linguistics and endangered languages, Asian studies, Pacific Island studies, and public health.” Moreover, UH Mānoa “offers instruction in more languages than any U.S. institution outside the Department of State.”
Several UHM programs received high marks from US News and World Report in its recently- released 2021 Best Graduate Schools rankings. The 2021 edition evaluates graduate schools on a variety of factors, including research activity, expert assessment scores, acceptance rates, standardized test scores and grade-point averages of incoming students.
Given the demonstrated need to prepare more workers in the health care fields, the relative strength of the Medical and Nursing Schools is of special note.
The John A. Burns School of Medicine (JABSOM) ranked No. 56 in primary care out of approximately 180 best medical schools in the U.S. JABSOM is rated higher than Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, University of California-Irvine and University of California-Riverside. In the research category, JABSOM ranked No. 62, tied with the University of Arizona-Tucson, University of Kansas Medical Center, and the University of Nebraska Medical Center.
In addition, JABSOM led the nation for the past five years in producing Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander physicians, and has a larger proportion of female faculty than 91 percent of other medical schools, according to data recently released by the Association of American Medical Colleges.
The School of Nursing and Dental Hygiene ranked No. 74 among 170 schools considered in the doctor of nursing practice rankings. US News also ranked UH Mānoa nursing No. 99 out of 173 schools, for best online graduate nursing programs in 2020.
The William S. Richardson School of Law, ranked No. 96 among 205 American Bar Association- accredited law schools, tied with University of South Carolina, and ahead of Syracuse University, Seattle University and California Western School of Law. Of special note given the importance to the state’s future of programs related to Sustainability, the school’s environmental law program ranked No. 30 out of 190.
The part-time Master of Business Administration program (global MBA, 36-month plan) at the Shidler College of Business is ranked No. 106 among 272 part-time MBA programs that qualified for the ranking. The part-time MBA program is the only AACSB accredited program in Hawaiʻi and one of the few MBA programs in the U.S. with a true Asia-Pacific focus. This program should be prominent in the effort to recruit more international students to UH.
Given the importance of teacher training for the state’s future, it is important to note that the College of Education continues to be ranked among the best graduate schools in the nation. The college ranked No. 69 of 255 schools considered, tied with University of California-San Diego, and ahead of University of California-Santa Cruz and Colorado State University. For the past 15 years, the college has been among the top 100 education programs and remains at the top for funded research, securing more than $19 million in contracts and grants in 2019.
Government service (where strategic planning skills are especially pertinent) is a field which is projected to need more and better trained workers in the coming decade. The public administration program at the College of Social Sciences ranked No. 101 out of 275 public administration programs considered. The Master’s of Public Administration program is the state of Hawaiʻi’s only NSPPAA-accredited program, offering an 18-month accelerated, two-year full- time and three-year part-time plan.
UH Mānoa has two new programs with particular strengths: addressing the pressing need for more workers in computing-related professions, its BS in Computer Engineering, approved by the Board of Regents for established status, has exceeded program outcomes with 120 majors (as of Fall 2018). The program earned ABET accreditation in 2016.
Addressing the need for highly trained leaders in education in Hawaiʻi, the EdD in Professional Educational Practice was also approved for established status. The program has exceeded program outcomes with regular cohorts of 25 students (as of summer 2018), and 53 graduates. In 2018, the program received the Program of the Year Award from the Carnegie Project on the Education Doctorate.
UH Hilo highlights on its web site strengths in the following programs—many of which relate to fields that our research identifies as important to the state’s future:
For UH total revenues per student, major funding sources in 2019 were State 7 (55.5%), Federal (19.6%) and tuition (14.1%), together accounting for 90% of all funds. All of the sources of funds and their relative contributions are shown below:
| Source | $000 / Student FTE |
|---|---|
| Tuition | $7.30 |
| State | $28.80 |
| Federal | $10.20 |
| Investments | $0.30 |
| Auxiliary | $3.90 |
| Gifts/Endlowments | $0.20 |
| Other | $1.20 |
| Source | Percentage |
|---|---|
| Tuition | 14.1% |
| State | 55.5% |
| Federal | 19.6% |
| Investments | 0.5% |
| Auxiliary | 7.5% |
| Gifts/Endlowments | 0.5% |
| Other | 2.4% |
7 State sources of funding include a) State operating grants and contracts, b) State appropriations, c) State non- operating grants and d) Capital appropriations.
Over the period 2012-2018, total system funding per UH student FTE has increased from $37,700 to $52,000 (+37.9%). Of the significant sources of UH funding, the most prominent change has been the increase in the share of funding through “State sources,” rising from $17,500 per student (46%) to $28,800 per student (55%), a 64.6% increase.
Over the same period, funding through Federal sources has increased from $9,900 to $10,200, a decrease on a percentage basis from 26% to 20% of total funding. Average tuition increased from $5,700 to $7,300, representing a decrease in percentage contribution from 15% to 14% of total funding. Other changes in funding sources are shown in the charts below.
| 2012 | 2013 | 2014 | 2015 | 2016 | 2017 | 2018 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Auxiliary sources | $3.2 | $3.3 | $3.2 | $3.5 | $3.8 | $3.9 | $3.9 |
| Federal sources | $9.9 | $10.1 | $10.5 | $10.0 | $10.3 | $9.7 | $10.2 |
| State sources | $17.5 | $17.6 | $19.0 | $21.1 | $20.5 | $25.8 | $28.9 |
| Tuition | $5.7 | $5.9 | $6.2 | $6.7 | $7.3 | $7.5 | $7.3 |
A table showing all the sources of funding is included in the appendix (#9)
| 2012 | 2013 | 2014 | 2015 | 2016 | 2017 | 2018 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Auxiliary sources | 9% | 9% | 8% | 8% | 8% | 8% | 7% |
| Federal sources | 26% | 26% | 26% | 24% | 22% | 20% | 20% | State sources | 46% | 46% | 47% | 50% | 45% | 53% | 55% | Tuition | 15% | 15% | 15% | 16% | 16% | 15% | 14% |
A table showing all the sources of funding is included in the appendix (#9)
There are a reported seventy-seven university systems in the U.S. To develop a meaningful way of evaluating UH’s financial profile, three systems were selected for comparison based on:
Based on those criteria, the following statewide systems (with their 2018 Fall FTE student enrollment) have been selected for comparison:
For comparison, there were 35,526 students enrolled in the UH system in 2018.
In 2018, the University of Alaska (UA) and University of Hawaiʻi systems each had about $52,000 of total funding per FTE student. North Dakota (NDUS) funding was $31,600 and Nevada (NSHE) was $25,000. The growth in total funding per FTE student over the 2012-18 period, along with the contributing factor of FTE enrollment was as follows:
The changes in funding sources for the institutions over the 2012-2018 period are summarized below:
| UH 2018 | UH 2012 |
NDUS 2018 | NDUS 2012 |
NSHE 2018 | NSHE 2012 |
UAS 2018 | UAS 2012 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Tuition | $7.30 | $5.67 | $9.01 | $6.99 | $5.63 | $4.82 | $8.38 | $6.16 |
| State sources | $28.84 | $17.53 | $10.65 | $9.53 | $10.06 | $7.75 | $26.80 | $26.30 |
| Federal sources | $10.21 | $9.87 | $4.63 | $5.02 | $3.84 | $3.81 | $8.87 | $4.32 |
| Investments | $0.26 | $0.05 | $0.28 | $0.09 | $0.71 | $0.23 | $1.19 | $0.09 |
| Gifts and endowments | $0.24 | $0.85 | $1.17 | $1.20 | $1.29 | $0.70 | $0.79 | $3.43 |
| Auxiliary sources | $3.89 | $3.22 | $5.75 | $4.83 | $3.32 | $2.21 | $3.68 | $2.93 |
| Other sources | $1.23 | $0.55 | $0.06 | $0.03 | $0.13 | $0.07 | $2.28 | $4.82 |
| Grand total | $51.98 | $37.74 | $31.56 | $27.69 | $24.98 | $19.59 | $51.99 | $48.06 |
| UH 2018 | UH 2012 |
NDUS 2018 | NDUS 2012 |
NSHE 2018 | NSHE 2012 |
UAS 2018 | UAS 2012 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Tuition | 14.1% | 15.0% | 28.5% | 25.2% | 22.5% | 24.6% | 16.1% | 12.8% |
| State sources | 55.5% | 46.4% | 33.8% | 34.4% | 40.3% | 39.6% | 51.6% | 54.7% |
| Federal sources | 19.6% | 26.1% | 14.7% | 18.1% | 15.4% | 19.4% | 17.1% | 9.0% |
| Investments | 0.5% | 0.1% | 0.9% | 0.3% | 2.8% | 1.2% | 2.3% | 0.2% |
| Gifts and endowments | 0.5% | 2.3% | 3.7% | 4.4% | 5.2% | 3.6% | 1.5% | 7.1% |
| Auxiliary sources | 7.5% | 8.5% | 18.2% | 17.4% | 13.3% | 11.3% | 7.1% | 6.1% |
| Other sources | 2.4% | 1.5% | 0.2% | 0.1% | 0.5% | 0.4% | 4.4% | 10.0% |
The contribution of tuition as a percent of total funding has increased at NDUS (+4%) and UA (+3%) while it has fallen at UH (-1%) and NSHE (-2%). Only in the case of NSHE was this drop accompanied with a dramatic increase in FTE student enrollment (+29% since 2012). Of the systems reviewed, UH (at 14.1%) had the lowest percentage of tuition contributing to total funding.
| 2012 | 2013 | 2014 | 2015 | 2016 | 2017 | 2018 | UH | 15.0% | 15.4% | 15.3% | 15.9% | 16.0% | 15.3% | 14.1% | NDUS | 25.2% | 25.2% | 24.9% | 23.2% | 24.4% | 26.4% | 28.5% | NSHE | 24.6% | 23.7% | 23.2% | 23.5% | 23.9% | 23.8% | 22.5% | UAS | 12.8% | 12.4% | 12.4% | 13.7% | 15.4% | 16.6% | 16.1% |
|---|
Since 2012, state contribution to total funding has either been relatively flat (NDUS at 34% and NSHE at 40%) or decreased somewhat (for UAS from 55% to 52%) while the State contribution for UH increased from 46% to 55%.
| 2012 | 2013 | 2014 | 2015 | 2016 | 2017 | 2018 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| UH | 46.4% | 46.1% | 46.9% | 50.1% | 44.8% | 52.6% | 55.5% |
| NDUS | 34.4% | 37.6% | 38.3% | 41.2% | 40.0% | 36.0% | 33.8% |
| NSHE | 39.6% | 36.3% | 35.3% | 35.1% | 40.2% | 37.7% | 40.3% |
| UAS | 54.7% | 57.7% | 61.5% | 60.6% | 58.0% | 50.9% | 51.6% |
UH has a higher percentage of Federal contribution than the comparison systems although there has been a steep decline in Federal funding and the gap between UH and the comparison systems has been reduced over the 2012-18 period.
| 2012 | 2013 | 2014 | 2015 | 2016 | 2017 | 2018 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| UH | 26.1% | 26.4% | 25.9% | 23.7% | 22.4% | 19.8% | 19.6% |
| NDUS | 18.1% | 14.9% | 14.1% | 12.5% | 12.8% | 13.1% | 14.7% |
| NSHE | 19.4% | 18.4% | 16.9% | 17.5% | 16.6% | 15.6% | 15.4% |
| UAS | 9.0% | 14.6% | 14.4% | 15.6% | 16.9% | 18.5% | 17.1% |
UH and UAS lag the other systems in Auxiliary Sources of Funding
| 2012 | 2013 | 2014 | 2015 | 2016 | 2017 | 2018 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| UH | 8.5% | 8.7% | 7.9% | 8.2% | 8.3% | 7.9% | 7.5% |
| NDUS | 17.4% | 17.5% | 17.6% | 16.4% | 17.0% | 17.6% | 18.2% |
| NSHE | 11.3% | 13.0% | 12.4% | 13.3% | 13.5% | 12.6% | 13.3% |
| UAS | 6.1% | 6.0% | 5.8% | 6.5% | 7.2% | 7.5% | 7.1% |
UH has a negligible contribution from gifts and endowments. Although this funding has higher year-over-year variance compared to other sources of funding, NDUS and NSHE have experienced significantly higher percentages of funding through gifts and endowments than UH in every year in the 2012-2018 period.
| 2012 | 2013 | 2014 | 2015 | 2016 | 2017 | 2018 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| UH | 2.3% | 1.5% | 1.5% | 0.8% | 0.6% | 1.0% | 0.5% |
| NDUS | 4.4% | 4.1% | 4.0% | 5.8% | 4.8% | 5.7% | 3.7% |
| NSHE | 3.6% | 2.8% | 3.1% | 8.7% | 4.8% | 4.4% | 5.2% |
| UAS | 7.1% | 1.1% | 0.9% | 0.6% | 0.7% | 0.7% | 1.5% |
Except for 2016 UH has lagged behind the comparison systems in revenues from investments as a percent of total funding.
| 2012 | 2013 | 2014 | 2015 | 2016 | 2017 | 2018 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| UH | 0.1% | 0.5% | 0.6% | 0.2% | 0.2% | 0.5% | 0.5% |
| NDUS | 0.3% | 0.5% | 0.7% | 0.4% | 0.4% | 0.7% | 0.9% |
| NSHE | 1.2% | 4.4% | 5.9% | 0.3% | -0.1% | 4.2% | 2.8% |
| UAS | 0.2% | 1.7% | 2.1% | 0.3% | -0.1% | 3.1% | 2.3% |
Third Decade Report main page | Return to Annex B table of contents | next section: Annex B Appendicies