Hawaii is active in all three WICHE Student Exchange Programs: the Western Undergraduate Exchange, the Professional Student Exchange Program, and the Western Regional Graduate Program.  In 2011-12 Hawaii’s students and families almost $14 million. Hawaii saved money, too, through not having to establish and maintain costly programs in a number of areas, including some in healthcare.

Western Undergraduate Exchange. Hawaii students have enrolled in undergraduate programs on the mainland through the Western Undergraduate Exchange (WUE) since 1988, saving on 22,479 annual tuition bills. In 2011-12, 1,596 students from Hawaii are enrolled in out-of-state programs at reduced rates (150 percent of resident tuition), saving almost $13 million in tuition and fees – the average student savings amounted to $7,985. In the last dozen years, students have saved nearly $123 million. 

Hawaii benefits from WUE in another way: by receiving students from out of state. Hawaii’s institutions can choose how many out-of-state slots to offer and in which areas, allowing them to make the best use of their resources by accepting students in underenrolled programs. There’s a workforce benefit for the state, too, as students often stay in Hawaii after graduating. In 2011-12 Hawaii received 2,253 students through WUE.

Professional Student Exchange Program. Hawaii has sent 1,220 students to professional programs through the Professional Student Exchange Program (PSEP), with students studying in a host of critical fields, including dentistry, occupational therapy, optometry, physical therapy, and veterinary medicine.

Western Regional Graduate Program. Hawaii’s postgraduates also participate in graduate programs through the Western Regional Graduate Program (WRGP), which offers access to over 250 high-quality, distinctive programs (“distinctive” meaning that they’re offered at only four or fewer institutions in the WICHE region) at 47 institutions in all WICHE states. WRGP programs run the gamut, but emerging social, environmental, and resource-management fields are particular strengths, as are innovative interdisciplinary programs. In 2011-12 Hawaii sent 17 students to out-of-state institutions, while receiving 49.

Internet Course Exchange (ICE). WICHE’s newest exchange, ICE, is an alliance of member institutions and systems with a set of policies, procedures, and support systems for sharing distance-delivered courses among two- and four-year institutions in the 15-state WICHE region.

Hawaii is one of five partner states participating in the Interstate Passport Initiative, which seeks to improve graduation rates, shorten time to degree, and save students money by addressing the two-year to four-year institution transfer problem at an interstate level. The two-year pilot project will focus on forging general education core transfer agreements based on learning outcomes between 28 institutions, including Leeward Community College and University of Hawaii West Oahu.

WICHE’s Added Value

Hawaii gains added value from WICHE’s programs in policy, workforce development, technology, mental health, and other areas.

Policy & Workforce Development. Hawaii has participated in projects supporting better-informed decision making at the state level. WICHE initiatives have been sponsored by the Ford Foundation, Lumina Foundation for Education, the U.S. Department of Education, and others. In addition, WICHE policy experts often visit the state to present or consult on a number of vital issues, including the state’s workforce needs and balancing the financial aid portfolio between grants, loans, and scholarships, as well as between merit- and need-based aid.

WICHE continues to offer its assistance in Hawaii’s planning around tuition-setting and financial aid policy at the University of Hawaii (UH) system. WICHE staff discussed options and shared ideas from other states.

Hawaii was one of four states chosen to participate in the Gates-funded Facilitating Development of a Multistate Longitudinal Data Exchange pilot project, which attempts to enable a more comprehensive regional view of the creation of human capital and its flow among multiple states by exchanging data across K-12 education, postsecondary education, and the workforce. Hawaii is receiving customized technical assistance, including a Hawaii-specific report, to aid the state in its examination of the data governance in place for each of those sectors, how data governance might be improved, and how the state can advance its efforts in developing its statewide longitudinal data system to meet state needs and fulfill commitments it made to the federal government as part of its successful Race to the Top application.

The state also participated in a Gates-funded meeting in 2008, which brought together the stewards of the data systems in 14 of the WICHE states for discussions around linking data internally and with other states. A central topic of conversation was how to address the challenges to data sharing presented by the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act. Another meeting was the Western Summit on Workforce Certification and Higher Education for policymakers in the West, held in response to the national demand for more highly skilled workers in a host of fields, from healthcare to high tech. Participants explored how states might use a workforce certification system – which would allow business and higher education to communicate with a common language about workforce demand and supply – to improve their ability to prepare individuals for productive careers and enhance the health of their economies.

WICHE President David Longanecker has worked with the Governor’s Office and Senate Higher Education Committee to help them develop a state authorization process to certify nonpublic institutions to operate in Hawaii. In addition, Hawaii was also selected in 2006 as one of six states to participate in a Ford Foundation-funded project called Escalating Engagement: State Policy to Protect Access to Higher Education, which engaged state officials and business community members in an attempt to strengthen the alignment of state investments in postsecondary education and state workforce needs. 

WICHE’s Lumina-funded project Getting What You Pay For: Understanding Higher Education Appropriations, Tuition, and Financial Aidpromoted informed decision making and the alignment of higher education appropriations, tuition, and financial aid policy by state legislators, to improve student access and success. WICHE sent copies of the project’s eight policy briefs to all members of the Hawaii Legislature. Hawaii also participated in another Lumina project, Best Practices in Statewide Articulation and Transfer Systems, which seeks to develop a deeper understanding of how states coordinate their articulation and transfer programs for students who move from two-year to four-year institutions.

Additionally, Hawaii has participated in the Western Academic Leadership Forum, whose members address regional higher education issues and engage in  resource sharing. A new WICHE initiative, the Western Alliance for Community College Academic Leaders, will bring academic leaders of community colleges and technical schools and systems together with state governing and coordinating boards associated with two-year institutions to exchange ideas and information, share resources and expertise, and collaborate on regional initiatives. The University of Hawai`i System, Hawai`i Community College, Leeward Community College, and Honolulu Community College are members.

WICHE held its 2011 fall meeting in Hawaii, drawing commissioners from 15 Western states. Brigham Young University-Hawaii in Laie was the site of the meeting.

Technology. Several Hawaii colleges and universities are active participants in the WICHE Cooperative for Educational Technologies (WCET), a membership cooperative that accelerates the adoption of effective practices and policies to advance excellence in technology-enhanced teaching and learning in higher education. Hae Okimoto, director of academic technologies for the University of Hawaii System, serves as chair of WCET’s Steering Committee, ensuring its programs and services are relevant to the higher education community at large. In addition, Okimoto and her colleague, University of Hawaii CIO David Lassner, both have received WCET’s highest honor, the Richard Jonsen Award, for their contributions to educational technology developments in higher education.

WCET members have access to trusted information on emerging trends, policies, and exemplars of successful learning technology innovation in practice. WCET provides access to peers, colleagues, common interest groups, experts, and decision makers; communications tools that enable members to stay informed about developments affecting technology-enabled teaching and learning; and information about key developments affecting e-learning providers, such as new federal rules pertaining to distance education.  WCET also manages multi-institutional projects, one aimed at adult online learners and another on large-scale student data aggregation and predictive analytics to improve student outcomes.

Mental Health. A nucleus for researching mental health policy and a provider of technical assistance in such areas as service innovation, system reform, workforce development, program evaluation, and other areas, WICHE’s Mental Health Program is another well-used resource. Program staff recently wrote a successful application to receive funding through the Health Resources and Services Administration Network Development Planning Grant to develop a rural psychology internship consortium in Hawaii. WICHE staff will lead the planning phase with local partners.

Other Initiatives. The Master Property Program (MPP),helps institutions in the West reduce their insurance premiums and improve their coverage. Created by the Midwestern Higher Education Compact in 1994 and expanded to the WICHE region in 2004, the MPP includes 50 member institutions with total insured values of $78.9 billion. It has generated some $65.4 million in savings for the participating institutions while expanding their insurance coverage.

Hawaii & WICHE’s Leadership

Roy T. Ogawa, attorney, Ogawa, Lau, Nakamura, & Jew, Honolulu, chaired the WICHE Commission in 2008, whose members mold the organization’s mission and set its priorities. Hawaii’s other two commissioners are: Doris Ching, emeritus vice president for student affairs, University of Hawai`i System, Honolulu; and Steven Wheelwright, president, Brigham Young University-Hawaii, Laie. 

WICHE also seeks assistance and advice from policymakers, educators, administrators and legislators. WICHE’s Legislative Advisory Committee (LAC), composed of legislator-members from each state – including Representative Scott Nishimoto and Senator Jill Tokuda, both of Honolulu – has been crucial in this regard. The LAC works to keep the commission’s Executive Committee and staff current on significant legislative issues related to higher education, provides input on WICHE initiatives, and advises staff on a host of issues. WICHE staff also serves the LAC, by informing its members about emerging policy issues in the West.