Post-High Financial Aid Update

April 14, 2004

Contributed by CEO Message

I would also like to report that, as a result of discussions with many of our stakeholders, we have made one significant change for the upcoming year's awards. In the past Kamehameha has used home equity as a factor in calculating financial need. For many families who have limited incomes, but have worked hard to buy their home, this has been a disadvantage. We have decided to eliminate home equity from the calculation of financial need for the current year's applications.

I would also like to note that staff is re-examining every aspect of the Post-High Financial Aid application process in search of ways to make the process fairer, simpler, easier to complete, more supportive of Hawaiian students, less expensive, and broader in reach and scope. It is not an easy task, but however difficult it may be, we are committed to completing this analysis and making the changes in time for the 2005-2006 school year. I will report to you as those adjustments are finalized.

Finally, I would, again, like to urge all of you to continue in your efforts to reach out to Hawaiian students who may need financial aid. In an effort to extend our reach to more students, I have decided to move the application due date from April 15 to May 15, giving our families an extra month to complete their applications and submit the required documents to Kamehameha. Please encourage those students who have not yet completed their application to get it done. And remind them to complete their Hawaiian ancestry verification with our Ho'oulu Hawaiian Data Center. This will make them eligible for preference under Kamehameha's Hawaiian preference policy. If they need help, have them attend one of the community workshops being offered on O'ahu this month (call 534-8080 for dates, times and locations), or visit the KS Neighbor Island Regional Resource Center on their island. Information is also available at Kamehameha's website.

Again, mahalo nui loa, all of you. Please feel free to respond to this message with any ideas or suggestions that will improve this program for our Hawaiian students.