HILO — Dozens of Hawaii Community College students will be among those who will benefit if legislation to fund programs intended to help community college students overcome barriers to education is signed by Gov. David Ige.
The first of two measures recently passed by the Legislature, Senate Bill 50, will appropriate $455,000 from general revenues over the next two years for the Hawaii Nutrition Employment and Training program.
The program provides students assistance that can total more than $4,700 a year for food, transportation, books and other expenses.
“Certainly we are very, very grateful and blessed to have the state Legislature support this wonderful program,” HCC Chancellor Rachel Solemsaas said.
Spokesman Thatcher Moats said HCC has had 433 HINET applicants since the program began at HCC in July 2017, including both the Palamanui and Hilo campuses, and has provided HINET services to 165 students. There are currently about 70 HCC students enrolled in the program.
HINET, which launched in 2015, was developed by the state Department of Human Services in partnership with Oahu’s Windward Community College to reduce the cost of education for the state’s most vulnerable populations and help them to get good paying jobs, according to the University of Hawaii.
To qualify for the program, students must enroll at a UH community college and enroll in a workforce certificate training program or take at least six credits in an approved degree program. University of Hawaii has seven community college campuses across the state, including Hawaii Community College on the Big Island.
Students also must qualify for the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program and can substitute their education and employment training for the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s 20-hour weekly work requirement, which will allow them to maintain their SNAP benefits while pursuing a college education.
A number of Hawaii residents are on SNAP or eligible for the program, Solemsaas said, and one way to support those individuals is “giving them opportunities for upward mobility so they no longer need SNAP. Education is a key part of that.”
Pankaj Bhanot, director of the state Department of Human Services, said in written testimony submitted for a hearing of the House Finance Committee that DHS supported the program.
“DHS is working to reduce the incidences and impact of intergenerational poverty,” he wrote. “The one proven pathway out of poverty is through education. The HINET program provides additional financial and one-to-one support to help college students attend to their basic needs, like finding child care, and assists with job matching.”
The funding allocated by the Legislature will be used for materials, supplies and the hiring of seven full-time instructional and student support positions. HCC is allocated one of those positions.
Solemsaas said the person in that new role will make sure federal guidelines and program requirements are met and will provide outreach and support to students.
A second measure, Senate Bill 316, will appropriate $700,000 each year for the next two years to continue Hawaii Promise, a last-dollar scholarship program that covers financial needs of qualified UH Community College students that are not met by other forms of financial aid and scholarships.
SB 50 and SB 316 have been sent to Ige for consideration.