Governor Proclaims April 23 as UH Community Colleges Day

The next edition of the mayor’s County on Your Corner event will be held on UHMC’s great lawn in coordination with the Valley Isle Keiki Fest. Photo by Wendy Osher.

By Maui Now Staff

Governor Neil Abercrombie today proclaimed April 23, as University of Hawai’i Community Colleges Day in Hawai’i, in recognition of the 50th Anniversary of the UH community college system.

The University of Hawai’i has a total of seven community colleges, including the UH Maui College campus in Kahului, which had a total enrollment of 4,097 students in the fall of 2013.

University officials say that system-wide, the community colleges serve an estimated 33,000 students annually, offering more than 70 fields of study.

“Today, the community colleges’ open-door policy and affordable tuition attract all types of students to seek higher education, from the traditional high school graduate to the nontraditional working adult. More than 60% of community college students go to school part-time while working part- or full-time jobs,” the university announcement stated.  

The UH community college system was reportedly born in 1964 when then Governor John A Burns signed the Hawai’i Community College Act into law, the announcement said.

“I’m proud of our students. They work hard to overcome many obstacles in their lives just to be in the classroom,” said John Morton, vice president for community colleges in a university press release.  “We have a responsibility to our students to keep the doors of opportunity open, to provide the best and most responsive services and programs, to help them successfully complete their degrees and go forward to fulfill their ambitions.”