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Donors who awarded over $6 million in scholarships and more than 350 of the recipients gathered Saturday at Pomaikai Ballrooms at Dole Cannery for the annual Hawaii Community Foundation Scholarship Breakfast.
HCF distributes over 250 types of scholarships on behalf of individual givers, local businesses and corporate donors that students can access through one online application to be matched with multiple opportunities.
The foundation also provides the First Generation Community Scholarship for students who are the first in their families to attend college. This scholarship fund receives gifts of all sizes through the HCF webpage HawaiiCommunityFoundation.org/Give Opens in a new tab.
Jhun Heinrich Domingo, a computer science major at UH, received the First Generation Community Scholarship.
“The people who gave to support this scholarship are helping me pursue a career I’m passionate about,” Domingo said. “Because of them, I feel a sigh of relief when I look towards my future. I know I’ll be able to give back and help the community that has shaped me.”
Thirty percent of students attending a four-year college or university drop out after their first year, and 71 percent of college dropouts said it was because of finances and their need to work, according to Public Agenda, a nonprofit research group.
“The research underscores that students need financial assistance, so they can complete college,” said Tara Shibuya, senior scholarship officer at HCF. “And it is through the support of so many of our donors that many of Hawaii’s students can succeed and finish school. We also hope that the generosity of our donors inspires the next generation to pay it forward and continue the cycle of giving.”
HCF is the third largest private provider of scholarships in the state and has distributed nearly $60 million in scholarships over the past 15 years.
