American Savings Bank President Timothy Schools is stepping down from his position on Friday, more than three months earlier than originally planned.

Schools, who said in April that he intended to resign at year-end following the completion of the bank’s Performance Improvement Project, said he wanted to accelerate the effective date of his resignation to pursue other business interests in South Carolina. Hawaiian Electric Industries Inc., parent of American Savings, said in a Securities and Exchange Commission filing today that the completion of the Performance Improvement Project “has been substantially achieved.”

HEI said Schools’ base pay will cease on Friday but that under a transition and consulting agreement over the next 12 months that he will get 7,000 shares of HEI stock based on Friday’s closing price. Schools’ base pay for 2009 was $550,000, according to a proxy the company filed in March of this year.

American Savings is conducting a nationwide search to replace Schools and expects to have a new president in place before the end of the year. Connie Lau, president and chief executive officer of HEI and chairwoman and CEO of American Savings, will temporarily will assume the responsibilities of American Savings’ president, a position she held prior to Schools being appointed president in February 2008.