News & Updates
Using Data to Democratize Education on Hawai‘i Island
Chancellor Rachel Solemsaas of Hawai’i Community College (HCC) is clear about her priority when it comes to serving students in need: democratizing education. She defines democratizing education as open access, equity, and commitment to success. To make these priorities a reality, we’ve partnered with Chancellor Solemsaas and her team to leverage existing data while also cultivating a data culture at HCC that not only informs decision-making, but teaches students how to be data literate as well.
AUW's Lisa Kimura Discusses the Updated ALICE Report, and the Impact of COVID-19 on Hawaii's Struggling Families
Lisa Kimura, Vice President of Community Impact at Aloha United Way, discusses the updated ALICE® report, what it told us about Hawaii’s financially struggling families pre-COVID since the last report was done in 2018, how much Hawaii’s ALICE-and-below population will grow as a result of COVID-19, and the level of broad collaboration necessary to uplift families out of ALICE status.
Fifty-nine Percent of Hawaii Households Estimated to Experience Significant Financial Hardship by the End of 2020
Aloha United Way released an updated report, ALICE®: A Study in Financial Hardship in Hawaii, indicating forty-two percent of Hawaii’s households are struggling to get by. That was pre-COVID-19 arriving to our islands. We partnered with AUW to estimate that in the wake of the Coronavirus pandemic, an additional 35,000 households will face severe financial hardship by the end of the year.
(Updated) Modeling Suggests Substantial Increases In The Financial Vulnerability Of Hawaii's Families
Although the specifics of COVID-19’s economic effects on Hawaii remain unclear, our modeling suggest impacts on households of all income levels. Based on preliminary results, we estimate that nearly 134,000—approximately 30 percent—of all Hawaii households stand to bear a significant loss of income (defined as a loss in household income greater than 25 percent) due to the effects of the pandemic on the local economy.