RESOLUTION

WHEREAS, persons sixty-five years of age and older are the fastest growing segment of the nation's population; and

WHEREAS, the life expectancy of older adults in Hawaii is higher than all other states in the nation; and

WHEREAS, Hawaii has the fastest growing aging population, with a percentage increase of two hundred per cent between 1970 and 2000, while the national older adult population increased by only fifty per cent for the same time period; and

WHEREAS, the older adult population in Hawaii is the most ethnically and culturally diverse in the nation; and

WHEREAS, population aging has many important socio-economic and health consequences, resulting in the need for research in such areas as pension systems, health care delivery systems, and social service delivery programs; and

WHEREAS, the demand for specialized services for the aged will continue to grow at health facilities, mental health agencies, social service agencies, community centers, correctional centers, educational organizations, and others; and

WHEREAS, middle-aged and older adults should be regarded as societal assets that are often untapped in areas of volunteerism and community service; and

WHEREAS, the provision of quality services to older adults requires specialized knowledge and skills in gerontology; and

WHEREAS, gerontology is a field requiring multiple disciplines, including but not limited to, social work, medicine, public health, law, and nursing; and

WHEREAS, the need for gerontological workers will increase over the next decade, creating an acute shortage; and

WHEREAS, the existing shortage of social workers in the State will be exacerbated by the needs of Hawaii's aging population; and

WHEREAS, the mission of the University of Hawaii's Center on Aging, Research, and Education is to carry out research, instruction, and community service projects in the area of aging for the State and the nation, and to make its gerontological knowledge and resources available to the community, the State, and the Pacific-Asia region; and

WHEREAS, the Center on Aging, Research, and Education began with a budget of $250,000 in 1988, which was reduced to $36,000 in 1994, limiting its opportunities for research, instruction, and service; and

WHEREAS, the Center on Aging, Research, and Education requires at least five staff positions assigned to it in order to adequately fulfill its mission; now, therefore,

BE IT RESOLVED by the Senate of the Twenty-third Legislature of the State of Hawaii, Regular Session of 2006, the House of Representatives concurring, that the University of Hawaii is requested to provide funding to support five faculty staff positions at the Center on Aging, Research, and Education; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that certified copies of this Concurrent Resolution be transmitted to the Chairperson of the University of Hawaii Board of Regents, the President of the University of Hawaii, and the Interim Chancellor of the University of Hawaii at Manoa.

Report Title:

UOH; Ctr. on Aging, Research, and Education