STAND. COM. REP. NO. 371

Honolulu, Hawaii

RE:    S.B. No. 683

       S.D. 1

Honorable Colleen Hanabusa

President of the Senate

Twenty-Fourth State Legislature

Regular Session of 2007

State of Hawaii

Madam:

     Your Committee on Education, to which was referred S.B. No. 683 entitled:

"A BILL FOR AN ACT RELATING TO THE RUNNING START PROGRAM FOR COLLEGE PREPARATION,"

begs leave to report as follows:

     The purpose of this measure is to increase the financial support provided to families of underrepresented college student populations by the Running Start Program and ensure participating students earn credit toward their high school and college degrees upon successful completion of qualifying University of Hawaii courses.

     Testimony in support of this measure was submitted by the Department of Education (DOE), the University of Hawaii (UH), the College of Education of the University of Hawaii, the Hawaii State Teachers Association, GEAR UP Hawaii, and two individuals.

     Your Committee finds that the Running Start Program, a joint program of the DOE and the UH, helps to prepare high school students of underrepresented populations for college entry.  Eligible high school students can enroll in qualified UH courses and earn credits for high school graduation and college simultaneously.  Running Start provides many students with the motivation, preparation, and opportunity to explore and pursue post-secondary education, which would otherwise be unavailable or unaffordable.  Since the program was established in 2002, Running Start has provided scholarships totaling $260,000 to eight hundred fifty low-income students in Hawaii.  Your Committee believes that additional funding is necessary to allow the Running Start Program to keep pace with increased participation in the program and interest in college entry.

     Your Committee received testimony that indicated that although GEAR UP Hawaii has been awarding scholarships to Running Start recipients, federal funds allotted for the GEAR UP programs cannot be commingled with state funds for the Running Start Program.  Therefore, funding for the program needs to be channeled through a different fund to assure propriety of the financial operations of the programs involved.

     Additionally, to further underscore the intent of the program, your Committee determines that clarification is necessary to ensure that credit for college courses completed will be appropriately accepted.

     Accordingly, your Committee has amended this measure by:

     (1)  Specifying that college courses completed shall satisfy the graduation requirements for the DOE for the corresponding high school requirement category and that all successfully completed courses at the one hundred level and above shall be included in the students' records;

     (2)  Changing the funding source of the Running Start scholarships from funds appropriated to and out of the GEAR UP Hawaii Scholarship Trust Fund to the University of Hawaii Scholarship and Assistance Special Fund;

     (3)  Specifying that the University of Hawaii shall be the expending agency for the appropriation; and

     (4)  Making technical, nonsubstantive changes for purposes of clarity and style.

     As affirmed by the record of votes of the members of your Committee on Education that is attached to this report, your Committee is in accord with the intent and purpose of S.B. No. 683, as amended herein, and recommends that it pass Second Reading in the form attached hereto as S.B. No. 683, S.D. 1, and be referred to the Committee on Ways and Means.

Respectfully submitted on behalf of the members of the Committee on Education,

____________________________

NORMAN SAKAMOTO, Chair