BYUH campus is holiday home for some
By Eloise Aguiar
Advertiser Windward OÎahu Writer
LA'IE — Most college students have emptied the dorms and headed home for the holidays. But not at Brigham Young University-Hawai'i where up to one-fourth of the student body remains on campus, some searching for activities to fill their three-week break.
Richard Ambo • The Honolulu Advertiser
There will be no traditional family gatherings back home for about 600 students, many of whom were raised to value strong family ties through their religion, the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, which operates the university.
Sharon Ransom, 22, will stay at the Brigham Young University-Hawai'i campus to earn money for her tuition.
Financial constraints top the list of reasons students will stay in Hawai'i.
About 500 are in the International Work Experience Scholarship program in which students work in exchange for their tuition, most at the Polynesian Cultural Center, also operated by the church.
They are limited to going home twice while in the program, which is about four years, or the time it takes to earn a degree.
But the students aren't complaining.
They miss home, but they aren't pouting. Instead they are planning hikes, Pearl Harbor visits and beach trips with friends.
Many will spend Christmas Eve or Christmas Day with local families. Some are still hoping for invitations and others will plan their own celebration within their church groups or dormitories.
Church bishops already open their homes to students regularly, said BYU-Hawai'i church official James Smith. Bishops head up small congregations called wards that consist of about 170 people.
No formal activities are planned by the church, but the students will plan carolling, dinners and prayer sessions.
"At Christmas it's more informal, but I know there will be many students at faculty homes," Smith said.
They will work at their jobs, use some of their time to volunteer in the community and continue their education.
"It's learning new skills time for me," said Ruska Junkkari, 21, of Finland. The freshman said she wants to learn to surf and play basketball, which isn't popular in Finland.
On Christmas Eve she's invited to a teacher's home, where she will play Santa Claus for the children. The teacher also is from Finland, where it is tradition to have someone play Santa, Junkkari said. She will miss home, but it won't be her first Christmas away, she said.
Campus life is a lot slower since classes let out Dec. 14 for the holiday break, Junkkari said. "It's a little bit sad because (we) couldn't go home, and we don't have cars so we can't leave the campus," she said.
Sharon Ransom, a 22-year-old junior from Texas, could have gone home, but said she needed to stay and earn money to remain in college. She's holding down two jobs, one as a full-time resident assistant at the school and another as a waitress at the Polynesian Cultural Center.
"It's easier to stay here and work than go home and try to find a job for three weeks," Ransom said, adding that she expects to have some spontaneous fun with friends. She had hoped her family would come to Hawai'i for Christmas, but was disappointed to learn they wouldn't make it as planned.
Having students stay to fulfill their obligations to the center is critical for the operation of the tourist attraction, which offers a nightly Polynesian show and dinner, said Isi Kongaika, school vice president in charge of Student Life.
Through the International Work Experience Scholarship program, the center provides up to $6,000 in tuition, which is about $12,000 a year including room, board and books. The families must come up with the rest of the money, but the school also provides scholarships, picking up as much as $5,400 for needy families, Kongaika said.
The students work on campus or at the center to fulfill their obligations.
Since they are necessary for the operation of both the school and center, students in the scholarship program can return to their homes once at a time of their choosing, and a second time for internships, he said. Exceptions are made for emergencies.
"The principle behind that is if they have money to travel back, they should use that money to pay as much as they can for their own education," Kongaika said, adding that of the 600 students in the program about 100 went home for the break.
Not all of the students staying on campus for the holidays are working.
Shannon Mears, a 23-year-old junior from Iowa, quit his job for the break to become a tourist. He will hike La'ie Falls, rest and hit the beach on Christmas Day.
"Being from Iowa, where it is snowy, cold and miserable, just spending a day at the beach would be a lot of fun," Mears said. He said he also would like to round up some friends and volunteer, maybe at a food bank.
"I have free time; my family is not here, so why not?" he said. "I can have a new family for the holidays."
Reach Eloise Aguiar at eaguiar@honoluluadvertiser.com
