Kamehameha Schools signal change of policy

The decision by trustees of the Kamehameha Schools to accept a non-Hawaiian student at its new campus on Maui is not an inconsequential or incidental piece of news.

It signals that the trustees of the schools are looking hard at their mission and the survival of the venerable trust in a changing political and legal world.

The fact that the trustees spent a portion of the weekend in a retreat to go over admission policies is enough to understand the importance of this move.

Kamehameha Schools Chief Executive Officer Hamilton McCubbin says the admission of this one child does not signal a change in admission policy. That's a perfectly defensible statement only as long as one accepts that the policy has been, and continues to be, simply that the schools give a "preference" to students of Hawaiian ancestry in admissions.

So when the number of qualified part-Hawaiian students overwhelms the number of slots available, the preference dominates. In the case of the Maui student, the school says, it simply ran out of qualified students before it ran out of slots.

Former Bishop Estate trustee Oswald Stender makes a good point when he says that it is unlikely there wasn't even one single additional qualified part-Hawaiian in all of Maui (or Moloka'i or Lana'i, for that matter) to fill that slot.

But by enrolling a handful of students without Hawaiian ancestry, Kamehameha Schools does strengthen its argument against those who say it has an impermissible race-based admissions policy.

And face it: We have a right to care, since the estate that pays for the schools enjoys tax-exempt status.

It is unclear whether the admission of a few non-Hawaiians will be enough to allow the schools to move forward unchallenged. What is clear is that a way must be found to preserve the schools and their important mission.

It is without a doubt that Kamehameha Schools has — particularly in recent years — provided a high-quality education to a group of students who too often were left behind. It has educated some this state's brightest leaders and has been a beacon of hope for those who wish to preserve the Hawaiian culture and identity.

Most people would agree that, on balance, the value Hawai'i has received has been well worth the tax benefits the estate has enjoyed. There should be a way to preserve this valuable relationship.