February 2009 Question-and-Answer Forum

In their February 5 Question and Answer Forum in Aloha Center 155/165, members of the Brigham Young University Hawaii President's Council covered topics including housing policy under the new academic calendar, changes in immigration visa practices for international students, the impact of long-range plans on BYUH initiatives, Food Services meal policies, I-Work scholarships, campus security and other subjects.

Addressing the new on-campus housing policy requiring students to be enrolled for two semesters and two terms now in effect under the 2009 academic calendar, BYU-Hawaii Vice President for Academics Dr. Max L. Checketts stressed that there can be exceptions, including internships and other university-sanctioned activities.

A Housing representative said students seeking such exceptions need to bring in a Major Academic Plan (MAP) signed by an academic advisor and fill out a request form for consideration.

"We're working with a lot of departments, including Housing, so students can earn 40 credits in an academic year...and graduate in three years," Checketts said. "Clearly, in the future, we're going to require as many of our students as possible to enroll year-round, which means two semesters and two terms. Financially, it's to their advantage to graduate at the end of three years."

He also said implementing the new calendar at BYU-Hawaii "is going to require some sacrifices for staff, students and families. But if we're willing to sacrifice a little bit, then I believe Heaven will help compensate in many ways, and many more students will be able to get an education here. That's the key reason we're trying to do this."

Asked if international work-experience students (formerly IWES, now I-WORK) can enroll for all three mid-year terms, Checketts said yes, but pointed out it's important for them to coordinate with the IWES office.

Asked how the new academic calendar affects graduation requirements, Checketts replied, "This semester and Spring Term we'll be on the current standards, but as we move into First Term and Fall Semester, we'll increasingly implement the new graduation requirements."

BYU-Hawaii President Steven C. Wheelwright [pictured at upper right] added, "There are several principles to keep in mind here: One, the government, from a visa point of view, only requires two semesters, but we want to have all of our incentives — housing, financial aid, and others — encourage the equivalent of three semesters. That is what's going to enable us to serve more students and lower the costs to the Church and families."

"Another principle is, in the interim, we'll have exception processes and we'll be much more lenient with students who came in under one set of expectations; but it doesn't mean we won't encourage them to move in the new direction. The sooner we get things moving that way, the sooner we'll have the benefits and blessings we think they will bring to the campus."

Asked where 1,000 more new students would work while in school, President Wheelwright emphasized BYU-Hawaii does not have approval yet for such an expansion, but possible options include an agreement already in place with the developers of the proposed new Laie Courtyard Marriott™ hotel to employ approximately 200 students. Construction on the new 200-room hotel, that will eventually replace the existing Laie Inn, is tentatively scheduled to begin at the end of this year. He added BYUH is also considering other information technology and light industrial options. "That's all part of our long-range planning efforts that we're undertaking."

He noted the agreement with the new hotel owners will allow international students to work there, "just like they can at the PCC, and we would set up the other things in the same way"; and Checketts added, going forward, BYUH might use more students to fill new positions rather than hire additional fulltime staff.

Asked if foreign missionaries for the Church have been having a hard time getting visas to serve in the U.S. because some former BYU-Hawaii students have "run away" and not returned home, President Wheelwright explained since 9/11 the U.S. government "has gotten much more serious about visa holders and tracking them" with a new system: "They now know if we give visas to students and they haven't gone back home yet." He added that the Latter-day Saint Area President in New Zealand recently asked him to contact the U.S. Consulate in Suva, Fiji, which also serves other islands in the South Pacific, "because they're starting to make it more challenging to get missionaries into the U.S. They don't see us [BYUH] as being different from the missionaries or any other department in the Church."

"So, the answer to this question is yes, we're very concerned about it, and yes, we do need to get people home once their visas end, because we're following the law," President Wheelwright continued. "We're certainly cooperating with the Immigration and Naturalization Service [INS] and others to make sure we're doing our part in terms of tracking students and impressing upon them the importance of visa compliance."

"What you might not know is that the U.S. visa offices have always made it very tough to get a visa for people from countries with low return rates without sponsorship. I think the next step will be getting the IWES students we sponsor home. I think this is very appropriate, and we need to be more careful. Students need to understand this." He also said BYUH Admissions might have to get tougher on applicants from countries with low return rates, "because it's in our best interests, the Church's best interests, and in the end, the students' best interests."

On another visa-related question, President Wheelwright explained BYUH uses F1 visas for international students who have not served a mission, and J1 visas for those who have. He said the university historically used F1 visas for all international students, "which have a couple of drawbacks: One is that the spouse cannot work. A J1 visa has the advantage that an international spouse can work fulltime; but the disadvantage is you can't convert a J1 to an R1 visa, to go straight to being a missionary, without going home first."

He added that J1 visas also require a graduate to return home for two years before applying for another visa; and while this might affect plans to attend graduate school in the U.S., he gave the example that Yonsei University in Seoul, South Korea, "is anxious to get English-speaking students. They've decided that English is their preferred language, and there are 600 undergraduate courses taught in it." He also suggested attending graduate school back home might, in many cases, be more appropriate to careers and employability in those countries.

Debbie Hippolite Wright, Vice President for Student Affairs and Development next answered questions about Food Service sack meals by explaining that students on a meal plan who know they can't come into the cafeteria, can get one sack meal a day, Monday-Friday, from 6-10, and on Saturday from 7-10 a.m. A student can also pick up a meal for a sick friend in the dorms.

In addition, Hippolite Wright said Food Services recently made adjustments in the sack meal menu in response to focus group research; and President Wheelwright pointed out that the meal plan limits students to no more than three meals per day, including those in sacks.

In response to a question whether the current Envision Hawaii studies would delay the sale of BYUH townhouses to faculty, President Wheelwright said no, pending approval from the Church, which is not expected to take long, and City and Council Real Estate Commission approval, which could take "anywhere from a few weeks to a few months. Then we're ready."

In reference to a question about international I-WORK students and scholarships, Michael B. Bliss, Vice President for Administrative Services, explained the move from the IWES program would not affect them, regardless of whether they have F1 or J1 visas. However, he stressed that the President's Council is trying to make scholarship money "available to as many needy students as possible," so those with full-ride scholarships do not need any additional awards or funds.

Asked if BYU-Hawaii has plans for additional lighting in the event of a future power outage, Bliss responded, "We have emergency lighting where we think it's appropriate. In the future, when we get a larger generator, we'll look at adding additional lighting. If anyone has a particular situation where there's a problem, he should bring it to our attention so we can consider it."

Asked why anonymous entries through the web site for reporting sexual harassment and other inappropriate behaviors are allowed, President Wheelwright said that's current policy at all CES universities. "We investigate every claim we receive on the web site, and there's also a hotline that can be used; but it's only if we find factual support that we'll do something. While it's always better to have a name, because that's probably one of the sources of facts or evidence, we'll still pursue anonymous claims. There are also some people who don't want to be identified by name, and we prefer to receive some comments from them rather than none at all."

Checketts added that the university "thoroughly investigates all complaints on both sides, because if someone is falsely accused, that can be just as legally dangerous for us."