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Pharmacy school
doors remain open

I would like to clear the air about what is happening at the Hawaii College of Pharmacy. First, let me say that we fully intend to keep operating and offer our students and faculty the best possible learning and teaching environment while we secure accreditation.

Our goal is achieving accreditation for our first graduating class in 2008, which will allow these new pharmacists to bring their skills to a health care market that has a huge demand for their knowledge and skills.

We have been in regular and cordial communications with the state Department of Commerce and Consumer Affairs about our accreditation and the status of HICP. We have cooperated with all its requests and were in the process of finishing a detailed response to a lengthy request for information when we learned of the lawsuit by the DCCA.

Unfortunately, the lawsuit mischaracterizes HICP's actions. Students were informed about the status of the school's accreditation before their enrollment. Each and every student enrolling in the 2004-'05 school year signed an agreement acknowledging that they were aware of the school's accreditation status; as our materials stated, "The Hawaii College of Pharmacy is not accredited by an accrediting agency recognized by the United States Secretary of Education."

And contrary to the lawsuit, promotional material provided to students before enrollment clearly disclosed the fact that HICP was not an accredited institution.

We will continue cooperating with DCCA and comply with all Hawaii laws, as well as all requirements of the Accreditation Council for Pharmacy Education, which governs the accreditation of pharmacy schools. The resubmission of the application for accreditation by the ACPE will be submitted by October 1, for further review by the ACPE Council.

There is no question HICP has experienced growing pains since being founded, as do many organizations in their first years. Our mistaken reference to an affiliation with the University of Southern Nevada was just that -- a mistake. It was printed in an earlier version of the student handbook, but once we discovered the error, the reference was removed.

Great strides have been made. To ensure compliance with ACPE requirements for enrollment, we have created a plan to ensure that our students can continue their education and the process of becoming pharmacists.

There is a new administration, which has learned from the past. Our faculty is stabilized and we have a ratio of students to faculty of 9.5-to-1, as required by the ACPE. Our ultimate goal is an even smaller ratio of 8-to-1. We have a state-of-the-art facility at Kapolei's James Campbell Building with a computer for each student and a 22,000-square-foot campus. With the addition of 26 new faculty and 150 practice sites, we are stronger now than ever.

We are doing everything possible to help students through this difficult time. Our administrators have spoken with a great number of students in person and on the phone to assure them that we are committed to their education.

We place students first. When our new school year begins on Sept. 6, we will be a stronger learning institution as we welcome our students back.

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