When he was 7 years old, Blake Tolentino saw the University of Hawaii play Notre Dame at Aloha Stadium and was the only one in his family rooting for the Fighting Irish.

Notre Dame is Tolentino's first choice for college next year. But whether he goes there or to UH Manoa will depend on the financial aid package he receives.

Tolentino and his twin sister Blaire are both hoping to go away to school next year and their parents, like parents of high school seniors across the state, are wondering how to pay for it in a declining economy.

“;It's spooky,”; said their father Francis Tolentino.

Tolentino went through a layoff five years ago, which ate up much of the family's savings until he could find full time work again. His wife Sharon, a nurse, takes all the overtime shifts she can so that they can pay tuition at Iolani School for the twins.

“;I can't ask them to work any harder than they already do,”; said Blaire, who is looking at the University of San Francisco and other colleges in California and Washington. “;I'd like to go away next year, but if that's not in the cards so be it.”;

The cost of sending twins away to college is likely to be about $90,000 a year, so the financial aid package will be the deciding factor on where they go to school.

“;We're going to apply for everything we can find,”; Francis Tolentino said.

College and financial aid counselors say cost appears to be a bigger factor in choosing a school this year.

“;People's jobs are in jeopardy, their wages aren't rising and their savings are shrinking,”; said Edie Irons, a spokeswoman for the Institute for College Access and Success, a nonprofit organization that promotes college affordability and access. “;I think that families are facing those tough choices.”;

“;We're definitely busier,”; said Cathy Bio, a financial aid counselor at Maui Community College and the president of the Pacific Financial Aid Association, an organization of financial aid counselors. “;We're seeing a 50 to 100 percent increase in the number of people attending our (financial aid) seminars.”;

About 80 parents and seniors attended a financial aid seminar at Kaiser High School last week.

“;Usually it's not this big a crowd,”; said Dean Uchida, a financial aid counselor at the UH-Manoa, who spoke at the seminar. “;So I guess everybody's worried.”;

Uchida told parents its important to apply early for financial aid.

“;Our funding does not increase with the number of students applying for financial aid,”; he said.

Parents were quickly becoming familiar with financial aid jargon like EFC (Expected Family Contribution), FAFSA (Free Application for Federal Student Aid) and WUE (Western Undergraduate Exchange — a program that allows students to attend public colleges and pay 150 percent of the resident rate instead of the full nonresident tuition).

Even parents who saved money for college are concerned. In the last year, the stock market fund in Hawaii's tax deferred college savings plan lost 39 percent of its value.

“;I was crying when I got the paper (showing her financial statements),”; said Candy Iha who said she has been saving money for her daughter's college for the last 12 years. “;Whenever I would get a raise, I would put money in savings.”;

Iha said her daughter wants to go to a junior college on the mainland next fall.

“;I'm going to send her, but I don't know how I'm going to pay for it,”; she said.