The University of Hawaiʻi announced the launch of an ambitious campaign on Wednesday to raise $1 billion.
The campaign "For UH, For Hawaiʻi" is already more than halfway to its goal — with nearly $570 million raised from various donors.
The money goes toward supporting current and future students across the university's 10 campuses.
"UH has a unique responsibility as Hawaiʻi's sole public university to provide high-quality higher education opportunities that improve the quality of life for our people and communities throughout the islands," UH President David Lassner said in a news release.
He said private support is critical to helping students and families fulfill their higher education goals. The university wants to recruit and retain faculty and graduate students, he said, so they can address "some of the most important challenges and opportunities facing Hawaiʻi and the planet."
Donors have long selected specific programs and campuses they want to give to, including first-generation students, academic excellence for faculty, innovative world-class research, or other programs they're passionate about.
The most notable donors are Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg and his wife, Dr. Priscilla Chan, who gave the largest cash gift ever of $50 million for ocean health.
Additionally, longtime donor Walter Dods Jr. gave $5 million for UH's new Residences for Innovative Student Entrepreneurship, or RISE, housing on University Avenue.
Other donors include Native Hawaiian organizations at UH who gave $5 million, an anonymous gift of $4.6 million for the UH Center for Indigenous Innovation and Health Equity, and HMSA's donation of more than $7 million for medical students.
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