Education has developed rapidly in Hawaii: 84.6% of all state residents 25 years of age or older had completed high school in 2000; 26.2% had completed four or more years of college.
Hawaii is the only state to have a single, unified public school system. It was founded in 1840. Total enrollment for fall 1999 stood at 185,860. Of these, 133,250 attended schools from kindergarten through grade eight, and 52,610 attended high school. In 2001 Asian/Pacific Islander students made up approximately 72.3% of the total enrollment in public elementary and secondary schools; white students accounted for 20.3%; Hispanics for 4.5%; blacks 2.4%; and the remaining 0.4% were designated as other. Total enrollment was estimated at 184,360 in fall 2000 and expected to reach 217,000 by fall 2005. Enrollment in nonpublic schools in fall 2001 was 32,193. Expenditures for public education in 2000/01 were estimated at $1,178,281.
As of fall 2000, there were 79,748 students enrolled in college or graduate school. In the same year Hawaii had 21 degree-granting institutions. In 1997, minority students comprised 72.8% of total postsecondary enrollment. The University of Hawaii maintains three campuses—Manoa (by far the largest), Hilo, and West Oahu. There are also three private colleges—Brigham Young University–Hawaii Campus, Chaminade University of Honolulu, and Hawaii Pacific College—and six community colleges.