Maui, Hilo UH Campuses Top Hawaiʻi Title IX Complaint List

Two University of Hawaiʻi campuses away from Oʻahu are drawing outsized attention at the Capitol after logging the system’s highest rates of Title IX reports and complaints last academic year. A new university report to the Legislature shows UH Maui College and UH Hilo with significantly higher complaint rates than UH Mānoa, and the numbers are fueling a push for mandatory student training across the system.

Neighbor islands recorded higher complaint rates

The university’s HRS 368D-4 annual report for academic year 2024–25 found that 3.67% of Maui College students and 3.25% of students at UH Hilo made reports or filed complaints, compared with 1.57% at UH Mānoa, according to University of Hawaiʻi. The report covers complaints and confidential reports received between Aug. 1, 2024 and July 31, 2025 and breaks the data down campus by campus.

Low training completion, lawmaker seeks new rules

Student completion of Title IX training was low across campuses: Mānoa reported roughly 27% in-person and 3.3% online, while UH Hilo and Maui College posted much smaller shares, Civil Beat reported. Civil Beat also summarized systemwide employee training as about 58% for online modules and roughly 15% for in-person courses, and reported that Rep. Amy Perruso plans to introduce legislation that would link student training completion to class registration. Perruso told Civil Beat, "If the training is uniformly required, that will help develop this common language and common set of expectations, so that we will see these kinds of incidents decrease."

Hilo coordinator says office is stretched

UH Hilo’s interim Title IX coordinator, Shaunda Makaimoku, told Civil Beat the campus office has been "short-staffed" and has been prioritizing in-person outreach to housing staff and athletic departments while focusing this year on units with prior concerns. Civil Beat reports that the Hilo office has tried to increase visibility on campus even as student participation in training has proved difficult to reach.

What Title IX covers and how UH counts reports

Title IX is the federal law that bars sex-based discrimination at institutions that receive federal funds, including harassment and sexual violence, according to the U.S. Department of Education. The U.S. Department of Education notes Title IX covers schools’ obligations to respond and prevent sex-based discrimination.

The UH annual report also clarifies its terminology: a "report" can be an initial notification from anyone, including confidential resources, while a formal "complaint" is a signed document seeking formal redress. The University of Hawaiʻi report includes the campus breakdowns and training data that underlie the systemwide conversation.

Legislative context and next steps

Rep. Amy Perruso has pushed related measures before and is preparing a new proposal focused on mandatory student training tied to registration, according to reporting and the legislative record; LegiScan shows HB758, a prior Perruso-sponsored measure on sex-based protections, was carried into the 2026 session. LegiScan lists Perruso among sponsors of recent bills that address sex-based harassment and reporting requirements.

The release of the UH report and Perruso’s pledge to act mean the topic is likely to surface in committee hearings this session, and campus Title IX offices may face fresh requests for details on staffing, outreach and how training is tracked and enforced.