(Honolulu, Hawaiʻi) — The University of Hawaiʻi Foundation is proud to announce the establishment the Candes Meijide Gentry Endowed Scholarship at the University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa Shidler College of Business. The initial $25,000 gift from Gentry will be matched with funds from Jay Shidler's $25 million gift, increasing the total value to $50,000. The endowed scholarship is for full-time students majoring in business with preference to students interested in entrepreneurship.
"It is extremely heartwarming to receive an endowment from a recent graduate like Candes especially because she just started her professional career in business," said V. Vance Roley, Dean of the Shidler College of Business. "Candes is a strong supporter of higher education and is committed to helping other deserving students reach their academic goals. She is also a great role model for our younger generation."
"I greatly appreciated the generosity of scholarship donors who made it possible for me to contribute to financing my own education," said Candes Gentry, director of Gentry Pacific, Ltd. " I hope that I can help other deserving students enjoy a balanced life while earning scholarship funds to alleviate the financial strain of pursuing education, which I value so deeply."
"As a highly talented student, Candes had the opportunity to attend any college of her choice," said Mānoa Chancellor Virginia S. Hinshaw. "We're honored that she chose the University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa to pursue her MBA. With Candes' scholarship endowment, she is providing increased opportunities for other great students to receive an excellent business education at home."
Candes Meijide Gentry is a graduate of the University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa, earning a BS from the School of Travel Industry Management in 1998 and an MBA from the Shidler College of Business in 2004. Gentry is an accomplished athlete, performer, Miss Hawaiʻi 1999 and world traveler. She is director of Gentry Pacific, Ltd., one of the many family-owned businesses in which she is an active shareholder.
Gentry was raised in Hawaiʻi and graduated from Punahou School. As a scholarship recipient, she attended Babson College and Columbia University, but decided to complete her education at the University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa.
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About the Shidler College of Business at the University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa. Established in 1949 as the College of Business Administration, the College was named in 2006 after alumnus Jay H. Shidler, founder and managing partner of The Shidler Group. The Shidler College of Business is renowned for its expertise in international management education and is consistently ranked among the nation's top 25 graduate schools for international business by U.S.News & World Report. Long recognized for its Asia-Pacific focus, the College is a professional school, offering a wide variety of degree, certificate and executive programs. The College places a strong emphasis on the development of management skills, entrepreneurship and the management of business information technology. The UH Shidler College of Business is the only graduate program in the State of Hawaiʻi accredited by AACSB International. For more information, visit www.shidler.hawaii.edu.
The University of Hawaiʻi Foundation, a nonprofit organization, raises private funds to support the University of Hawaiʻi System. The mission of the University of Hawaiʻi Foundation is to unite donors' passions with the University of Hawaiʻi’s aspirations by raising philanthropic support and managing private investments to benefit UH, the people of Hawaiʻi and our future generations www.uhfoundation.org.
