The 'Open Campus' Charade: What They're Really Selling You

The University of Hawaiʻi's 'Conversation' is an Insult to Our Intelligence

Let’s get one thing straight. When a university president stands up and tells you she’s starting a “conversation” with “no predetermined outcomes,” you should immediately check your wallet and start looking for the exit. This isn't a conversation. This is the corporate-euphemism-laced prelude to an execution.

The University of Hawaiʻi is putting on a masterclass in this kind of doublespeak right now. President Wendy Hensel and Chancellor Carlos Peñaloza are touring around, hosting "open forums" to discuss a "closer integration" between UH West Oʻahu and Leeward Community College. They’re using soft, fuzzy words like "unified vision," "exploring possibilities," and "ʻohana."

Give me a break.

This isn't a friendly chat over coffee. This is the slow, deliberate, and public-facing preamble to a merger. And the most insulting part? They already made the biggest move before a single question was asked. Hensel announced back in September that Peñaloza, the guy running Leeward CC, would also be taking over as interim chancellor of UH West Oʻahu.

So, the "conversation" about whether these two ships should sail together begins after they've already appointed the same captain to both vessels. How stupid do they think we are? This isn't an exploration; it's a foregone conclusion wrapped in the cheap cellophane of public engagement.

Let's Call This What It Is

When Peñaloza says he’s “committed to exploring possibilities,” my internal PR-to-English translator just spits out: “My job is to figure out how to fuse these two institutions together with minimal blowback.” His new dual role isn't a symbol of open-mindedness; it's the first tangible step in an administrative consolidation. It's the corporate equivalent of moving your stuff into your girlfriend's apartment before you've even talked about getting a key. The decision, on some level, has already been made.

And the language they're using is just… perfect, in the most cynical way imaginable. Peñaloza says he’s committed to making UH West Oʻahu "part of my ʻohana." It sounds so warm, so welcoming. But in the cold, hard world of budgets and bureaucracy, what does that really mean? Does it mean welcoming them into a family of equals, or does it mean absorbing them into an existing power structure where they become the new, slightly less-important cousin? You don't need a Ph.D. to guess the answer.

This whole process is a bad idea. No, "bad" doesn't cover it—this is a five-alarm dumpster fire of bureaucratic maneuvering disguised as community outreach. What happens when a four-year university and a community college are jammed together under one leader? Do their distinct missions get blurred? Does one inevitably get prioritized over the other? Offcourse they do. The entire point of a community college is to serve a different purpose, a different student body, than a baccalaureate institution. Pretending you can just mash them together without someone losing out is either profoundly naive or intentionally dishonest.

I have to wonder, did anyone in a position of power actually stand up in a closed-door meeting and ask if this was a good idea for the students, or was the conversation purely about spreadsheets and "operational efficiencies"? Because from the outside, it sure looks like the latter.

The Illusion of Choice

So they held these forums. A few hundred people showed up, online and in person. They answered about 30 questions. I can just picture the scene: the stale air of a multi-purpose room, the low hum of fluorescent lights, the carefully moderated microphone passed around to pre-screened questioners. It’s all part of the show.

The administration gets to check a box. "Community Engagement: Complete." They can now say they "listened" and "gathered input" before proceeding with the plan they likely had sketched out months ago.

This whole charade is like one of those "Choose Your Own Adventure" books where every single choice leads to the exact same ending. You can turn to page 42 or page 81, but you’re still going to end up in the dragon's cave. The university is letting people feel the texture of the pages, letting them believe their choices matter, but the final chapter was written before the book was even opened. They really expect us to believe that a handful of public questions are going to fundamentally alter a strategic decision that’s already been set in motion by a major leadership change...

What about the questions that didn't get answered? What about the faculty who are terrified for their jobs, or the students worried that the unique identity of their campus is about to be erased? Were those concerns given airtime, or were they conveniently shuffled to the bottom of the pile in favor of softball questions about parking and student services? The press release, UH president, Leeward CC chancellor host open forums on UH West Oʻahu collaboration, is unsurprisingly silent on the details.

Then again, maybe I'm the crazy one here. Maybe this is a genuine, good-faith effort to build something new and innovative. Maybe putting a community college and a four-year university under one roof is a brilliant move that will unlock untold potential for students in west Oʻahu. And maybe I'll win the lottery tomorrow without buying a ticket.

Just a 'Conversation,' My Ass

Let's drop the pretense. This isn't an exploration. It's a consolidation in slow motion. The "forums" are not for gathering input; they are for managing dissent. The language is not for clarification; it's for pacification. The decision has been made, and we're all just watching the public relations theater play out. The real question isn't if these two institutions will be merged in some fundamental way, but how they'll spin it when they finally make the official announcement.