Grant Thornton LLP Partner Patrick Oki Establishes $50,000 Scholarship Fund For UH Accounting Students

HONOLULU – Grant Thornton Partner Patrick Oki has established a $50,000 endowed scholarship fund at the UH Mānoa Shidler College of Business. The initial gift of $25,000 will be matched with funds from the Shidler’s Matching Gift Program to total $50,000. The Patrick Oki Endowed Scholarship Fund for Beta Alpha Psi will provide scholarships to students who are officers or committee chairs of Beta Alpha Psi-Delta Theta Chapter majoring in accounting. Beta Alpha Psi is an honorary organization at the Shidler College of Business for financial information students and encourages and gives recognition to scholastic and professional excellence.

“Beta Alpha Psi was instrumental in guiding me into a successful career in public accounting when I attended the University of Hawaii at Mānoa,” said Patrick Oki. “I truly believe that student organizations such as Beta Alpha Psi bridge the gap between academia and the real business world by introducing students to business professionals, encouraging leadership and teamwork, and developing a sense of ethical, social and public responsibility. This endowment fund is intended to financially assist leaders of Beta Alpha Psi to help ensure the organization will continue to guide its members to successful careers in accounting.”

“This generous gift from Patrick Oki will not only support members of Beta Alpha Psi but also encourage students to actively pursue leadership roles,” said V. Vance Roley. “Student organizations play an important role at the College by nurturing the social, academic and professional development of a student.”

“Students take on enormous financial and academic strain when they take on leadership roles in studentrun organizations at the University,” said UH Mānoa Chancellor Virginia Hinshaw. “Patrick’s establishment of an endowed scholarship for members of Beta Alpha Psi will go a long way in supporting the entire student organization.”

Patrick Oki started his career at PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP in Hawaii and later joined the Honolulu office of Grant Thornton LLP in 2005 as an audit partner.

Oki is a Certified Public Accountant and Certified Fraud Examiner. He is an active member of the University of Hawaii Alumni Association serving as treasurer. He is a member of the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants, Hawaii Society of Certified Public Accountants, Association of Certified Fraud Examiners and Association of Government Accountants. As a former member of Beta Alpha Psi- Delta Theta Chapter, Oki continues to give back through networking and professional activities. He received his BBA in accounting in 1992 from the UH Mānoa Shidler College of Business.

About the Shidler College of Business at the University of Hawai’i 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 Hawai’i accredited by AACSB International. For more information, read about us.

About the University of Hawai’i Foundation
The University of Hawai’i Foundation is an independent, university-related, nonprofit organization whose purpose is to raise private funds according to priorities determined by the academic leadership of the University of Hawai’i and approved by the Board of Regents. Founded in 1955, the Foundation provides a full range of fund raising and alumni relations services for all 10 UH campuses. For more information on the Foundation, visit www.uhf.hawaii.edu.