A college education remains the single most significant pathway for low- and middle-income citizens to improve their long-term economic and financial status, as well as health and overall well-being of themselves and their families. In short, colleges and universities change lives. Our graduates fill the workforce and productively contribute to society, here in Hawaii, on the mainland and abroad. Colleges are economic drivers in their respective communities, spurring innovation and entrepreneurial pursuits.

The current U.S. House tax bill threatens higher education institutions in a several critical ways. First, it dramatically undermines the way that colleges function and do business by imposing a tax on endowments of private colleges such as Chaminade University.

At Chaminade University, some 97 percent of our students (and 100 percent of our freshman class) receive financial aid and/or scholarships. Over 40 percent are Pell eligible and half are first generation college students. The reason we can offer access to higher education to our students is through, in no small part, the income provided by our endowment. These funds are critical to ensure that students in Hawaii and elsewhere are able to attend college without incurring crushing personal debt — and Hawaii’s average college student debt is substantially lower than the national level.

Across the country, according to the College Board, colleges and universities spent $50.7 billion on institutional student aid, much of this from their endowments. This is a particularly important resource that benefits economically disadvantaged students.

It is critical to consider that a college’s endowment is not a single entity that can be used for any purpose, such as a savings or checking account. Instead, an endowment is a collection of many separate funds that have been raised from individuals or foundations over the years for a specific charitable purpose. These funds are invested together like a mutual fund. We have a legal responsibility to manage and spend these endowment assets in a manner which is consistent with donor wishes and with our charitable mission over the long term.

Second, and even more worrisome, is the removal of the charitable deduction which would affect a host of non-profits outside the field of education. The nonprofit sector is a catalyst for change in our community and fills important needs that the government and for-profit sector are ill suited to handle. Mission-driven nonprofit organizations are part of Hawaii’s social and economic fabric, with origins dating to Hawaii’s alii who sought to provide for the betterment of their people over the long term.

The upshot of passage of this bill would be making a college education unattainable for many more students. We urge all everyone to join in to express opposition to the proposed House Tax Bill — for our sake and that of those that follow us.

Lynn Babington, Ph.D., is president of Chaminade University of Honolulu, a private Catholic university; it is federally designated as a Native Hawaiian serving institution.