Hawaiʻi State Approving Agency History

Posted on Jun 4, 2025 in 2020ʻs, Civ-Mil History

The Hawai‘i State Approving Agency (SAA) traces its roots to the passage of the original GI Bill of Rights in the aftermath of World War II. Officially authorized under Title 38, U.S. Code, Chapter 36, the SAA was established to safeguard the quality and integrity of educational and training programs accessible to veterans utilizing federal education benefits. Every U.S. state maintains its own SAA, responsible for approving programs within its jurisdiction and ensuring compliance with Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) requirements.

The SAA’s core responsibilities include inspecting and supervising educational institutions, approving or disapproving training programs for GI Bill eligibility, and reviewing institutions’ compliance with federal standards. These functions are codified in 38 CFR §21.4151(b), which defines the agency’s role in collaboration with the VA.

In Hawai‘i, the SAA has evolved over the decades. For many years, the agency was housed within the University of Hawai‘i system, until a pivotal transition in 2021. The Isakson-Roe Veterans Health Care and Benefits Improvement Act mandated that SAAs be independent of state universities to avoid potential conflicts of interest. In response, the Hawai‘i SAA was officially transferred to the State of Hawai‘i Department of Defense on Oct. 1, 2021.

The Hawai‘i SAA engages with educational training institutions across the state, at various stages of the approval process. These include institutions of higher learning that offer degree programs ranging from associates to doctoral levels. Other non-college degree schools offer vocational or certification programs in areas such as massage therapy, cybersecurity, esthetics, flight school and yoga instruction. The approval process is thorough and can take months to complete, especially for new institutions.

In addition to program approvals, the agency conducts outreach engages in supervisory and compliance related school visits, processes reapprovals, modifications, suspensions and withdrawals. Withdrawals can be due to factors such as school closure, inactivity, voluntary withdrawal, non-participation in federal financial aid programs, or federal compliance violations.

Today, the Hawai‘i SAA continues its mission to approve and monitor education and training programs, ensuring that veterans and their families receive the full value of their hard-earned GI Bill benefits. It also assists veterans in identifying appropriate programs locally and nationwide, affirming its role as a vital resource within the broader network of veterans’ services.

Hawaiʻi State Approving Agency Chronological History

01 OCT 2021 The State Approving Agency, originally established during World War II to support the GI Bill of Rights, officially became part of the Hawai‘i Department of Defense following a federal mandate to move it out of university systems.

Learn more

New office within HIDOD helps veterans

State of Hawai‘i Department of Defense | Story by Bernhard Lashleyleidner

HONOLULU – It’s official: the State Approving Agency (SAA) is now a part of the state of Hawai‘i Department of Defense, after transferring from the University of Hawai‘i on Oct 1, 2021. The Veterans Health Care and Benefits Improvement Act of 2020 states that the SAA can no longer be “co-located” within a state university or university system.

The SAA, created during the early days of WWII’s “GI Bill of Rights,” is responsible for assisting new institutions with meeting the regulatory requirements for accepting veterans and their dependents using their GI Bill benefit, as well as schools already in the program, who have revisions or additional programs they would like to have included.

Curtis Washburn, Doctor of Philosophy (PhD), has been serving as the Director of the SAA since 2019.

Washburn was raised in Connecticut, where he received his Bachelor of Arts in Economics with a minor in Sociology from Fairfield University, his Master of Arts in Sociology from The New School of Social Research, and his PhD in Educational Administration from the University of Hawai‘i at Mānoa.

His father served as a Navy Corpsman during WWII from 1944-1946, and he believes that the GI Bill is one of the greatest benefits veterans have.

“The benefits don’t last forever,” said Washburn. “It’s a big mistake for veterans not to utilize their GI Bill benefits to their full advantage.”

Washburn said the SAA ensures veterans and their dependents are paying a fair rate for programs and that schools are not unfairly charging them more for the same education as other students.

“We protect the integrity of the GI Bill,” said Washburn. “We routinely check to see if schools and facilities are engaging in deceptive or misleading advertising or practices.”

The primary function of the SAA is to review, evaluate and approve quality educational and training programs for veterans’ benefits.

He said there are many schools in the state which have already been approved and offers assistance to veterans with navigating the various schools matching their educational needs.

Some of the approved training, certification and degree programs are:

  • i. Traditional Institutions of Higher Learning (IHLs) which offer traditional Associate’s degrees, Bachelor’s degrees and Graduate level degrees, and would include schools like the entire University of Hawai‘i system, Chaminade University, Hawai‘i Pacific University, and Wayland Baptist.
  • ii. Non-College Degree (NCD) schools that offer training in a variety of programs, which lead to certification in fields that have a vocational objective. This might include schools that train students for massage therapy, cyber security, dive masters, hair styling, estheticians, etc.
  • iii. Flight Schools
  • iv. Apprenticeship and on-the-job training programs.

Every state has an SAA, so if veterans are interested in schools in other states, Mr. Washburn can help them learn about how to find schools in other areas.

“Check out our website at https://dod.hawaii.gov/hawai‘i-state-approving-agency/ first to get a sense of what I do,” said Washburn.

If veterans are interested in finding out which local schools are approved to train them, check out: https://inquiry.vba.va.gov/weamspub/buildSearchInstitutionCriteria.do

“From application to approval, it takes time,” said Washburn. “It is a lengthy process that takes months, especially for new schools.”

Washburn, an avid sport fan, enjoys watching basketball, football, baseball, tennis and golf, but believes there is nothing better than spending time at the beach.

“I have always been passionate about the value of education, for all people,” said Washburn. “I’ve been working in higher education for over 20 years and can say education changes people’s lives for the better.”

– 2022 Spring Pupukahi pp. 13

New office within HIDOD helps veterans
New office within HIDOD helps veterans
(Picture from the 2022 Spring Pupukahi)

Hawaiʻi State Approving Agency (SAA) Highlights History

State Approving Agencies grew out of the GI Bill® of Rights. Title 38, U.S. Code, Chapter 36, Administration of Education Benefits, which authorizes the establishment of SAAs. 38 CFR, 21.4151(b) summarizes SAA responsibilities under the law. They are:

  • To inspect and supervise schools and training establishments within their state.
  • To determine programs of education and training that may be approved for veterans.
  • To determine whether a school or training establishment complies with established standards; and
  • To render services and obtain information necessary for the Department of Veterans Affairs to approve or disapprove courses of education offered by any agency of the Federal Government within their states.

The primary function of the Hawaiʻi SAA is to review, evaluate, and approve quality educational and training programs for veterans’ benefits. The Hawai‘i SAA is a member of the National Association of State Approving Agencies.

Personnel / Organization

The Director of the Hawai‘i SAA is Curtis Washburn, PhD. Dr. Washburn worked in Higher Education in Hawai‘i at Chaminade University from 2000-2015 and at Leeward Community College from 2015-2019. He began working as the Director of the Hawai‘i State Approving Agency in October 2019, when the agency was housed at University of Hawai‘i-Mānoa. In January of 2021, with the passage of the Isakson-Roe Act (now PL 116-315), the agency was required to move out of the UH system and moved to the State of Hawai‘i Department of Defense, effective October 1, 2021.

Fiscal Year 2024 Activities

For the state fiscal year of July 1, 2023, to June 30, 2024, the Hawai‘i SAA engaged in approval activities with 56 different Educational Training Institutions (ETI) in the state of Hawai‘i in various stages of approval. Among those 56 facilities, 28 were Institutions of Higher Learning (IHL) facilities. IHL facilities are ETIs that generally offer standard college degrees, from associate’s degree to Doctoral degrees. This includes institutions such as those in the University of Hawai‘i system, Hawai‘i Pacific University, Chaminade University, Brigham Young University-Hawai‘i and other schools that are classified as IHLs and grant standard degrees.

Also, among the 56 were 21 ETIs classified as NonCollege Degree (NCD) facilities. This includes ETIs
that offer education and training in fields such as dive instruction, esthetician, yoga teacher training, massage therapy, computer information security, and a variety of other fields. There are two approved flight schools in Hawai‘i. One was re-approved in Fiscal Year (FY) 24 and the other is in progress of updating approval.

One apprenticeship program also updated approval, and a second is in progress, along with a new apprenticeship program, which is almost complete with its application.

There was a significant rise in the number of high schools seeking approval. Five high schools were approved, and another five are currently in the process of seeking either new approval or reapproval of their program.

Represented among the 56 ETIs are:

  • 1746 IHL programs. This represents the total number of “majors” and degree programs that VA students can pursue at approved ETIs.
  • 737 NCD programs. This represents certificate programs that students can pursue at both IHL facilities and NCD facilities, both accredited and non-accredited ETIs.
  • Three apprenticeship programs, and 4 flight training programs.
  • Forty Reapprovals. This represents ETIs that were previously approved and had an updated catalog review to maintain continued approval. Among those reapproval actions, some schools were reapproved multiple times (e.g. for both the 2023-2024 catalog, and later in the year for the 2024-2025 catalog. There were 6 new approvals (i.e. new facilities that had never been approved before).
  • Twelve Modifications. This represents actions taken to modify a previously approved school for a small change within their approved list of programs available for VA beneficiaries. It could be a tuition change, or a new academic calendar or a small change in policy. However, any time a school adds new programs, their catalog is subject to a comprehensive review. One modification request was rejected by the VA for technical reasons.
  • Fifteen Withdrawals. This represents ETIs that were withdrawn from approval. Two were withdrawn due to non-participation in Department of Education Title IV programs, two were withdrawn due to school closure, eight were withdrawn due to inactivity for three years or more, two chose to withdraw voluntarily and one was withdrawn for violations of federal regulations.

Other activities included the completion of one “Risk Based Survey” and six “Supervisory Visits”. These are surveys and visits designed to review schools for compliance with federal regulations in the administration of the Veteran’s benefits certifications on their campus.

– 2024 Annual Report pp. 53