HONOLULU (KHON2) — At the University of Hawai’i at Mānoa, their Shidler College of Business has a program known as the School of Travel Industry Management, TIM for short.

TIM has announced that they have received $500,000 as a gift from the Conrad N. Hilton Foundation.

The grant is meant to support students who have graduated from a high school in Hawai’i and who enter the program.

The grant establishes a new scholarship to help high school juniors and seniors who have exemplified leadership capabilities and who are in financial need. The scholarship does prefer students who have Native Hawaiian ancestry.

The Hilton family said that they hope the grant can increase the pool of qualified, local talent who can represent Hawaiian culture in the industry. This is the family’s second largest gift to UH with their $2 million gift in 2008 to the UH Culinary Institute of the Pacific at Diamond Head.

“The amount of support shown for the TIM school through this scholarship is remarkable. With Hawaiʻi as a prime hospitality destination, it’s vital for the college to build and retain our pipeline of local talent,” said Shidler College of Business Dean Vance Roley.

“The scholarship, which also carries the legacy of the Hilton family, will attract future hospitality leaders to attain their degree at UH Mānoa and hopefully continue their careers within Hawaiʻi,” added Roley.

“The Conrad N. Hilton Foundation is a longtime partner in hospitality education with UH, including its foundational gift to the Culinary Institute of the Pacific project,” said Tim Dolan, vice president of advancement at UH and CEO of the University of Hawaiʻi Foundation.

“We are grateful for the Hilton family’s support of the TIM school and their recognition of the importance of Hawaiʻi’s culture to education and the tourism industry,” added Dolan.