As the month of October came to a close, members of the Student Government Association (SGA) at the American Samoa Community College (ASCC) held their second official meeting with President Dr. Seth Galea'i and Vice President of Academic and Student Affairs Dr. Kathleen Kolhoff. As an initiative towards improving communication and overall relations between the administration and the student body, Dr. Galea'i and Dr. Kolhoff will meet monthly with the SGA to discuss respective areas of concern between the administration and students of ASCC.

"With our recent dramatic increase in enrollment at the College this semester, we feel the SGA can play a very important role in keeping the lines of communication open and clear between the students and the administration," said Dr. Galea'i. "By meeting regularly with the SGA, we hope to create an atmosphere where the students feel involved and listened to, and in turn we will have the opportunity to hear straight from the students how our programs and policies affect them on a day to day basis."

The first meeting, which took place in mid-September, was also attended by Dean of Student Services Dr. Emilia Le'i and SGA Advisor Maxine Tuiolemotu. Following the introductions, Dr. Galea'i and Dr. Kolhoff both spoke their wish to resolve the dilemma that exists at schools where the administration and the students do not make personal contact and thus remain unaware of each other's concerns and intentions. "The administration and faculty alone don't make a successful institution," explained Dr. Galea'i. "What makes a successful institution is genuine learning and positive personal growth on the part of the students. For the administration to gain a full perspective on whether learning and positive growth are taking place, and to effectively address any impediments to this process, we consider it essential to maintain an open and regular dialogue with our students."

The initial dialogue between the SGA and the ASCC Presidents touched on subjects of concern to most students at the College, such as book prices, areas of campus covered by wi-fi, and the lab fees for various courses. Dr. Galea'i and Dr. Kolhoff offered their perspectives on these topics, and also took the opportunity to raise issues of concern to the administration. "We are pleased that the SGA members were so enthusiastic," remarked Dr. Kolhoff afterwards. "They have a good schedule of activities planned for the students and have set good goals to enhance student life. We really look forward to working with them this semester and hearing from them on a regular basis."

Between the first and second meetings between the ASCC administrators and the SGA, American Samoa experienced the tragedy of the late September earthquake and tsunami. In the aftermath of the disaster, the SGA joined the rest of the College in organizing a number of activities to provide assistance to those most seriously affected. Initially, they organized both a Dollar Drive to solicit donations towards disaster relief, and a Book Drive to collect available textbooks for students who had lost theirs in the tsunami. The SGA will also donate all proceeds from the highly successful MTV Showdown in early October towards the purchase of books and school supplies for ASCC students in need following the tsunami.

A fixture at ASCC since the College's inception, the SGA consists of representatives elected from the freshmen and sophomore classes. Students interested in serving as executive officers must have a cumulative 3.00 GPA at the time of election. Any full-time student who maintains a 2.70 GPA, has completed one semester at ASCC, and is in good academic standing is eligible to serve in the SGA. SGA representatives serve on various ASCC committees and the Board of Higher Education includes one SGA member. SGA sponsors a number of activities each year, including the Miss ASCC pageant, Intramural Sports, educational workshops, cultural, assemblies and student club activities.

For the fall 2009 semester, the SGA officers include President Vincent Tofilau, Vice President Valentana Faumuina, Secretary Gloria Tavita, Treasurer Christian Sa'alea, and Student Representative to the BHE Tammie Talalemotu. Valuese Fagota serves as Parliamentarian. Sophomore Representatives are Cinta Ching Sam, Solomona I'atala, Dorecca Leota, Ceivareen M. Siu and Wesley Sola'ita. Freshmen Representatives are Beauty Tuiasosopo, Carla Felix, Hope Poialii Charis Tafaovale and Timali Pele. Latisha Olo, Vaaiga Tanoa, Joe Suani and Kolumane Meredith serve as honorary members.