Caption: ASCC/CNR Director Dr. Daniel Aga (left) and instructor Dr. Eric Hansen congratulate student Faiane Miller on her recent acceptance to a summer internship in Costa Rica with the The Native American and Pacific Islander Research Experience Program. (Photo: J. Kneubuhl)

Faiane, the daughter of a well-known Samoan musician and teacher Harry Miller and journalist Monica Hazelman Miller, described the competitive application process. “I had to write a very detailed essay, in addition to making sure I fulfilled all of the requirements,” she said. “Thankfully, my teachers Dr. Eric Hanson, Dr. Karolyn Braun and Malagamali’i Tavita Elisara assisted me in completing the application form and also wrote recommendations for me.”

Upon learning of her acceptance, Faiane’s instructor Malagamali’i said, “I feel very proud for Faiane because she struggled with all her energy to get into one of the three off-island internship programs, and her hard labor finally paid off.” Malagamali’i added that he hopes to see more students like Faiane exposed to environmental research in the coming years.  CNR Director Dr. Dan Mageo Aga also congratulated Faiane for her exemplary accomplishment, and said he encourages students in natural resources, general agriculture, agribusiness and family and consumer sciences to pursue similar research and internship opportunities, which occasionally become available.

The Native American and Pacific Islander Research Experience Program works towards introducing qualified undergraduate students to the biodiversity of the tropics. As part of the program, students complete a field research project involving experimental design, data collection, analysis and presentation of results. Students experience a process of applying the scientific method to ecological inquiry and discovery in a collaborative and team-oriented environment. In addition to their research projects, students also participate in lectures, seminars and field activities that focus on tropical ecology and conservation. Participants have the opportunity to interact with the indigenous people of Central America, allowing a first-hand look at the role of Native Peoples in tropical forest conservation. Each student will work under a Research Mentor, who assists them with their independent project and provides support during the program.

The Louis Strokes Alliances for Minority Participation Program supports the Native American and Pacific Islander Research Experience Program.  One of a sequence of four National Science Foundation programs, the Louis Stokes Alliances for Minority Participation program seeks to build productive capacity and output within institutions with significant enrollments of minority populations underrepresented within science, technology, engineering, and mathematics. As a leader in the field of tropical ecology since 1963, the Organization for Tropical Studies, a consortium of more than 60 domestic and international colleges and universities, has trained a number of renowned tropical ecologists.

ASCC President Dr. Adele Satele-Galea’i, speaking on behalf of the College’s faculty, staff and students, wished Faiane a rewarding and enlightening experience this summer. “With so much concern today over the health of our environment, it gives me great pleasure to see the efforts by CNR to nurture enthusiastic young scientists like Miss Miller,” said the President. “We send our prayers and encouragement with her, and we hope she will bring back a wealth of knowledge from which we can all benefit.”  

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