Caption: In addition to her duties as ASCC President, Dr. Adele Satele-Galea'i will serve on the Accrediting Commission for Community and Junior Colleges, a division of WASC, beginning in June of next year.

            The ASCC President actively serves on the PPEC, to whom the ACCJC traditionally assigns one membership slot. An organization of public colleges and universities in the American affiliated Pacific islands, the PPEC includes members from American Samoa, the Commonwealth of the Northern Marianas Islands, Guam, the Federated States of Micronesia, the Republic of Palau, the Republic of the Marshall Islands, and the State of Hawaii, who have agreed to work together to address regional and local postsecondary education issues.  Established in 1981, the PPEC works to facilitate inter-institutional collaboration enhance transfer and articulation opportunities for students, strengthen teacher development and information sharing, and encourage capacity-building and workforce development. When Dr. Satele-Galea’i joins the ACCJC next summer, she will take over from current PPEC representative Sue Moses.

“The PPEC considers it crucial step forward that one of its members serves on the ASCCJC,” she explained. “The institutes of higher learning in the American Pacific operate under a unique set of conditions and face a whole different set of challenges from our counterparts in Hawaii and the mainland.  Having a PPEC member serving on the ACCJC helps bridge the gap between the mainland and the Pacific perspectives.” Dr. Satele-Galea’i says duties with the ACCJC will “only occasionally” shift her attention away from ASCC. “My work with the Commission will require me to travel for only about a week’s time during any given semester,” she said. “In addition, not every Commission member participates in every evaluation carried out by the ACCJC. This avoids potential conflicts of interest, where Commission members might end up on the team evaluating the same institution they work for.”

            Dr. Satele-Galea’i has served as ASCC President since 2001. Shortly after beginning the job, she completed the Harvard Institute for College Presidents, a leadership seminar that brought together first-year and aspiring college leaders from across the nation. Previously, Dr. Satele-Galea’i served for five years as Director of the ASCC Office of Institutional Advancement (now known as the Office of Institutional Effectiveness). She completed her doctorate degree in Public Administration from Golden Gate University in 2000. The President also holds a Bachelor of Science Degree in Psychology from Brigham Young University, which she earned in 1973, and an MSW in Clinical Social Work from University of Southern California, which she received in 1977. “Having worked in American Samoa’s education system as a teacher, an administrator, and now as the College President, I often reflect on how we should welcome opportunities to learn more through accepting new challenges. Once we get too comfortable in a certain role, we run the risk of losing touch with the changes going on all around us. I feel that always striving for the next level of service keeps my outlook on things fresh, and for this reason I welcome the professional growth that will come with serving on the ACCJC.”

            As a member of the ACCJC, Dr. Satele-Galea’i’s responsibilities will include attendance at all Commission meetings; reviewing relevant documents and data prior to these meetings; serving as an in-depth reader of evaluation visit materials as assigned; voting according to her best professional judgment in light of existing policies and standards; participating on Commission committees; and attending and actively participating in Commission activities such as evaluation team visits and retreats. Dr. Satele-Galea’i reflected, “I will consider it a privilege to work with the ACCJC, because I believe ASCC can take pride in its current accreditation status. Despite our size, accreditation by the ACCJC gives us something in common with distinguished mainland schools such as Heald College, Marymount College, Oxnard College, San Diego City College, and Western Career College, to name only a few.”

For more information on the ACCJC and its activities, visit the WASC web page at: http://www.wascweb.org.     

ASCC President Dr. Adele Satele-Galea'i (right) explains graduation requirements to future scholar William Herbert Thweatt. In addition to her duties at the College, Dr. Satele-Galea'i will begin serving next June on the Accrediting Commission for Community and Junior Colleges, a division of WASC. (Photo: J.
Kneubuhl)

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