Lorna-Lei Sua'ava, Samoan undergraduate scholar at Southern Virginia University, shares her transformative experience as a recipient of a National Science Foundation-funded Biochemistry internship at Brigham Young University, Provo. She hopes to see an improved American Samoan healthcare system empowering traditional medicinal practices.

Patricia “Patty” Leilua is a Samoan woman born and raised in Melbourne. Patty shares her educational journey, her experience working at Le Mana Pasifika, and why she’s pursuing a Masters in Teaching.

Doris Tulifau, founder of Brown Girl Woke, shares her story of resilience, tenacious advocacy and love for her community as she navigated higher education before pursuing her community advocacy work around gender equity in Samoa and American Samoa. She gives advice to people interested in becoming community organizers and working in the nonprofit field.

Tiana Masaniai, born in Orange County, CA, then raised in American Samoa until primary school, shares the struggles of her college journey and how she turned one of her biggest fears into a dream career. An advocate for equitable representation in film, she hopes to see an emergence of Pacific storytellers, writers, and actors in Hollywood.

Kalolaine “Kalo” Uechtritz Fainu, an avid advocate for Pacific representation in film, shares her motivations for creating the Pasifika Film Fest and offers tips for aspiring Pacific filmmakers. Born and raised in Australia, Kalo has family roots in Tonga, Papua New Guinea, and Samoa. She received a BVA Photography with a Photojournalist major from Griffith University and a Masters of Media Arts & Production from the University of Technology Sydney. She recently started a Masters in Asian and Pacific Studies from The Australian National University to learn more about Pacific cultures and communities.

Finausina Tovo talks about her transition from student-athlete to scholar, the importance of giving Pacific Islanders a voice in higher education and the Mana program’s effect on Pacific scholars. Using her research in California Community Colleges, she hopes to empower more students to pursue all their educational options and demand community at their school.

Emily Sataua Lautoa talks about culture shock in college, sexism in the engineering industry and the importance of pursuing higher education. While she currently works as a mechanical engineer, she one day hopes to give back to her community by providing engineering resources to students in her hometown of Pago Pago.