Leiataua Leuga Alaimoana Turner officially became the director of the Department of Youth and Women’s Affairs after the Fono confirmed her appointment yesterday.
Turner received a unanimous vote of 17-0 in the Senate and 17-1 in the House of Representatives.
Prior to her confirmation, Turner served as acting DYWA director in a position that was made vacant by the departure of Fiasili Puni Haleck who is now a sitting faipule for Ma’oputasi District.
Turner has a Bachelor of Education degree and received her Master of Social Work (MSW) from the University of Hawaii. In addition, she holds a BA degree from Hawaii Loa College and a Trained Teacher Certificate from the Teachers’ Training College in Samoa.
She first came to the territory in 1987 as a contract worker for the Lutali Administration and served as head of the social services department at the LBJ Hospital for several years.
Since she took over the helm at DYWA, Turner has been busy hosting informative conferences and establishing different programs, one of which includes a youth mapping exercise, aimed at identifying the number of “under-served” youth in American Samoa.
The program includes a survey that will look at, among other things, the number of high school dropouts, in addition to seeking out other information pertaining to youth services.
According to Turner, there is a program that focuses on the Samoan culture, and it was established after discussions with local youth.
Leuga and gang expect to take this particular youth program to different local villages.
Another program, geared towards women, was established to help women learn new skills like sewing. DYWA is assisting Tina Mo A Taeao, a women’s group whose members weave local handicrafts at the National Park of American Samoa Headquarters at the Pago Plaza.
Turner said her office will be networking with other ASG agencies that provide similar services for youth and women so efforts and resources are not duplicated.
As an initial step, a draft copy of a directory detailing information about these agencies and the services they provide will be available soon to women and their families. |
