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Gov. Lolo directs ASDOE to find a plan to help teachers pay off their student debts

Gov. Lolo Matalasi Moliga
fili@samoanews.com

Pago Pago, AMERICAN SAMOA — Gov. Lolo Matalasi Moliga has directed the local Education Department (ASDOE) to come up with a program, or plan, to help teachers who have earned a college/university degree but cannot receive them because of their outstanding student debts.

Lolo’s verbal directive was made during last Friday’s cabinet meeting, where ASDOE gave a powerpoint presentation, covering various educational issues including the number of public school teachers and the number of degree holders — which was presented by ASDOE deputy director for Instructional Support Services, Philo Jennings.

According to Jennings, there are over 800 public school teachers — 103 for  Early Child Education (ECE) or 13%; 400 for elementary, or 49%; 192 for high school, or 23%; and 121 for Special Education, or 15%.

Currently, said Jennings, there are only 3 teachers with high school diplomas and they are teaching at the ECE level. There are 236 teachers with an Associate’s degree; 343 with a Bachelor’s degree; 174 with a Master’s degree; and 2 with a Doctorate degree in education.

Jennings revealed that there are teachers who have completed their courses but haven’t received their degrees because of outstanding student debts.

“We have some teachers who cannot get their degrees, unless their debt is paid off with the colleges and universities” they attended off island, he said.

Later in the cabinet meeting, held at the Tafuna Elementary School gym, Lolo told ASDOE officials to find a way, or a program plan, to help pay off these students debts for teachers — for example, deduct a certain amount of money from the teacher’s pay to cover their debt.

“We should find a way and try to help out, to make sure they get what they deserve,” he said, referring to the teachers’ degrees. Lolo said he wants to be kept abreast of a final plan or program to help “our teachers... because they will never come up with the money to pay those things.”

Part of the presentation was the reclassification of teachers’ salaries with degrees implemented when the Lolo Administration took office in January 2013. The degree salary issue was covered by ASDOE deputy director of Instructional Services Fa’aui Vaitautolu:

•   Associate’s degree was $7,000-plus but during the Lolo Administration, the salary is now $11,696 annually;

•   Bachelor’s degree in education was previously $16,000-plus (the plus means, depending on other factors such as years of service) is now $23,000-plus; and,

•   Master’s degree was previously $21,000-plus, but now starts at $27,000-plus.

Among the challenges, according to Education director Dr. Ruth Matagi-Tofiga, are teachers resigning.

“Not a single day, a week, passes — teachers resign. We try to fill those positions as best as we can,” she said, adding that ASDOE has a plan B that would have principals, vice principals, or counselors, step into the classroom.

“If there’s a need for teachers, we will do that,” she said, referring to Plan B. “We depend on our people to make sure that every classroom is manned.”

ASDOE continues to recruit teachers with updated postings on its website (www.doe.as). Teachers’ orientation workshops were held at Tafuna High School earlier this week.