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Four Bluesky Future of American Samoa Scholarships awarded to grads

Bluesky Pacific Group chief executive officer Toleafoa Tiafau Douglas Creevey (left) pictured last Friday, with Pacific Horizons Schools graduate Cher NomuraBluesky Pacific Group chief executive officer Toleafoa Tiafau Douglas Creevey (left) pictured last Friday, with South Pacific Academy graduate Monique HollisterBluesky Pacific Group chief executive officer Toleafoa Tiafau Douglas Creevey (far left) pictured last Friday, with Mr. and Mrs. Sili Sataua[l-r] Christinna Lutu Sanchez and her daughter, Karlinna S. Lutu Sanchez, along with Bluesky Pacific Group chief executive officer Toleafoa Tiafau Douglas Creevey.
fili@samoanews.com,Arizona Sataua Tua,

Pago Pago, AMERICAN SAMOA — Four high school graduates — including two who were co-Valedictorians of their respective high schools for the class of 2018 — are the recipients of the 2018- 19 academic school year’s “Bluesky's Future of American Samoa Scholarship Awards”, which were officially announced last Friday during a news conference.

This is the 4th year Bluesky Communications has handed out scholarships and the company hopes recipients will return home in the future with “credentials that are useful” in American Samoa, where it’s difficult to find talented youth in the telecom industry, says Toleafoa Tiafau Douglas Creevey, chief executive officer of Bluesky Pacific Group.

Speaking at the ceremony held at the company’s technical support center in Ili’ili, Bluesky customer service manager, Sherry Sele noted that Bluesky is  “pleased to be able to continue supporting the talented youth of our territory.”

“The applicant pool was very competitive this year as there were so many bright and talented students from the various high schools and the American Samoa Community College,” she explained.

And after a thorough review of all applicants, who were also interviewed by the Bluesky scholarship committee, four recipients were selected: two $14,000 off island college scholarships payable at $3,500 over four years; and two $4,000 scholarship to the American Samoa Community College (ASCC) payable at $2,000 over two years.

Off island scholarship recipients are Karlinna S. Lutu Sanchez — co Valedictorian of Samoana High School — who will be attending the University of California at Los Angeles majoring in Applied Mathematics; and Cher Nomura — Co Valedictorian of Pacific Horizons School, who has been accepted to Stanford University, majoring in Civil Engineering.

The ASCC scholarships were awarded to Arizona Sataua Tua — Samoana High School Salutatorian, who will be majoring in Accounting; and South Pacific Academy graduate Monique Hollister, majoring in Engineering.

Nomura and Hollister were present during the ceremony along with their parents, while Tua , who was represented by her parents at the ceremony, and Sanchez have traveled off island. Bluesky officials met last week with Sanchez and her parents.

In addition to receiving scholarship awards for each semester, each of the students will have an opportunity to intern with Bluesky during the summer months if they return to American Samoa.

Toleafoa offered brief remarks at the event, extending appreciation to parents and the recipients for attending “our small function... but not a small function on the calendar of Bluesky because this is where we acknowledge and we certainly contribute to the future — not only of the [territory — but we hope some of the graduates, for the future of Bluesky.”

To the recipients this year as well as the previous ones, Bluesky “supports and applauds your efforts to go forth into your future studies and Bluesky will be waiting with open doors for any of you who shall wish to return to the territory to work in the future,” he pointed out.

Toleafoa also said that one of the things Bluesky has found in the territory, “and especially in our industry” is that, “it’s very, very difficult to find talented and qualified youth.”

“So this is part of our effort to try and participate and at least encourage students at high school and graduate school level, to go out and be able to come back with credentials that are useful” to the territory, he said.

He also said that Bluesky “advertises far and wide in the region for qualified engineers, accountants, financial experts and even sales and retail but never quite get a good enough mix to pick and choose from.”

“So we certainly encourage all of our... scholarship awardees to go for the best that you can, with the best wishes of your parents, and the best wishes and prayers of [American Samoa] and not the least from Bluesky for your future,” he said and thanked parents for their contribution to the success of their children who are now graduates.

BACKGROUND

Prior to the end of each academic school year, the Bluesky scholarship committee advertises the scholarship program — “Future of American Samoa” —  island wide (including advertisements in the Samoa News for a couple of weeks). Criteria and other information on the scholarship program is available at Bluesky’s office.