Emma Kruse Va'ai is a Samoan chief ('high matai'), writer and educator in

Samoa Samoa, officially the Independent State of Samoa and known until 1997 as Western Samoa, is an island country in Polynesia, part of Oceania, in the South Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main islands (Savai'i and Upolu), two smaller, inhabited ...

. Her ''matai'' chief title is Letuimanu’asina. She has a

PhD A Doctor of Philosophy (PhD, DPhil; or ) is a terminal degree that usually denotes the highest level of academic achievement in a given discipline and is awarded following a course of graduate study and original research. The name of the deg ...

in English from the

University of New South Wales The University of New South Wales (UNSW) is a public research university based in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. It was established in 1949. The university comprises seven faculties, through which it offers bachelor's, master's and docto ...

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country comprising mainland Australia, the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania and list of islands of Australia, numerous smaller isl ...

and is a former director of Samoa Polytechnic. Currently, she is the Deputy Vice-Chancellor of the

National University of Samoa The National University of Samoa () is the only national university in Samoa. Established in 1984 by an act of parliament, it is coeducational and provides certificate, diploma, and undergraduate degree programs, as well as technical and vocationa ...

following the polytechnic's merger into the university in 2006. Also a lecturer in English at the university, she is a strong advocate for bilingual education in both English and the

Samoan language Samoan ( or , ) is a Polynesian languages, Polynesian language spoken by Samoans of the Samoan Islands. Administratively, the islands are split between the sovereign country of Samoa and the Unincorporated territories of the United States, Unit ...

. As a writer, she has published poetry and stories which have been translated into other

Pacific Islands The Pacific islands are a group of islands in the Pacific Ocean. They are further categorized into three major island groups: Melanesia, Micronesia, and Polynesia. Depending on the context, the term ''Pacific Islands'' may refer to one of several ...

languages. She is also an executive committee member of the Samoa Association of Women Graduates (SAWG). Letuimanu’asina was born and raised in Samoa in a family of eight siblings. Her primary and secondary schooling was at the Marist Missionary Sisters. Later, she studied at

Victoria University Victoria University may refer to: * Victoria University (Australia), a public research university in Melbourne, Australia * Victoria University, Toronto, a constituent college of the federal University of Toronto in Canada * Victoria University of ...

New Zealand New Zealand () is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and List of islands of New Zealand, over 600 smaller islands. It is the List of isla ...

before undertaking her doctorate in Australia. She was married to judge Alo Vaimoa Va'ai and they have four children.

Publications

*1998 ''Palolo Time, a poem from Samoa''; Learning Media, Ministry of Education (NZ), ISBN 0478227086 *1998 ''Ready for School, a story from Samoa''; Learning Media, Ministry of Education (NZ), *2011 ''Producing the text of culture: the appropriation of English in contemporary Samoa''; National University of Samoa (Lepapaigalagala, Samoa),

References

Samoan chiefs Living people University of New South Wales alumni Academic staff of the National University of Samoa 20th-century Samoan poets 20th-century women writers Year of birth missing (living people) {{poet-stub Samoan poets 21st-century scholars Oceanian writers Oceanian poets Samoan women poets 21st-century Samoan poets 21st-century women writers