By: Lauren Hichaaba, AUL PDMA

Samoa, 22 April 2024 -- Earlier in the month of April a group of representatives from the Australia Pacific Salesian Principals Association (APSPA) travelled from Australia to visit and learn about our Salesian Schools in Samoa. The Australia-Pacific Province is a geographically diverse province encompassing four countries: Australia, New Zealand, Samoa, and Fiji. This geographical and cultural diversity has always presented wonderful opportunities for cross-cultural engagement between all the different countries. Last year, young people and our teachers, facilitated by the Cagliero Project and Missions Department, had the opportunity to travel to Samoa for immersion experiences. It was fantastic that the leaders from our schools have taken the opportunity this year.

With true Samoan hospitality we were welcomed by the students with incredible displays during their “Siva” performance. Siva consists of singing and dancing and it is incredible! Our Australian Principals and representatives were able to spend time at both Don Bosco Technical Centre on the island of Upolu and Don Bosco High School and Vocational Centre on the more remote island of Savai’i. They spent time learning about the schools, chatting with students and engaging in professional learning with the teachers and staff. To wrap up the experience, the group was also able to visit a primary school for the Salesian Sisters, St Josephs.

During the visit, Principals from both Samoan Salesian Schools, Fr. Petelo Vito Pau, and Mr. Mane Sua, spoke about the way forward and the strategic plan for their respective schools. In order to improve the education outcomes for our young people, each of our schools has a strategic plan that outlines a number of small and large projects that they hope to deliver in the future. They candidly discussed the challenges they face within their context and spoke about possible collaborations with our Australian schools. Both Fr. Petelo and Mane spoke in gratitude for the visit and collegiality experienced with the APSPA group.

The geographical and cultural diversity of the AUL Province could be considered a challenge; however, we choose to view it only as an opportunity, and we are once again grateful for the connections and relationships we are able to forge with each other.

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