Thanks to the labour of university students supervised by qualified instructors and materials donated by LDS Charities (a charitable arm of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints), mathematics and literacy students at the National University of Samoa (NUS) now have a beautiful new study facility.
There they can study, use the internet and computers, and receive tutoring.
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More than 1,000 students attend NUS but the only facility on campus available to students who need access to computers and the internet was a small area in the main offices of the Student Support Services Center which had only two old computers and limited, inadequate space.
Fesili Liu, Numeracy Officer at NUS, and a member of the Church brought the school’s need for study and computer space to the attention of Elder and Sister Vellinga, senior welfare service missionaries in Apia. A space that could be remodeled on the lower floor of the Student Support Services building was identified.
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Construction was completed by NUS carpentry and joinery students under the direction of their instructor, Alfred Burgess. All computer wiring and connections were done by students from the Information Communication Services classes under the direction of ICS program manager and instructor, Mataafa Ratami Fatilua.
Local electricians and plumbers volunteered their time, expertise, and some materials to assist with the project.
The new Learning and Computer Center provides space for at least 20 students to study and an office where the center’s administrator can monitor student activity while in the facility. It also provides toilet facilities and an area for tutoring in both maths and literacy.
LDS Charities donated fifteen of the workstations (including a monitor, keyboard and mouse), all connected to a large, main server.
Five additional computers and keyboards were donated by Utah Valley University in Provo, Utah, and brought to Samoa by Sam Atoa who teaches at UVU and is the women’s volleyball coach there. Sam was born and raised in Samoa and brings a container of donated items to the people of Samoa every year. The monitors for these five computers were donated by LDS Charities.
The Church encourages its members to continually seek education. Elder Craig A. Cardon of the Seventy and First Counselor in the Pacific Area Presidency of the Church notes: “In this increasingly complex world, education is one of the most important acquisitions of life.”