Dr. Pauline McFall, an alumna of the Children’s Healthy Living Food System Training program (CHL FST), has successfully completed her first semester as the Instructional Program Director at the American Samoa Community College (ASCC) – Agriculture, Community & Natural Resources – Land Grant division (ACNR), marking her return to the institution where she has deep roots.
Before joining UH, Dr. McFall received a BS in Health Education in Exercise and Sport Science, an MBA in Health Care Management, and an MPH in Nutrition. She served ASCC for many years, teaching in various capacities since 2007 and eventually holding key leadership positions as the Instructional Coordinator for the Agriculture, Community, and Natural Resources (ACNR) – Land Grant program and Project Director for a Resident Instruction grant before pursuing her doctoral degree.
Dr. McFall began her PhD in Nutritional Sciences at the University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa in Fall 2019, becoming a CHL FST trainee in Fall 2022. During her studies, she contributed to the department by serving as a teaching assistant in the Human Nutrition, Food and Animal Science department. She successfully defended her dissertation, “Understanding diet of young children in American Samoa,” in January 2025 and graduated in May 2025.
Since graduating, Dr. McFall managed the complex logistics of moving herself and her family back to American Samoa from Hawaiʻi while transitioning immediately into her full-time faculty role. Her current position is demanding, encompassing instruction, research, and outreach. She holds responsibilities for several Land Grant initiatives, such as overseeing the USDA NIFA Resident Instruction Grant & USDA NIFA Distance Education Grant. She also started teaching courses as ASCC, including Introduction to Nutrition (NUT 150), Practical Job Experience I (AGR 100 I), Practical Job Experience II (AGR 100 II), Survey of Community & Natural Resources (AGR 152), and Family & Consumer Science (FAM 150). Additionally, Dr. McFall has attended and presented at various meetings in 2025, including the Society for Nutrition Education Behavior (SNEB), American Society for Nutrition (ASN), and the Native American Nutrition Conferences.
Looking ahead, Dr. McFall plans to focus on Acanthosis Nigricans and nutritional status of children and families, leveraging her expertise in nutrition and community health to benefit American Samoa. She has also secured HATCH funding for her current research project focusing on Acanthosis Nigricans (AN) among children in American Samoa.
Now at home, she is enjoying spending time with her immediate and extended families as well as her work family and friends.
Good luck, Pauline!