Leiema Hunt
Leiema’s Public Health career began at 13 when she shadowed a research group studying American Samoan women’s attitudes toward cancer screening. She started her formal education at the local community college in American Samoa, then earned a bachelor’s in Health and Exercise Science at BYU-Hawaii. In 2014, she became the youngest program coordinator at the American Samoa Department of Health. After five years, she pursued an MPH at BYU-Provo. Before graduating in 2020, the CDC recruited her as the first field representative based in American Samoa. She worked in the CDC’s Office of Island Affairs for four years, then with the Pacific Island Health Officers Association. Now, she is an adjunct professor and working to expand the nonprofit Obesity Awakening Movement.