The American Samoa governor, Togiola Tulafono, has signed into law a bill raising salaries for public school teachers.
The new pay rates go into effect in July.
In his letter to the Fono leadership, Togiola said the expressed intent of the bill has always been to "reward excellence in the classroom and encourage professional development."
He said through collaboration and careful coordination with the Department of Education , he believes that the measure achieves all those important objectives.
He said most critical to this effort is the shared position that advancement in the teaching profession must be based on credentials, performance and attendance.
