Honorable Gardenia Aisek | |
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![]() Aisek in 2021 | |
Secretary of the Department of Education (Federated States of Micronesia) | |
Assumed office October 2021 | |
President | David Panuelo |
Preceded by | Kalwin Kephas |
Personal details | |
Alma mater | National University (California) |
Gardenia Aisek (former surnames Walter and Macayaon) is a Microneasian educator and government official. Aisek was the first woman elected to the Chuuk State Legislature. [1] [2] She then became the first female Secretary of the Federated States of Micronesia Department of Education. [3] [4]
Aisek has a Master of Business Administration degree from National University (California). [5] [6] She has taught at the College of Micronesia and the Northern Marianas College. [6] While at Northern Marianas College,she became the Director of the School of Business and Hospitality.
From 1997 to 2005,Aisek was the First Lady of Chuuk State when her then-husband Ansito Walter was Governor. [5] [7] During this period,Aisek was the first woman to be a member of the Board of Regents for the College of Micronesia. [5] [8] Aisek also helped her brother run their family business,the Blue Lagoon Resort,which is located near the Kimiuo Aisek Memorial Museum named after their father. [9] [10]
Aisek became the first female Director of the Chuuk State Department of Education, [8] and retained the role from 2010 to 2014. During her tenure,she led an education reform effort until she was controversially fired by the Chuuk Board of Education. [11] Aisek sued for wrongful termination. [12]
In 2017,Aisek became the first woman elected to the Chuuk State Legislature, [1] having won by a wide margin. [10] While serving in the state senate,she was a delegate to the Association of Pacific Islands Legislatures. [13] In 2021,Aisek was sworn in by President David Panuelo as the Secretary of the Federated States of Micronesia Department of Education together with Ausen Lambert,Marcus Samo and Elina Akinaga. [3] Aisek helped secure a $17,700,000 investment from the World Bank in 2022 to improve the country’s education system and vocational training. [14] In a statement,President Panuelo said,"Words cannot express how proud I am of Secretary Aisek and her team at the Department of Education,and how thankful we are for the World Bank’s financial support for this project." [14]