Iakopo named executive director of the NMI Veterans Affairs Office

Stanley Tapuaialupe Iakopo has been appointed to serve as the executive director of the CNMI Veterans Affairs Office under the Office of the Governor.

“Stanley’s extensive military experience and passion for veterans make him an ideal fit for this position,” said Gov. Ralph DLG Torres.

“He will help implement a constructive and cooperative dialogue between our administration and the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs about the unique needs of our veterans who deserve better from our federal partners out here in the Pacific,” Torres added.

Stanley Tapuaialupe Iakopo

Iakopo has served in the U.S. Air Force for the last 18 years in several capacities.

He is a former executive director for the Civil Military Liaison Office and a former environmental health officer and procurement and supply director for the Commonwealth Health Care Corp.

“Governor Torres and Lt. Gov. [Arnold] Palacios have made veterans a top priority in terms of improving VA’s capability in providing optimal services to our veterans. I am honored to have such a meritorious mission serving those who sacrificed for us,” he said.

“One of my missions is to achieve interoperability between the federal and local VA. I look forward to working with the Veteran Affairs leadership on the federal side to ensure that we have joint commitment and that our plans are aligned in servicing our veterans and their families at the highest level possible,” he added.

Iakopo was an air transportation manager in Guam from 2001 to 2008 and was an active duty Air Force reserve recruiter from 2008 to 2015, in Massachusetts and Connecticut. In addition to his new role, he is currently in the Air Force reserve for the U.S. Special Operations Command Pacific.

He also has experience in the CNMI Public School System as a speech and language pathologist from 2003 to 2004, a high school teacher in Kagman High School from 2004 to 2006, and a special education teacher from 2006 to 2008.

He has an associate degrees in nursing, physical therapy, and human resources, a bachelor’s degree in speech and pathology and audiology from the University of Hawaii at Manoa, and a master’s degree in education from Framingham State University. He is also in a PhD program in education at Grand Canyon University. (PR)