Sefa is the Associate Dean and Director of the Draper Center for Community Partnerships at Pomona College. Professionally, he has served as an academic and student-organizational advisor, as well as an instructor for Asian American Studies programs at UCLA and California State University, Fullerton. Sefa has taught courses in contemporary Pacific Islander issues, community engagement, and has done countless workshops and talks at colleges and universities throughout the country.
In the community, Sefa is a founding member of EPIC (Empowering Pacific Islander Communities), NPIEN (National Pacific Islander Educators Network) and the UCLA PIER Project. During the COVID pandemic, Sefa organized with other Pacific Islander leaders in the Inland Empire to address the disproportionate impact of COVID 19 on the NHPI community and together, they formed PIECE (Pasifika Inland Empire Coalition for Empowerment). Sefa also currently APIA Scholars, NaPALI (National Pacific American Leadership Institute), and Visual Communications.
In September of 2010, Sefa was appointed by President Obama to the President’s Advisory Commission on Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders. Sefa served as the Vice-Chair of the Commission from 2010 – 2014. Through his work on college campuses and in the larger community, Sefa has demonstrated his commitment to increasing the support and opportunities for non-traditional, marginalized, first generation students.