SPRING/SUMMER 2009
accoladesA PUBLICATION OF THE UNIVERSITY OF ALASKA ANCHORAGE FOR ALUMNI AND FRIENDS
2008 A YEAR OF FIRSTS AT UAA FROM THE EDITOR CONTENTS
Dear Friends: I am pleased to share with you the Spring ‘09 Sky’s the Limit issue of Accolades. In the midst of a national financial 2 UAA’s planetarium is the crisis, I hope this issue—one that celebrates a year of crown jewel of the new firsts at UAA—can be a bit of positive news as we all ConocoPhillips Integrated move forward in uncertain times. We have been fortunate Science Building this past year in achieving some incredible firsts, including the naming of our first Marshall Scholar and the signing of the first U-MED-District Green Agreement, among First in the Family others. We are also happy to include personal stories of Students talk about first generation college students, first-time donors to the becoming the first in their University and first generation graduates of UAA. family to attend college As an alum of UAA, many of these firsts give me an even greater sense of pride in my alma mater. I’m 6 confident that you, too, will see why UAA is becoming a first-choice University for more and more of Alaska’s best Spotlight on Alumni and brightest. . First generation alums If you are one of our more than 37,000 alums, I’d . The value of connections like to encourage you to get involved in one of our new . The Seawolf Connection “first” programs at UAA—The Seawolf Connection. This incredible partnership between UAA’s Career Services, 24 Residence Life and the UAA Alumni Association pairs first- year students with UAA alumni for a yearlong mentorship. Seawolf Sports You can read more about this exciting new program on Rhea Caldwell: A first-rate page 28. This is an excellent opportunity to give back to All-American athlete the University that helped play a part in your success— and to make a significant difference in the life of a student who’s just starting out. 29 You are receiving this magazine because you are an important person in UAA’s past, present and future, UAA Accolades Spring/Summer 2009 and without your support, we couldn’t have marked nearly Volume 8, Number 1 as many spectacular firsts this past year. And with your Published by UAA University Advancement continued support, just imagine what other firsts will Editor: Kristin DeSmith Contributors: Jessica Hamlin, Peter Porco, Jeff Oliver, Kathleen McCoy and Cassidy White come our way! Graphic Design: David Freeman All photos by Michael Dinneen unless otherwise noted Cover “ones” photos by Clark James Mishler Best, For more information about stories included in UAA Accolades, to make a gift to UAA or to order additional copies, please contact:
University Advancement University of Alaska Anchorage 3211 Providence Drive . Anchorage, AK 99508 Kristin DeSmith Phone: (907) 786-4847 Editor Toll free: 1-877-482-2238 E-mail: [email protected]
To learn more about UAA, visit www.uaa.alaska.edu. FROM THE CHANCELLOR
Dear UAA Alumni, Friends and Family,
UAA is helping students reach their dreams. Whether it is getting a degree to begin a specific career such as nursing or the independence and autonomy an education provides, UAA is helping students reach their educational goals. In this edition of Accolades you will meet students who are the first in their family to get a college degree. You’ll hear the challenges that they face – having young children, dealing with financial demands that require them to work full time, and having the pressure of fulfilling the dreams of parents and loved ones who want to see them succeed. You’ll also read about scholarships, mentoring and other programs that are helping these students succeed. A new program is the Seawolf Connection which pairs UAA alumni with first-year students who have similar interests and can provide guidance and support. Some students come to UAA uncertain what course of study is right for them. With 150 programs and a wide range of certificates, bachelor’s and master’s programs, and even a joint Ph.D. degree, we offer many options. You’ll read about Tina Woods, who was a high school dropout at 16 and is now, at 33, working on her Ph.D. in clinical psychology – something she never thought she’d do. Tina doesn’t take her education for granted. She is dedicated to helping others find the fulfill- ment she has found here. Tina directs ANPSYCH – a program that encourages and supports Alaska Natives in behavioral health professions at UAA. We are very proud of those at UAA who are the first in their family to get a college education. There is much more in this edition of Accolades – in October we signed a U- Med-District Agreement with partners in our area to become the first green district in the state. What does this mean? It means that we are choosing to take a lead in sustainable practices and incorporating these principles in our new construction. What we are achieving at UAA is due to your support and your partnership. Many thanks for helping us work toward a better future for our students and for Alaska.
Sincerely,
Fran Ulmer Chancellor
UAA Accolades Spring/Summer 2009 UAA celebrates its first-class athletes: Volume 8, Number 1 This academic year UAA has seen incredible successes from its student-athletes! Published by UAA University Advancement Editor: Kristin DeSmith . UAA’s gymnastic team earned its first-ever conference title on March 20, 2009 Contributors: Jessica Hamlin, Peter Porco, Jeff Oliver, Kathleen McCoy and Cassidy White . UAA set a Western Collegiate Hockey Association record this year for the most hockey players to make the Graphic Design: David Freeman All photos by Michael Dinneen unless otherwise noted academic all conference team – 14 out of 26 players had a grade-point average above 3.2 Cover “ones” photos by Clark James Mishler . UAA’s entire ski team qualified to compete in the NCAA Championships and had their best finish ever
For more information about stories included in UAA Accolades, . UAA’s ski team produced a record-high 13 student-athletes on the 2009 National Ski Coaches Association to make a gift to UAA or to order additional copies, please contact: All-Academic team . UAA’s student-athletes had a combined 3.13 grade-point average, equal to the all time best University Advancement University of Alaska Anchorage . UAA’s women’s basketball team made it to the NCAA Div. II final four for the second year in a row 3211 Providence Drive . Anchorage, AK 99508 Many more incredible student-athlete achievements can be found at www.goseawolves.com Phone: (907) 786-4847 Toll free: 1-877-482-2238 E-mail: [email protected]
accolades 1 To learn more about UAA, visit www.uaa.alaska.edu.
Sky’s the Limit UAA’s planetarium is the crown jewel of the new ConocoPhillips Integrated Science Building
by Jeff Oliver
magine viewing the earth during an eclipse while I standing on the moon. Imagine traveling with blood cells through arteries and veins in the human body or imagine navigating across the tundra with only the stars to guide you. Imagine that soon you’ll be able to experi- ence these, and other visually immersive environments, on the UAA Anchorage campus. This fall, the first building conceived, designed, and built at UAA with environmental and fiscal sustainability in mind, opens on the Anchorage campus. The 120,000 The most exciting thing about the planetarium -square-foot ConocoPhillips Integrated Science Building “is that technology has changed so much in the (CPISB) will integrate the sciences across the curriculum past several years…we’re not thinking of it as that will enable UAA to prepare Alaska’s students for the just a planetarium, it’s a digital visualization theater—an immersive theatre.” technological demands of the global economy and enable cross-disciplinary collaboration that will create – Dr. Travis Rector, Assistant Professor of Astronomy the 21st century’s most innovative and relevant science. and Physics continued on next page “The concept of integrated sciences is that the division we put on the ing lab, a vivarium and a nuclear magnetic resonance lab, will enable our sciences is ultimately artificial. Modern science, more and more, requires faculty to conduct even more National Science Foundation and National that you have expertise in multiple fields and disciplines that might look, Institute of Health funded research on campus. on the page, like they’re very different,” says Dr. Jocelyn Krebs, Associate The ConocoPhillips Integrated Science Building features sustainable Professor of Biology. Dr. Douglas Causey, Professor of Biology explains, design solutions to foster a warm and collaborative learning environment. “The field of biochemistry didn’t exist 80 years ago. Biologists were asking Stan Vanover, UAA Facilities, Planning and Construction Project Manager, questions that chemists had the answers to and from that interplay and says, “There has been an emphasis on sustainability since the beginning integration we got the fields of biochemistry, molecular biology, biophysics, of the project, down to even the site work such as electrical and plumbing and bio-medicine.” fixtures made from recycled materials. The interior finishes include carpet made from 25 percent recycled materials and its backing from 40 percent recycled materials. The interior wall tile is made from 55 percent recycled glass.” Stan explained design elements intended to keep operational costs sustainable such as occupancy sensors for the LED lighting and radiant in-slab heat throughout the building. The CPISB is designed as three modules linked by a massive glass atrium that will be the hub of the building, a welcoming central space where students, faculty and staff can interact and share ideas. Kim Peterson explained, “Our stu- dents taught us this in The Spine that connects the buildings. They would move tables and chairs into The Spine to study together. They invented interaction spaces. There’s just as much, if not more, learning that happens in these spaces as in the classroom. We wanted to integrate this idea into the design of the CPISB, to create a space where people could go to get out of their offices and away from their computers and really have these conversations.” The crown jewel of the CPISB will be the planetarium, the first for the University of Alaska system. “The most exciting thing about the planetarium is that technology has changed so much in the past several years…we’re not thinking of it as just a planetarium, it’s a digital, visualization theater—an im- mersive theatre,” says Dr. Travis Rector, Assistant Professor of Astronomy and Physics. The 66-seat planetarium includes an advanced digital technology projector that will project a brilliant, seamless Artist’s concept of CPISB atrium with planetarium in background. image over the surface of the 33-foot dome for an immersive experience of a full-hemisphere of video. Travis says, “If we were building a planetarium five years ago, we would have UAA is one of the first universities in the nation to design and build a been stuck with one of the old star-ball designs. We’re going to be one of the building with the idea to physically integrate the teaching, study and re- first universities in the country to have one of these digital systems, almost search of the sciences into one space. The CPISB physically brings together as nice as the system at the American Museum of Natural History in New the disciplines of astronomy, biology, biochemistry, biomedical studies, York which is the best planetarium in the country.” chemistry, environmental sciences, geology, physics and WWAMI (Alaska’s Travis is excited to have the opportunity to take students into the Medical School). Dr. Kim Peterson, Associate Dean for Research, says, planetarium to illustrate the relationships of the size and location of celestial “UAA is a leader. We’re really on the leading edge of the wave to integrate objects. “One of the most difficult things in teaching astronomy is the sense the sciences.” Kim says the new facility, which includes a DNA sequenc- of perspective. Teaching the seasons is difficult because you need to under-
The ConocoPhillips Integrated Science Building (CPISB) will open in the Fall of 2009.
“The CPISB physically brings together the disciplines of astronomy, biology, biochemistry, biomedical studies, chemistry, environmental sciences, geology, physics and WWAMI (Alaska’s Medical School).” – Dr. Kim Peterson, Associate Dean for Research
4 accolades stand the relationship between the earth and the sun. With the planetarium, you can take someone into space and show them what the sky looks like in December in Anchorage. Viewers can also see why we get so little sun in the winter here.” As the digital visualization theatre technology matures and becomes more affordable, more universities are able to build planetariums. UAA has established a collaboration with the Denver Museum of Natural History which received a grant from the National Science Foundation to develop curriculum for teaching astronomy using a planetarium. Travis says, “For years we’ve been teaching astronomy in the classroom, now we’re going to be teaching in the planetarium—how do we do it right so that students are really benefitting from it?” The planetarium will not be limited to the study of astronomy. The visu- alization theatre software can display three-dimensional models of anything and allows users to “fly” through and around the objects. The software comes with 3-D catalogs of the stars and solar system as well as 3-D models of molecules and DNA. Biology students will be able to travel in and around molecules. Chemistry students will be able to travel inside Bucky balls and carbon chains to see how these are structured. “The most exciting thing about the facility is that every department on campus can use it. We’re planning to visit every department and show them, this is what you can do, now how do you want to use it,” Travis says, “If anthropology had a full-dome image of a site, then students could see the relationship between different things and you can’t show that in a flat picture.” One of the things that’s exciting about the planetarium is that UAA has a lot of expertise on campus to share with the public, whether it’s astronomy, biology, chemistry, anthropology or Alaska Native studies. One of the goals is that each of these departments have access to learn how to use the visualization theater for instruction and public-interest shows. For example, Travis is already working with the Alaska Native community on two shows. One show will feature a Yu’pik elder who knows all of the constellations as seen by the Yu’pik. The show will present the Yu’pik and Greek constella- tions, and the audience will hear the stories about how the Yu’pik interpret the night sky. Travis states, “And that’s, of course, something no one’s ever done before. And because of this theater, we can show the sky as other people see it.” Travis wants to create another show that demonstrates how Alaska Native people use the stars and celestial bodies to navigate the tundra. Once these shows are created, they can easily be shared with other digital visualization theaters around the world. Other shows might include low-orbit views of the earth as a backdrop for public forums or discussion on climate change or geopolitical topics. Travis says, “When you see earth as this dot off in the distance, and you realize there’s nothing else around, you might have a different perspective on taking care of the thing.” The ConocoPhillips Integrated Science Building also represents another important integration—the high-level integration of community partners with UAA. ConocoPhillips contributed $15 million to the success and sustainabil- ity of the CPSIB. This is the largest single gift ever made by ConocoPhillips to an organization. Through the CPISB, UAA is integrating the sciences as well as sustain- able building practices, industry and community partnerships, and its role in the Anchorage and Alaska communities as a space for community. Travis said it best, “UAA is a public campus, and we want people to think this is a reason to come to campus. I hope people will wonder, ‘What’s going on at the planetarium this week?’”
accolades 5 First in the family First in the family by Kathleen McCoy
eet the brave ones with big dreams, the first in their family to imagine Renee Kochuten’s mother never wanted her to be afraid to leave their tiny M enrolling at a university, making the commitment to go, and then sink- village of False Pass in the Aleutians. To that end, she sent young Renee off ing their psyches into that rich academic soil and thriving. by plane to visit relatives around Alaska. Renee adapted easily and came to No father or mother had earned a degree before them; no big brother or thrive on change, an instinct that urged her from the work world into college, sister had managed the challenges and rewards of a higher education and with a bachelor’s degree in psychology as her first academic goal. shared that sibling wisdom. Several left rural villages where everyone knew their name. They Tina Woods didn’t even like school. “It’s just not my thing,” the St. Paul Is- traded familiarity and security for a larger learning community that would lander with 10 brothers and sisters used to say. But a kernel of commitment fundamentally test and shape their intellects. Their transformations are to the well-being of her fellow rural Alaskans sparked an unquenchable total. Each is the definition of success, having been tempered by obstacles drive toward a life of service. Today she is completing year two of a doctor- and disappointments before emerging as a self-possessed and successful ate in psychology, the first in her family to attempt a Ph.D. “I know I am here scholar. They are the true fruit of higher education. to make a difference,” she says. Their pioneering spirits shine a light for those who watch them move ahead. But they also re-inspire those on the sidelines who seek to support These students represent an army of newcomers to higher education. fledgling students with financial aid, mentoring and intern opportunities. UAA’s Trio programs work with first-generation students like Solomeia and These students have answered such good intentions with their own stead- Aaron and the others, cranking open the university’s intellectual riches to fast achievement. their fresh talent and curiosity. At least two-thirds of the 3,490 students who passed through Trio’s programs in 2008 were low income and/or first-in- Come and meet some of UAA’s finest. their-family college students.
Aaron Peters, nephew of Iditarod musher Emmitt Peters and son of Peggy Here is a glimpse at their stories, a window into progress happening right Peters, once spent his long summer days working beside his famous uncle before your eyes. at a family fish camp along the Yukon River near Ruby. Today he is a new nursing graduate, heading to his first professional job with the Indian Health Service in Phoenix, Arizona. t Aaron Peters, 30, nurse
Eliz Valdez’s mother and father both had high school degrees and worked “If more people could just step out of their comfort zone and put themselves hard – sometimes at two jobs each – to secure food and shelter for their out there, they could do it, too.” family of four girls in Pueblo, CO. “Better yourself,” Eliz’s mother used to say, Aaron Peters is tall and thin, with warm brown eyes and an easy smile. “so you don’t have to struggle like we did.” Eliz translated that advice into a Last December, he was studying for his upcoming nursing boards and college degree, and will graduate in May from the dental hygiene program at reflecting on the journey that has placed him on the brink of his professional UAA’s Allied Health department. life. “I was at home (in Anchorage),“ he says from an easy chair in the Solomeia Kojin hails from a family of Russian Orthodox Old Believers on the Student Union, “it was a weekend and I was just relaxing and listening to Kenai Peninsula where, as she explains, marrying and raising a large family music. And… I started to cry.” is the standard expectation for every young girl. Solomeia had a different For the first time, it hit him: His college degree is in hand, he is in a idea. Today, as a psychology major in the University Honors College, she serious and committed relationship, he owns his own condo and was about is conducting empirical research and preparing medical school applications. to sell it for a move to Arizona and his first job as a nurse with the Indian Health Service. Audrey Dawn Alstrom is just a semester away from her engineering degree. “I was achieving what I’d always hoped for,” he recalls. “I realized that She dreams of taking her new skills home to her Western Alaska village of all my hard work had paid off.” Alakanuk, where she’d like to work on rural energy solutions and teach. Looking back, he identifies three forces that sent him on the path to UAA: the expectations of elders, a stint in the military and the tragic suicide of an older sister.
accolades 7 FIRST IN THE FAMILY
Of his famous uncle, Emmitt Peters, Aaron says, he was “so patient, so Eliz Valdez, 23, dental hygiene student kind ... one of the gentlest and nicest guys I have ever met. My uncle taught me the value of hard work. He’d say, ‘I don’t care what you do after high “Take as many classes as you can that will get you certified in something. school, but you have to finish.’” You’ll always have that.” His uncle led by example, “working really hard at fish camp, like 16 Finals week in December 2008 offers a snapshot of what Eliz Valdez’s hours a day,” remembers Aaron. So, from 14 on, the young man became “a busy life is like as she balances full time classes in UAA’s Allied Health hard worker, hauling water for my mom, doing chores without being asked.” program, baby Jacob, 19 months, and a husband in the Air Force. Ever-present in the wings was Aaron’s mother, “everyone calls her Eliz was looking at two big finals that Friday, one in pathology and one Peggy,” checking on his homework and reinforcing the value of learning: in oral pain medication, plus another important test on Wednesday. This was “‘You have to do something – trade school, or get a skill,’” she’d say, “’be- Tuesday, a day when Eliz was seeing a patient through the dental hygiene cause there is nothing out here for young people to do.’” program. The week was already busy. So, after high school, he signed up for the Air Force, hoping for medical Then, the call came from her son’s day care on base. “You need to pick training. Instead, he became a military policeman and monitored access to up your child. He’s got a fever of 101.” But with her patient in the chair, Eliz an underground facility that housed nuclear weaponry at Kirtland Air Force couldn’t leave. She called her husband and he was able to break away and Base near Albuquerque, NM. The formerly passive and easygoing village pick up their boy. After she finished with her patient, Eliz headed home and boy now had to speak with authority and command attention. When he her husband went back to work. She got Jacob’s temp to come down and found he could, the experience changed him. she found some time to study for Wednesday’s test. “That was big for me,” he remembers, saying it took him “way out of my But Jacob was still sick Wednesday; she rushed to UAA, took her test, comfort zone. I became an effective communicator and I was no longer so and went right back home again, hoping to squeeze in more studying around hesitant to speak up.” a fussy baby. Overnight, his temp spiked to 103. “I was up all night with The third critical shaper was a sad tragedy, the suicide of his 21-year- him...I got no studying done.” Jacob was pulling at his ears and she suspect- old sister, Veronica, overwrought from a difficult relationship. ed an ear infection, which meant a trip to the pediatrician and antibiotics. “I was in bed (on base) when my mom called. She was crying so hard But Thursday, she had a patient in clinic. she couldn’t talk and she handed the phone to my aunt who told me.” Enter a good friend in her same program, who, under supervision of their He flew out to Alaska the next day, meeting an aunt and uncle in advisors, was willing to take Eliz’s patient. She got her baby to the doctor; Anchorage before flying on to Fairbanks and then Ruby. He hadn’t yet shed a sure enough, it was an ear infection. After she got him home and medicated, tear, he remembers, when his relatives met him at the Anchorage airport. “I Eliz hit the books. cried then, with them there.” “It was real stressful, trying to study for finals. Fortunately, after he got Finally home in Ruby, “I spent the first day in my mom’s bedroom. There the medicine, he settled down and went to sleep.” were too many people in the living room, saying prayers and rosaries.” But, Friday’s two big tests came, she did well, and baby Jacob got better. Eliz “the second day, I was able to go out and visit a little. And I could go to the let out a big sigh of relief. church and see her…” That moment was searing; he wept long and hard. While managing this level of stress is challenging, Eliz is focused and After three days of visitation in Ruby’s St. Peter in Chains Catholic thinking long-term. Her own mother inspired her to push herself to achieve Church, his sister was buried. Losing her this way deepened his determina- so that her life might be more comfortable later. Eliz watched her father, a tion to now fully move toward a career in medicine. “I said to myself, her high school custodian, and mother, who started community college but left death will not be in vain…” with her first pregnancy, work more than one job at a time trying to keep the He left the Air Force early with a humanitarian discharge and worked family budget on firm footing. She vowed early that an education and skill a few years as a pipeline security guard in Valdez. He began visiting UAA set for the work world would be her top priority. and talking with counselors about starting school. Now, as he told you, he’s She married her high school sweetheart, Palemon, when he finished proud to be a nurse. Air Force basic training. His first assignment was Alaska; she thought about finishing the Colorado nursing program she had started and joining him later. What role did scholarships play in your education? But instead, she checked out UAA’s Allied Health programs and decided to “The Alaska Native Tribal Health Consortium was the statewide scholarship make the switch right away. Her general health prerequisites transferred that I won. It was $5,000 annually split between both semesters. I reapplied and she was accepted immediately into UAA’s dental hygiene program in the and got it for five consecutive years. It was enough to cover tuition, fees and spring of 2006. She’ll graduate this May. books. In a funny twist, the Air Force eventually trained her husband as a “The Indian Health Service was a federal scholarship that I got for two dental assistant, and now she says they “talk shop” at home all the time. years. I applied but didn’t get it in 2005, but I reapplied in 2006 and got it for “He’s helped me a lot,” she says, “I can ask him all kinds of questions about two years. That’s why I’m headed off to work two years for the Indian Health what I was studying.” Service now.” Paying for college has been a rough haul for Eliz. “I did everything on my own, my parents weren’t able to help so it was left up to me to pursue What advice do you have for students just setting out? financial aid. I didn’t know anything.” From her early years in college, she “It’s not about being smart. It’s about managing your time and doing the ended up with a $25,000 student loan that she’ll be paying back for awhile af- work. It’s doable. Very doable.” ter she graduates. One early scholarship she received was a $1,000 Ronald McDonald award. She laughs when she remembers that in addition to the dollars, it provided free food at McDonald’s for a year, certainly handy for a student on a tight budget and no time to prepare meals.
8 accolades What role did scholarships play in your education? Her parents had eighth-grade educations, she says, and the notion of col- Eliz had been able to utilize a number of federal Pell grants, the Alaska lege for their children wasn’t in their family story. She knew her role in life Advantage grant, sponsored tuition through the Air Force, as well as student early; marry young and raise a family, perhaps as large as the one she came loans to make her way through college. She estimates that she will owe from. $20,000 when she graduates. At age 13, Solomeia knew she didn’t want that for herself. She wanted an education, independence, autonomy. She wanted a career. After high What advice do you have for students just starting out? school, she set out for Oregon State University, thinking about a major in Looking back, Eliz says she wishes she’d worked harder at the paperwork industrial engineering. that scholarship applications require. She has a younger sister still in high “I was young. I thought I could pull all my finances together,” she school, following the same early health-oriented classes that Eliz took while remembers, “But I was a bad planner and the experience was very stress- still in secondary school. “Take as many classes as you can and get certified ful.” After about a year and a half, she dropped out, in debt and unsure of the in something,” Eliz urges young students. next step. She worked a year as a nursing assistant in Oregon, poring over medical dictionaries in fascination. She finally moved back to Anchorage and reconnected with family and friends. Next came five years of office work as she paid off her debts and reconsidered options. “The paycheck was OK, but the job was monotonous, really easy. I felt like I was on autopilot. It didn’t challenge me, and I wasn’t growing personally. I started to think, I really need to work on getting back into college.” She tried a semester in finance, but found it cold and mechanical – the old feel- ings she’d had about industrial engineering surfaced again. But there was one bright light – an intro to psych class. “I was totally hooked, just fascinated.” She also heard about the University Honors College. “I wanted to challenge myself and see if I could do it, develop criti- cal thinking skills.” After all, she says, she’d been out of college five years. “My brain was out of shape.” This time, she took to the work with enthusiasm. Her strong study habits and firm commitment paid off and she began to imagine life after college – in medical school, perhaps studying psychiatry. “I calmed down. I became a lot less restless. I found out where I wanted to p Solomeia Kojin, 29, University Honors College student and focus my energies. And I wanted to find work that would be self-actualizing psychology major for me.” Right after she graduates this May, she’ll be hitting the med school application process hard. “There is always a way around obstacles.” When she reaches for a metaphor to describe her early college years, What role did scholarships play in your education? senior Solomeia Kojin thinks of a little bird, all alone, trying to teach herself “I’ve gotten a lot of help through scholarships. Some came from the UA to fly. The plan may have been ambitious and brave, but the crash landing Foundation and from the Alumni Scholarship, the Regents scholarship, a was harsh. She dropped out and went to work for more than half a decade feminist scholarship and a first-generation scholarship.” before finding her grounding and beginning anew. To see her now, looking smart in a black and white herringbone jacket, What advice do you have for students just starting out? copper-penny hair and teal-blue eyes, it’s hard to imagine her struggles. She “Don’t allow self-doubt, finances, worries about your family, or a lack of is self-possessed and confident. She now imagines a career in medicine. general support keep you from your goals. Where there’s a will, there’s a Solomeia is the fifth oldest in a family of 12 children, born into the Old way, right?” Believer tradition in the community of Nikolaevsk on the Kenai Peninsula.
accolades 9 FIRST IN THE FAMILY
“I was kind of in the back, following along. I thought, ‘Wow, this is q Audrey Dawn Alstrom, 27, ANSEP senior in civil engineering interesting.’ But I also thought, ‘What can a village kid do in engineering? What can I do with it out in Alakanuk if I came here and studied it...?’ So I “I’d like to step back and work with those kids in junior high, high school. put that in the back of my mind,” she says, though, “I still found it very much And say, ‘Hey this is where I came from, this is what I’ve done. How can I interesting.” help you get to where you want to go?’“ A few years passed. Audrey moved to Bethel and started working at the “I was happy being a village kid,” says Audrey Alstrom of Alakanuk, “I Kuskokwim campus of UAF. She realized quickly that she should be going to could see myself doing well here.” She even dropped out of Mt. Edgecumbe school, not working at a school. So she started taking classes; her interest in High School in Sitka after just one semester her freshman year. math and science resurfaced. “I liked learning how to apply math.” “It wasn’t for me,“ she says. “There were too many teenagers 24 hours She combed through catalogs, wondering what she could take that a day, and it didn’t feel like family. It wasn’t the challenge I thought it would would lead her there. “I came across engineering, more importantly, civil be. I figured I could do just as well in school at home.” engineering. I was like...wow!” And then her memory of the tour at UAA’s engineering building years before came flooding back. To Audrey, engineer- ing seemed like a slam-dunk. “I found it interesting then, and I find it just as interesting today.” Audrey is impressive in person. Quiet, serious, receptive. You can hear her love of home when she talks about missing the great open spaces she left behind. In Anchorage, she and her partner, Ryan, and their daughter, Kaitlyn, 6, have learned to adapt to city life by incorporating lots of outside time on bikes and hikes. They even bought a small boat to head out over water from Anchorage to Seward and Kachemak Bay. College isn’t her first absence from village life. As a senior in high school, she was an exchange student in Sweden and also spent time in Ecuador. Besides learning, she loves to travel and visit other cultures. Young Kaitlyn is following right along, first fascinated by all things Chinese, and now well-ensconced in a Russian-immersion program in the Anchorage School District. But circling back to Alakanuk is still in the plans, even if it takes a while. “I’ve thought a lot about it,” she says. “Our culture is a small one in a big world of many people.” She feels the connection deeply. Besides applying her engineering to rural issues, Audrey sees herself mentoring other young villagers who may think they are destined for village life, but whom the fast pace of change may thrust into other settings. And then there’s the matter of her “first dance,” done to a specific song before family and friends at home in the village. It is a tradition for a young man or woman to prepare a potlatch for this important event, a time when Back in Alakanuk, her high school principal made sure that happened. they are formally introduced to the community. The entire family is involved As she moved through the curriculum, Mike Hull pulled her aside and preparing food and making gifts. Until that first potlatch, a young person showed her several years of her math and science standardized test scores. can’t dance at other public gatherings. He showed her that she also did well in reading and writing. “He saw that I Audrey has been away, busy becoming an engineer and raising her needed a challenge,” and he created it for her. She was the only student in daughter. She hasn’t had time to prepare her first potlatch, and this weighs trigonometry, for example; “He said ,’You’re ready for this, let’s do it!’” on her. It’s another personal achievement she will reach for, so that when Raised in the middle between three brothers and three sisters, Audrey friends and family gather and invite her to dance, she can join in. says her parents always stressed achievement. “They made sure I got to “I really want to,” she says, “but I can’t. I haven’t had my ‘first school in town everyday. ‘You need to do well,’ they’d say, ‘You need to be at dance’ yet.” the top, not at the bottom.’ It kind of stuck. I cannot settle for average.” Her specific path to engineering also has curious roots in high school. What role did scholarships play in your education? Audrey was on student council at Alakanuk High School when she and “I got help from the Yukon Delta Fisheries Development Association, they other students were talking about life after graduation. “We do need to send have a grant for community students; and from my regional Native corpora- more kids out there for higher education. But we really don’t know what’s tion, Calista. Also from the AVCP (Association of Village Council Presidents), out there.” And so, as council president, she boldly suggested, “We need to and even from the local phone company, United Utilities. They all made it send us kids out there and see what does the state have to offer us in higher possible.” education.” They planned a statewide trip with tours at university campuses. Enter UAA’s Engineering Department tour. “I don’t recall who gave us What advice do you have for other students? the tour, but he brought us through and showed us around. One of the things “My first advice would be...just jump in to it. Take a chance. You may find he showed us was the lab. He explained this gigantic machine, he said it that you like it, you may find that you don’t. But if there’s even an inkling was a wave propagation machine and he explained what it does, what you of something in there that sparks your interest, go for it. If you have the get out of it. determination, and you see yourself accomplishing that goal you have set, you’ll get there.”
10 accolades “When I quit school (to go to work full time), my dad was disappointed. u Renee Kochuten, 26, senior psychology major Then, when I called him up to tell him I was pregnant, the first words out of A job she didn’t get propelled Renee Kochuten to return to college with a his mouth were, ‘But what about school?’ new, pragmatic mindset. “I said, ‘Dad, just because I’m having a baby doesn’t mean I can’t go She’d been away from the classroom for about two years, having back to school.” He was in shock, so I said, ‘I’m going to let you think about already invested somewhere between four and five years in undergraduate it and I’ll call you back.’ education before, as she put it, “I started to feel a little burned out.” When “Within 10 minutes, he called me back. He was just thrilled to be a a part-time admin job morphed into a more challenging full-time role as an grandpa, he was crying. And now that I am back in school, he’s even more elders case manager for the Aleutian Pribilof Islands Association, she left proud of me. He says, ‘I can’t believe you are going to school and raising a course work behind for the professional world. son. I’m so proud of you.’ “ But after two years, she was feeling fidgety again. A new, different posi- Her son is one of the major motivators that sent her back to school; tion in the agency attracted her; it was overseeing multiple programs and she’s even considering a master’s. “I want to create a good and stable life had lots more responsibility; she interviewed for it. for him,” she says. “It was a supervisory position and a lot more diverse,” she says, “I knew I was capable of doing it.” Despite her best efforts, though, the job offer never came. That set the young woman from False Pass on the Aleutian chain to thinking. Even though the job description didn’t require a college degree, it went to a candidate who already had one. Renee pulled out her UAA transcript; she’d managed to rack up more than 100 credits. “I looked at all those credits,” she says, “ ... it was clear that psychology had always interested me.” As far back as high school at Mt. Edgecumbe in Sitka, she’d taken her first college- level psych course over at the University of Alaska Southeast. When she started college, she picked psych classes to fill general-ed requirements. “I had quite a few under my belt...I was only this far away from getting my degree in psychology.” That realization sealed the deal: She told herself, “I’m going to finish this degree.” So back to school she went, this time with her 18-month-old son, Kash, in tow. When she reflects on her temperament and attitudes, Renee identifies a critical factor that helped her give up the security and independence of work to go back and be a student again. “I guess when I get to a certain point, especially when I think about a job, I get bored (she laughs). I like a challenge. When things become too repetitive, I lose interest and I have to do something different.” School makes an attractive alternative for her restless spirit. “You take so many different classes, you only do them for a semester at a time. I love that. I have friends who hate change, they can’t stand change. Not me. I like it.” What role did scholarships play in your education? Renee credits both her parents with guiding her to college, but by very Renee has benefited from a number of scholarships, including help from different methods. the Aleutian Pribilof Islands Association, the Aleutian Housing Authority, “When I think about school, I think of my dad. He’s always been the one the Aleutian Pribilof Islands Community Development Corporation, the Aleut to push me along and further my education. I’d bring home my report card – Foundation, the Isanotski Corporation, the UA Scholar scholarship and the like in 4th grade – and I say, ‘Look Dad, I got all these S’s and O’s.’ And he’d federal Pell grant. say, ‘Good, good, good...but those S’s should all be O’s.’ “ The encourage- “The scholarships are a huge assistance. I couldn’t do it without them. ment continued through high school. I’d be in debt up to my ears. Being able to have that funding is just so much Her mother’s support was of a wholly different sort. She never wanted less stress. Without it, I would have thought twice about going back to her daughter to be afraid to leave False Pass. To that end, she packed her school full time now. I probably would have had to work full-time and just go off by air to visit relatives all around the state. “She wanted us to get out,” to school part-time.” says Renee. “She didn’t want us to get comfortable and be afraid to leave.” Renee credits her adaptability to that early influence. She’s found it What advice do you have for other students just starting out? helpful in making the shifts between studying and working. And now, she’s “College might sound intimidating, but it’s not. Once you get in you’ll have adjusting again to motherhood on top of school. a schedule to follow. Start out slow and work your way up. It’s definitely Her pregnancy was unplanned, and for her father who valued her doable, for anyone.” higher education so much, it came as a shock.
accolades 11 FIRST IN THE FAMILY
So now you have a taste of Tina’s independent spirit. Phrases like “Ph.D. candidate” and “freakin’ googling” suggest the expanse of her personal landscape. With your therapeutic neck brace firmly in place, it might be safe to tackle this one: How does Tina Woods get it all done and resolve such conflicting tensions? Through a lifetime of training, she’ll tell you. A high school drop-out at 16, Tina attended six different high schools before finally securing her diploma (St. Paul High on St. Paul Island; Mt. Edgecumbe in Sitka; Chemawa Indian School in Salem, Ore.; East, West and Bartlett Highs in Anchorage.) A few years after her parents’ divorce, she was whisked away from her mom for seven years and raised in Guam by her father’s relatives. The separation, abandonment and culture shock were enormous. After eventu- ally rejoining her mom on St. Paul, she got in the habit of recounting her personal tale of woe to bird-watching tourists at the King Eider Hotel where she worked. “They’d ask me, ‘Are you from here?’ And I’d say ‘I’m half-Aleut and half-Guamanian.’ And it would start… I would talk about everything. It was very therapeutic to tell it over and over. “Finally, what happened is, people started to ask me where I got my strength, who influenced me.” Her answer is a story from her difficult days on Guam. Still a child, she was in an Easter Egg Hunt there. She remembers saying the rosary over and over again, hoping she’d find the golden egg. When the hunt started, she p Tina Woods, 33, candidate in the clinical community went right to a rain gutter, reached in and found the winning egg. psychology Ph.D. program She didn’t get to keep the money for herself and she describes herself today as non-denominational. But the experience “gave me the blind faith to “Produce from your heart... all the rest will fall in to place.” know that God was there. I learned how to be patient, that things will come. Tina Woods is a bundle of contradictions. Prepare to have your Life’s not meant to be easy.” head spin. Over time, that notion deepened into an active philosophy toward adver- She’s in year two of a five-year Ph.D. program in clinical psychology sity. “In the last five years, I’ve come to realize that, actually, life doesn’t with an emphasis on rural indigenous mental health. Fall semester she ever get any easier. You just get better at it. “ racked up one B and three A’s. She also learned to claim a chief characteristic that has helped her She’s a prestigious 2009 Minority Fellow with the American Psychologi- bounce to the surface again and again. “It boils down to this: I was very re- cal Institute, one of 13 in a pool of 174 applicants nationwide to receive silient to change, capable of adjusting to whatever people put on my plate.” the honor. After graduating with a bachelor’s degree in psychology, she worked at She runs Alaska Natives into Psychology (ANPSYCH), a UAA program various local private hospitals, at Akeela, Inc. and as the wellness coordina- to increase the number of Alaska Natives in behavioral health professions. tor for the Aleutian Pribilof Islands Association. She carries a caseload of seven clients at the UAA Psychological Services She started a master’s in health administration, and was giving a talk Center. She teaches three one-credit seminar-style classes focused on in Sitka about culturally appropriate care for Aleut elders when one of her Alaska Native issues. undergraduate professors happened to see her and mentioned the new She’s doing research to identify what barriers keep Alaska Natives from Ph.D. program. No way, Tina thought. seeking mental health services. Until she read what it was all about. “I went to my hotel room that night She’s a wife and a mom. She gets by on four hours of sleep a night. and looked it up online: ‘clinical community psychology with a rural indig- OK, get ready for your first whiplash. enous emphasis.’ It completely tugged at my heart. More or less, I had to do Tina Woods is just not in to school. it. I had to at least apply.” No, really. “I hate reading. I’m not afraid to say that. But I do it because Keep in mind she never saw herself going beyond a master’s: “A Ph.D. I’m supposed to. And as time went on, I got better at disciplining myself.” is for people not like me…” Academic jargon annoys her. “The world of psychology has so many But here she is, in year two. And not afraid to tell you that fall semester technical terms. Half the time, I’m freakin’ googling the term because I nearly did her in. don’t understand. Why use epistemology? Why not just say ‘the quest for “It took every inch of the person I am,” she says. “The one and only knowledge’?” thing that continues to motivate me – it’s so abstract I can’t even describe it Know what annoys her even more than jargon? Status. “When I finish in words. Deep down in my heart and soul, it’s the love I have for the Alaska this program, I don’t expect to be called ‘doctor.’ That’s not what I’m about. Native people.” That’s not how I was raised.” Yes, she has witnessed the devastating effects of alcoholism and the She sees her own flaws and wounds in every psychological case study trauma of fractured generations. And no, she will not look away. she and her classmates analyze. “I tease … ‘Holy cow, you just talked “I am not doing this for myself,” she says. “I want to make an impact on about me!’” our state, and I’m willing to do whatever it takes.”
12 accolades The day she finished her last essay to apply for the Ph.D. program, “It just came over me … Lord, if this program is for me, this is why.”
What role did scholarships play in your education? GIVE BACK, “Scholarships and my fellowship play a significant role in my educational GET BACK journey. Without this support, my stress levels would increase drastically, keeping me from being able to focus on what really matters, which is my family first and then my education.” Charitable gift
What advice do you have for students just starting out? annuities benefit “My only advice is to produce from your heart and passion and all the rest UAA and you will fall into place. I would encourage others to master the saying, If there is a will, then there is a way.”
HELPING UAA STUDENTS FULFILL THEIR DREAMS With today’s struggling economy, a charitable gift To learn more about applying for UAA’s private scholarships, visit www.uaa.alaska.edu/scholarships/ annuity (CGA) may be the perfect philanthropic option for you. Part gift and part investment, a CGA allows To learn how to create a named scholarship for UAA students donors to make a planned gift to UAA while receiving a through the UA Foundation, visit www.uaa.alaska.edu/advance- steady stream of income payments for life. The University, ment/giving/scholarships-and-endowments.cfm in return for a gift of cash or other assets, agrees to pay To support scholarships at UAA, you may give to the university’s the donor a fixed amount of money for the remainder of General Scholarship for Students fund, which provides financial their lifetime. support based primarily on need. Jean Parsons is an alumna of UAA’s Class of 1973
Give online at www.uaa.alaska.edu/giving and choose General who made the decision to donate to UAA through a Scholarship Support #20605. CGA. Parsons explains, “I decided to give through a CGA because it benefits both the University and the donor. It’s Send check payable to UAA – General Scholarship #20605 to: UAA – Office of Development, ADM 236 a win-win situation for both parties and is convenient to 3211 Providence Drive donors.” Anchorage, AK 99508 The amount of payments varies according to the age of the annuitant, or the person(s) who will receive Questions? Contact the Office of Development at (907) 786-4847 in Anchorage or toll free 1-877-482-2238. the payments. The older the designated annuitants are at the time the gift is made, the greater the fixed income the University of Alaska Foundation can agree to pay, and the greater the tax benefit. In their own words
Being the first in your family to take on the academic challenge of Charitable Gift Annuity rates for a single individual: a higher education means you’re the one who first learns how to navigate university entrance requirements, financial aid issues, meetings with your advisor, homesickness and the other myriad is- Age 60 – 5.0% sues college students confront. The six students you read about in Age 70 – 5.7% this article explain in their own words how they found their way to Age 80 – 7.1% UAA and offer advice for students who want the same opportuni- Age 90 – 9.5% ties. Listen to their stories at http://greenandgold.uaa.alaska.edu/ podcasts/index.php?cat=first-in-the-family for more information on charitable gift annuities, and rates for other ages, please contact the UAA Office of Development at (907) 786-4847.
Rates approved by the American Council on Gift Annuities. Effective February 1, 2008-June 30, 2009.
accolades 13
First ANSEP chair
In October 2008, UAA announced the creation of the Herbert P. Schroeder 2008 Endowed Chair of the Alaska Native Science & Engineering Program (ANSEP). The endowment, with pledged gifts in excess of $4 million, will ensure stable funding for a full-time, year-round faculty member dedicated A YEAR OF to students enrolled in ANSEP. Dr. Herb (Ilisaurri) Schroeder, for whom the endowed chair position is named, is the founder and executive director of ANSEP. The Rasmuson Foundation contributed a $2 million challenge grant to FIRSTS fund the creation of this new Chair. Several industry partners and Native Corporations pledged gifts to match the Ras- muson Foundation Challenge, three of which AT UAA –ASRC Energy Services, Alyeska Pipeline Service Company and BP–contributed 2008 was an incredible year for $500,000 to the endowment. UAA; we’d like to share just a few ANSEP is a longitudinal program that works with students from the time they are of the amazing firsts with you, so freshmen in high school all the way through you can help us celebrate these graduate school. The program has been momentous accomplishments. proven to increase university recruitment and retention rates through hands-on high Now’s the time to join UAA on the school outreach initiatives, rigorous summer road to success! bridging programs, focused academic learn- ing communities, organized student cohorts, networks of peer and professional mentors, community-based learning, professional internships, undergraduate research projects and graduate school programs. For additional information on ANSEP, please visit their Web site at http:// ansep.uaa.alaska.edu/. First scholar What donors have to say about their contribution to the ANSEP Chair: Kelcie Ralph, economics major and University Honors College student, was named UAA’s first Marshall Scholar in 2008. The Marshall Scholar- Alyeska has a rich history in Alaska engineering. I am proud of our commit- ships, widely recognized as among the ment to preparing the next generation of engineers who will work to solve most prestigious awards an American future technical challenges facing our state’s various industries. undergraduate can receive, provide – Kevin Hostler, President and CEO, Alyeska Pipeline Service Company students with two fully funded years of study in the United Kingdom. Similar to BP has had a long relationship with ANSEP beginning with our early the Rhodes Scholarship, the Marshall financial support. We have also placed dozens of high school summer Scholarship differs primarily in that it bridge students and undergraduate interns and have hired eight graduates allows the student freedom to attend any since the program started. Our investment helps to ensure the future of an UK university. important program and demonstrates our continued commitment to develop Students must be nominated by Alaska’s future workers. their undergraduate institution for the – Phil Cochrane, Vice President, External Affairs, BP Alaska Marshall Scholarship. In order to be considered, applicants must evidence outstanding academics, research and Arctic Slope Regional Corporation, in cooperation with our subsidiary, ASRC leadership abilities, and the capacity to serve as an ambassador for rela- Energy Services, is honored to support a program focused on building a tions between the United States and the United Kingdom. Former Marshall superior workforce for Alaska. Scholars have included Supreme Court justices, members of Congress, – Roberta Quintavell, President and CEO, Arctic Slope Regional Presidential Cabinet members, CEOs and Nobel Prize and Pulitzer Prize Corporation winners. Kelcie will graduate in May and will attend the London School of Eco- ANSEP has made a lasting difference for Alaska Native students. This nomics in October 2009 where she hopes to enroll in the MSc Programs in program has created a supportive learning community, allowing students to City Design and Social Science, and Environmental Policy and Regulation. excel and graduate at unprecedented levels. For additional information on the Marshall Scholarship visit http://www. – Diane Kaplan, President and CEO, Rasmuson Foundation marshallscholarship.org/.
14 accolades First in the region First faculty fellows
For the first time in UAA’s history, both the Thirteen UAA faculty from the departments of biology, anthropology and men’s and the women’s basketball teams chemistry have become fellows of the Environment and Natural Resources earned the title of NCAA Division II West Institute (ENRI). This new designation reflects the national recognition of Region Champions in the same year. In these research groups and their contributions to 2008, the women’s team went on to finish fundamental and applied research in Alaska and the season with a 30-5 mark – best in the north. The imbedding of faculty into the institute school history; the men’s team finished strengthens UAA’s interdisciplinary research plat- the year with school records for most wins and fewest losses. form in Ecosystem Studies & Conservation Biology, Though not part of 2008, we can’t miss this chance to note that the 2009 Earth & Climate Processes, and Human Ecology & season is full of successes. UAA’s women’s basketball team reached the Sustainability. national rank of #1 in February, and finished the season as #2. ENRI serves as an example of research excel- For additional information about UAA’s basketball program, visit the lence in the Natural Sciences at UAA and the An- Web site for athletics at goseawolves.com. chorage area. Funded research by the new faculty fellows exceeds $2 million, including support from the National Science Foundation (NSF) International First U-MED green agreement Polar Year, the NSF Office of Polar Programs, NSF Geosciences, NSF EPSCoR, U.S. Department of Energy, National Oceanic & On October 1, 2008, UAA, the Municipality of Anchorage, Providence Alaska Atmospheric Administration, National Aeronautics & Space Administration Medical Center, Alaska Pacific University, the Anchorage School District, and the National Institute of Health. Green Star, Southcentral Foundation, Alaska Psychiatric Institute and the To learn more about ENRI’s faculty fellows, please visit http://www.uaa. Alaska Native Tribal Health Consortium signed alaska.edu/enri/. an agreement to collectively find ways to practice and improve waste reduction, energy conservation and pollution prevention. This First pumped-up U-Med District Green Agreement is the first of mascot its kind in Anchorage. UAA also recently established its first Of- This year the new “Spirit” mascot made his fice of Sustainability and hired a new director, first appearance in Anchorage. This new and Paula Williams, to head up the effort. Paula will exciting Spirit will replace the furry, wolf-like be working with the Sustainability Council to mascot that’s been seen at athletic events help move UAA forward in its sustainability and and around campus in the past. The new environmental practices. Spirit, designed by Street Characters, is a muscular, green and gold Seawolf that resembles the printed athletic logo. To view the new Seawolf mascot, check out one of our many athletic First Confucius Institute events at www.goseawolves.com. in Alaska First for new student In December 2008, Chancellor Fran Ulmer tracking model led a dedication ceremony for UAA’s new Confucius Institute. This ceremony followed UAA’s Vice Provost for Institutional Research, Gary the signing of a memorandum of understand- Rice, launched an innovative approach to measur- ing between the University and the Office ing student success. This new tracking model goes of Chinese Language Councils International beyond measuring just first-time, full-time students’ (Hanban) in Beijing, People’s Republic of Chi- graduation rates within a 6-year period (this is the na to form Alaska’s first Confucius Institute, traditional model). The plan developed by Rice which is located at UAA. tracks student success over a 10-year period and The Confucius Institute, of which there takes into consideration factors such as transfer are 32 elsewhere in the United States, will provide UAA students and faculty students, degree completion with an extended the opportunity to acquire the Chinese language, learn more about Chinese timeframe, interim degree award, grades earned, culture, and partake in cultural exchange and study-abroad programs. among other things. The Anchorage community can expect to benefit from UAA’s newest This new tracking model has garnered national attention in two educa- institute as well. The Institute will work to promote the teaching of Mandarin tion trade journals, The Chronicle of Higher Education and Inside Higher Chinese at the K-12 level, to design programs to increase the number and Ed. The executive director of the Association for Institutional Research has skill level of Chinese teachers in Alaska, and to support the training and pro- indicated that he hopes this approach will extend the national discussion fessional development of Chinese language teachers throughout the region. about measuring success. Other community partnerships will include the World Trade Center Alaska To read about this new model in Inside Higher Ed, visit http://www. and the Alaska Chinese Association in providing non-credit, community- insidehighered.com/news/2008/10/22/Alaska. based language programs in Mandarin Chinese. accolades 15 First steps toward the future: UAA students’ first-year college experience
by Cassidy White
uring their senior year of high school, students have to make the “I felt like I was miles ahead and gained some valuable information D decision as to whether or not they plan on attending college; if the that I would’ve never known if it wasn’t for the people and students I met at answer turns out to be “yes” to college, several more decisions follow, such these events,” Theresa, who is currently a sophomore, said. as which college or university to go to and whether or not to live on or off Freshman Convocation takes place the Saturday prior to classes campus wherever they choose to attend. starting in the fall. UAA’s Campus Kick-Off follows on its heels later in the Two students, Theresa Cho and Demietrius Preston, made the decision afternoon. Together, these events welcome both new and returning students to stay close to home and attend UAA. Many first-year college students to campus for a new school year. Students are able to connect with each feel eager, nervous, ecstatic and confused all at the same time. However, other through festive and interactive entertainment, information booths and when Theresa Cho walked through the doors of UAA, she felt confident and social experiences. calm. Before the beginning of the semester, Theresa, a biology major and “I learned things from students who knew what they were doing. They UA Scholar, attended Freshman Convocation and UAA’s Campus Kick-Off, had been in my position and told me things that they wish they knew when and both events helped Theresa find confidence as a new freshman. Hosted they were freshmen,” Theresa said. by the University Honors College, Freshman Convocation welcomes all mem- UAA track team member and freshman, Demietrius Preston, made bers of the freshman class and their families, provides increased opportuni- the decision to live in on-campus housing. “Living in the dorms gave me a ties for students to connect with faculty, inspires students with a sense of lot of freedom, that at times I took advantage of, but overall it was a good discovery and creativity to last them throughout their years of study and experience. I met a lot of people and learned about the importance of doing introduces the world of UAA. Freshman Convocation has hosted powerful homework versus staying up late with friends,” Demietrius, who is also keynote addresses by Alan Lightman, Ph.D., Sir Paul Nurse, Ph.D., Donald currently a sophomore, said. Johanson, Ph.D., and Neil DeGrasse Tyson, Ph.D.
Theresa Cho
16 accolades Demietrius Preston
UAA provides faculty and staff advising in student housing, access to “I would recommend to future freshman to attend these events, visit the New Student Orientation (NSO) office and a course that guides the new these offices and take part in the programs offered. I still go back and refer- student to a successful college experience. ence materials I was given when I want to find out more information. It’s to The Residential Communities at UAA are composed of three suite-style [the new student’s] benefit. Don’t be scared to ask questions and take notes. residence halls and two apartment complexes. Residence Life offers a wide The truth is, all of the resources are provided to ensure and encourage our variety of opportunities for UAA students to experience personal growth success in college,” said Theresa. and development through educational, social and cultural programs, which Along with all of the events and programs designed to meet the new are designed to supplement the classroom learning experience. Workshop student’s needs, UAA offers the Guidance 150 Course, which is designed topics range from college survival skills, roommate relationships, alcohol to promote confidence, knowledge and develop good habits necessary to awareness, global diversity, career planning and date/acquaintance rape. be a successful student. It also fulfills three credits of electives needed for The dorms also provide Resident Advisors (RA) who provide guidance, graduation. advice and are always willing to help. “If it wasn’t for the RA’s, my experi- “Even though I didn’t listen to all of the information at first, I found ence of living on campus would have been less enjoyable, and I would myself having to go back, locate the resources available and take the probably be living in the storage room by now,” Demietrius said. information to heart. After realizing the value of listening to the advice The NSO office also helps students like Demietrius and Theresa relieve provided, I gained inspiration and made all A’s for the first time in my life,” their common anxieties about starting college. The NSO hosts Howl Days, said Demietrius. an orientation program designed to help new students transition into college life. Howl Days gives students the opportunity to make valuable connections For additional information on campus housing, with other UAA students, staff and faculty while learning accurate informa- visit: http://www.uaa.alaska.edu/housing/ tion about the services and resources available at the university. Students For additional information on New Student Orientation, learn their way around campus, how to use Blackboard (UAA’s classroom visit: http://www.uaa.alaska.edu/orientation/ For additional information on Freshman Convocation, computer system), how to navigate UAOnline (UAA’s registration system), visit: http://www.uaa.alaska.edu/ours/calendar/freshman-convocation.cfm and they also get an introduction to UAA’s student clubs, organizations and For additional information on UAA Campus Kick-Off, Greek life. visit: http://www.uaa.alaska.edu/studentlifeandleadership/activities/kickoff.cfm
accolades 17
Donating for the first time: UAA celebrates new patrons by Peter Porco
There are moments in one’s life that change things forever... my defining moment came when I entered the office of a Career Counselor at UAA.
– R o n G i l m o r e
The university is a pipeline to the future.
– S a m a r W a l t h e r
18 accolades
FIRST TIME DONORS
is blessed to have donors who have given money to its programs “I’m at a point in my career where I’m very aware of what UAA gave UAA for many years, including some who give year after year. me,” Gilmore said in a recent interview. “It was a UAA counselor who gave UAA is fortunate also to attract new donors every year, those who me my career. I can’t thank that person enough.” understand the value UAA brings to its local and statewide communities “I’ve always considered donating to UAA,” he added. “But not until and who want to uphold that value in ways they never have. Such first-time recently was I able to think about it in a serious way. And now I’ll probably donors often want to support UAA’s strategic role of providing financial aid continue.” to needy students, strengthening vital academic programs and rewarding innovation and front-line research. Samar Walther, another first-time donor, did not attend UAA and had These new donors are cherished at UAA. They demonstrate new faith in never lived in Alaska before 2007 when she moved up from Houston, Texas, the university’s continuing mission to be an essential force in the community. to become a capital projects manager for ConocoPhillips Alaska. A first-time donor is climbing aboard a bandwagon with a long track record Nevertheless, you’d be hard pressed to find someone who believes of service to the community and a vision as fresh as the newest giver. more strongly in the UAA mission. Samar (pronounced “Summer”) has cho- sen UAA’s School of Engineering (SOE) as one of two organizations that she Consider the letter that arrived in Chancellor Fran Ulmer’s mailbox just devotes time and money to (the other is Covenant House Alaska, the shelter before the holidays last year. Ron Gilmore, who graduated from UAA in 1984, and support programs for homeless youth). wrote to the Chancellor to explain the reason he donated to the university Samar, who has a bachelor’s degree in chemical engineering and a during a student-operated Phone-a-thon in Spring 2008. Gilmore said he’d master’s in business administration, is a member of the SOE’s Advisory recently received his issue of Accolades with its theme of “family” and Board. The Board has been “focused on getting support and funding for considered himself a long-distance member of the UAA family, “one who a new engineering building,” as she writes in the latest issue of “Capital has been extremely grateful” to UAA since his graduation almost 25 years Projects Organization,” a ConocoPhillips newsletter. earlier. In a phone interview, Samar explained her passion for giving so UAA Gilmore went on to tell the story of how he’d arrived at UAA in 1982 continues to move toward an eventual new building. “I strongly support after having already attended two colleges in the Northwest, majored in five the Board’s mission to expand and provide better engineering facilities and subjects, dropped out and reached the woeful conclusion that he “was clue- programs,” she said. ConocoPhillips uses a lot of engineers. “The university less as to what I would do with my life.” is a pipeline to the future.” At UAA he hoped to steer his life back to some productive course. Samar has donated $1,000 to UAA as an individual. She’s also applied “There are moments in one’s life that change things forever,” he wrote to through a separate program for a matching grant from her company, for the Chancellor. “My defining moment came when I entered the office of a another $1,000. Moreover, she’s applied for an additional $500 grant through Career Counselor at UAA.” the Employee Volunteer Grant Program that ConocoPhillips provides to Today Gilmore remembers everything about that seminal conversation those who volunteer for non-profit charitable organizations. except the name of the “compassionate woman” who listened to the check- “UAA is a young university,” Samar said. The School of Engineering is erboard tale of his meandering life, watched him break down, and then struggling to afford needed laboratories, to buy state-of-the-art lab equip- asked a question that was brilliant in its simplicity: “What do you like to do?” ment, to find enough space for its programs. “That’s why we support its Gilmore told her he’d tried a lot of things—forestry, playing music and mission to provide expanded staff and expertise.” also writing music—and then he heard himself say, I like to write words. She also “believes in leading by example, and education, especially “Whether it was poetry, songs, stories didn’t matter. The counselor talked engineering education, is critical” to the industry. some more,” he said in his letter, “and after a while, out of the blue, said “I also believe my donations will help students in need and provide ‘Have you ever considered journalism?’” scholarship support,” she said. “I have heard students talk about how much Gilmore, in fact, had never considered journalism and was perplexed it means to them… UAA has very strong students. We’ve had interns and by the idea. But he followed the counselor’s suggestion that he take an also some from the Alaska Native Science and Engineering Program (at introductory news writing class and found to his immense satisfaction that, ConocoPhillips), and we were happy with them.” as he wrote to Chancellor Ulmer, “For the first time in my life I felt I was good at something, and not only good at it, but enjoyed it.” To support scholarships at UAA, you may give to the university’s General Scholarship Gilmore graduated with a degree in journalism and went on to a career for Students fund, which provides financial support based primarily on need. in news reporting in Texas, then migrated into health-care public relations. Today, at 52, Gilmore is the highly successful vice president for public af- Give online at www.uaa.alaska.edu/giving and choose General Scholarship Support #20605. fairs for five different health-related entities at the University of Wisconsin, in Madison.
accolades 19 First in their community by Peter Porco Prince William Sound Community College Kodiak College Matanuska-Susitna College Kenai Peninsula College
UAA is among the fastest growing institutions in Alaska, and its four At Kodiak College, the future has arrived in style. During the 2007-2008 community campuses are a significant part of that growth. academic year, Kodiak began offering courses which will lead to comple- Each UAA community campus—in Valdez, in Palmer, in Kodiak tion of the Bachelor in Elementary Education that, for the first time in Kodiak and on the Kenai Peninsula—has taken leaps in recent years, whether College’s history, will be delivered entirely on Kodiak Island. opening an affiliated museum or an extension campus, consolidating The revised program, a partnership with UAA’s College of Education, now allows Kodiak residents, including those who live in one of the island’s an academic program or seeing its director volunteer for government seven remote villages, to complete all their courses either in person at the service. Whatever form it takes, such growth enhances UAA’s broad college, or through distance delivery, or through a hybrid of both in-person reach into all the communities of Southcentral Alaska. and distance-delivered courses. “That’s the hope—that we will deliver this whole program on the island,” said Kodiak College director Barbara Bolson. Before the program change, said Bolson, Kodiak residents could earn the Bachelor in Elementary Education but only by taking their first two years of classes at the college and then transferring to another UA college and leaving the island. That did not help those who wanted to be teachers but who were bound to the island for family reasons, did not want to leave it, or could not afford to travel to and live in Anchorage. The new program was created for them. Another key reason for instituting the program change, Bolson said, is “to meet the anticipated teacher shortage and turnover of jobs in rural schools.
Maxine & Jesse Whitney Museum Photo by Ryan Adkins courtesy Whitney Museum
Last May, Prince William Sound Community College (PWSCC) in Valdez experienced the fulfillment of a 10-year-old dream, the opening on campus of the Maxine & Jesse Whitney Museum. The Whitney collection is one of the largest such assemblages of Alaska Native art and artifacts in the world, well over 1,000 cultural items, baskets, carvings, ivory and baleen pieces, parkas, wildlife mounts, miner- als, dolls, furs and other items, said PWSCC President Doug Desorcie. Maxine Whitney, who followed her husband, Jesse, to Alaska in 1947, Participating in a distance delivered master’s course, “traveled to Native villages throughout the territory, buying items directly Jenny Myrick is also a Kodiak College staff member from the artists to sell in her gift shop,” according to the PWSCC Web site. Photo by Susan Jeffrey courtesy Kodiak College In 1969, Mrs. Whitney came to own the Eskimo Museum in Fairbanks and “Living on an island and working in rural schools are challenges. continued collecting through the mid-1980s. People already living here know and have come to terms with those chal- In 1998, she donated her collection to PWSCC, and it was transported to lenges,” she said. “If we find someone already living in a village with a Valdez from the Fairbanks area, where Mrs. Whitney still lives. At the time, strong desire to teach, it makes sense to help train them as a teacher.” That the college had no suitable facility, so the collection was housed in a facility person might then teach in the same or a similar community, and chances at the Valdez Airport, where a good part of it was put on display for 10 years. are good that he or she will be successful in that environment. It was always the intention, however, to find a permanent home on the “We won’t have that constant teacher turnover,” Bolson said. “It’s a campus for the Whitney collection, and the state, thanks in part to the efforts goal of the program to reduce turnover in remote teaching locations.” of Alaska Rep. John Harris, helped fund construction of the new museum, Kodiak College, which is celebrating its 40th anniversary this year, which sits on the southwest side of the campus. also provides similarly delivered classes that allow those with a bachelor’s Maxine Whitney’s remarkable collection is now openly displayed at degree to earn master’s degrees in education. Both the MAT and M.Ed., Prince William Sound Community College, in what Desorcie calls a “world- awarded by the UAA College of Education, will be available. “Students can class” museum. “It’s incredible, a must-see when you come to Valdez,” he take the necessary classes while remaining on Kodiak,” said Bolson. said. More than 500 Valdez residents attended the Grand Opening on May 3, “That way,” she said, “teachers and others who are already work- and Maxine Whitney herself attended the official ribbon-cutting on July 19. ing don’t have to uproot their lives or give up their jobs to work on their master’s.”
20 accolades COMMUNITY CAMPUSES
Prince William Sound Community College Kodiak College Matanuska-Susitna College Kenai Peninsula College
Matanuska-Susitna College has also branched out. For the Spring 2009 In addition, Gary was elected in February of this year as chair of the full semester, a year after celebrating its 50th anniversary, the college estab- committee and also chair of the Senate Ethics Subcommittee. lished its first extension of the Palmer campus, opening a branch in Willow, How did a college director whose background is in public affairs, some 40 miles up the Glenn Highway to the north. communications and journalism, who has taught English Composition and The college is offering four courses in Willow this semester with plans literature, including at the Air Force Academy, find himself an ethics advisor to offer more as interest rises, said Mat-Su College director Dennis W. Clark. to legislators? “When gas prices were high, we looked at ways we could help students The answer lies in the southeastern Pennsylvania town of Phoenixville, in the northern part of the [Matanuska-Susitna] borough,” Clark said. close to Valley Forge, where Gary was born and raised 54 years ago. There “Willow appeared to be a good choice. We had discussions with community at an early age, he said, “I was instilled by my dad and my mom with a leaders and determined there was considerable interest. In November, we strong ethical code. I started working as an 11-year-old kid. I had good male met with the community at large and the rest is history.” mentors.” In addition to a new extension campus, the college has formed its first Gary was working 25 hours a week in a general store—his hours would ever sports team, the Mat-Su College Polar Bears, a student basketball team rise to 40 a week when he was 14. Working for a friend of the family, he that played its first game on Feb. 2. The team is in the AT&T Sports Center handled cash, stocked shelves, cut meat, for 75 cents an hour. “We were very lower middle class,” Gary said. Anything he wanted, he had to buy on his own. If he went on a date, he spent his own cash. When he was old enough for a car, he bought it himself. He joined the Air Force, too, which gave him a “strong sense and code of ethics,” he said.
The Mat-Su Polar Bears Photo by Kristin Owens courtesy Mat-Su College
Adult Basketball League and plays squads like McLain Construction, Larson Chiropractic, Cole Investments, Wells Fargo/Guardian and others. “At this point, they (AT&T Sports Center) are providing the coach and we are supplying the players,” said Clark, who is not afraid to dream of other firsts. “This is not Division II nor is it NCAA. At this point it is only local competition,” he said. “But anything is possible in the future.”
When it comes to firsts, Kenai Peninsula College (KPC) has had a busy Gary Turner
few years recently. Faculty and administrative personnel have won high Photo courtesy Kenai Peninsula College honors, and the college has instituted far-sighted programs. However, one unique first stands out among the rest. So his parents’ example, a strong sense of reliance on his own efforts, The Select Committee on Legislative Ethics, a body that advises the the idea that one spends money that one earns the old-fashioned way, and Alaska Legislature and administers the state’s legislative-ethics law, is the the military code—all of it primed him to appreciate the difference between ethics watchdog of state government. It interprets the Alaska Legislative right and wrong. Ethics Code, helps lawmakers and their staffs comply with that code, and But it’s not a right-or-wrong world that is the object of contemplation of weighs complaints that allege violations of the code, among other duties. those on the Select Committee on Legislative Ethics, Gary said. The panel, which enjoys bipartisan support, consists of nine members, “It makes you think,” he said of their deliberations. “We deal with some two from the Senate, two from the House, and five from the public at large. true intellectual exercises. When people sometimes think it’s a black- Among those five public members, who are each selected by the chief and-white issue, it can be a gray area. You’re applying ethics to real-life justice of the State Supreme Court and confirmed by two-thirds of the full situations.” membership of the Legislature, is Gary Turner of Soldotna, the director of When his terms ends in 2010, Gary will be up for re-appointment, some- Kenai Peninsula College. thing he said he’d very much like. Gary is KPC’s first director to be named to the legislative ethics panel. He was confirmed during the 2007 legislative session for a three-year term.
accolades 21 FACULTY&STAFFACCOLADES
Peter Risse (Director, Chugiak-Eagle River Campus) is an Anchorage Cham- t Michael Inman (Aviation Tech- ber of Commerce and Alaska Journal of Commerce 2009 “Top Forty Under nology Division Research Profes- 40” award recipient. Among his many accomplishments, Risse secured sional and Adjunct Professor) was grant/contract funding for UAA education programs totaling an impressing recognized by the Federal Aviation $4.5 million over the past 6.5 years. A member of the Chugiak-Eagle River Administration (FAA) as the Chamber of Commerce, Risse has displayed a commitment to building and recipient of the 2008 Outstanding sustaining a livable, family-oriented community. Risse and his colleagues Faculty of the Year for his research are currently working with industry leaders and the State Department of in support of the FAA, Center of Labor to develop new apprenticeship opportunities to address emerging Excellence for General Aviation, workforce needs. University of Alaska Anchorage Remote Airport Lighting Systems project.
The UAA College of Business and Public Policy (CBPP) has again won international recognition for its business programs and degrees. The As- sociation to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business (AACSB) has extended CBPP’s accreditation, which the AACSB calls a “distinguished hallmark of excellence in management education.” To maintain AACSB accreditation, a college business program must undergo the process of an internal review every five years. Less than 5 percent of business schools worldwide – 559 out of 11,500 – have earned AACSB ac- creditation (460 are U.S. schools).
p Administrative Services at UAA announced that the first quarter Employ- u Dr. Orson Smith (Chair, UAA Civil Engi- ee of the Quarter FY 09 recipients are Glenn Brown, Colin Clausson, John neering) received the American Society of Hanson, Jody Inman, Mike Law, Pat Leary, Mel Monsen, Howard Morse, Civil Engineers – Alaska Section, Engineer Kristin Reynolds, Tom Sternberg and Blake Zollinger. Usually Administra- of the Year award and is nominated for tive Services selects only one winner per quarter, but all of these recipients the statewide Engineer of the Year. The deserved this award for their hard statewide award is a competition of work on the recent Cuddy Hall engineers from all disciplines, nominated renovation. The second quarter by various professional organizations. He Employee of the Quarter FY09 win- was instrumental in advancing the UAA ner is Rachel Epstein. School of Engineering and developed the master’s certificate programs. u Dr. Hannele K. Zubeck (PE, Chair of UAA’s Arctic Engineer- Four Kodiak College faculty and staff members have been selected as the ing program) is the co-author of a 2009 National Institute for Staff and Organizational Development Excellence new book entitled, Cold Regions Award recipients. The award recipients are Barbara Brown, Academic Pavement Engineering. This is the Counselor and Assistant Professor; Evelyn Davidson, Coordinator of first book dedicated solely to this Developmental Studies and The Learning Center; Thia Falcone, Student important topic, and helps ensure Tracking Specialist and Adjunct Sociology Instructor; and Debbi Canavan, that road quality is not compro- Lead Tutor and Adjunct Math Instructor. The team has been instrumental in mised by cold temperatures and developing and piloting student success initiatives at Kodiak College, includ- other environmental factors. ing an award-winning developmental learning community, an early college placement testing project, student tracking, program assessment, student Alan Boraas (KPC professor) received the Log Cabin Award from the Kenai coaching and effective assessment as well as cognitive assessment. Chamber of Commerce for his extensive work with the Kenaitze Indian Tribe and their language preservation program.
22 accolades STUDENTACCOLADES
u Kelcie Ralph (Economics major and Heather McIntyre (Elementary Education major and University Honors University Honors College student) was College student) was awarded the Undergraduate Research in the Com- selected as one of only 40 U.S. students munity Award for her project “Global Diversity: Using Four Perspectives to named as a 2009 Marshall Scholar. The Build Empathetic Citizens.” In partnership with the Anchorage School Dis- Marshall Scholarships, widely recog- trict, elementary school students will participate in a curriculum unit created nized as among the most prestigious by Heather. The intent of this project is to prove that students benefit from awards an American undergraduate early training in diversity and multicultural understanding. can receive, provide students with two fully funded years of study in the t Chelsey Homan is a recipient of the United Kingdom. Kelcie will attend the Anchorage Chamber of Commerce and London School of Economics to study Alaska Journal of Commerce 2009 “Top City Design and Social Science, and Forty Under 40” awards. She entered Environmental Policy and Regulation this fall. Kelcie represents the first UAA the world of entrepreneurship at age student ever to receive this prestigious award. 19. Chelsey created her small business, Doggy Decadents, in 2007 to help finance
t Brit DelMoral (Sociology major and her college education. She creates and University Honors College student) was sells gourmet dog biscuits, and has es- awarded a Policy Research Internship at tablished a long list of wholesale clients. the Institute of Social and Economic Re- Chelsey also runs an online store where search, where she worked with Dr. Diane she fills orders from across Hirshberg on research on Mt. Edgecumbe the globe. High School, a boarding school serving primarily Alaska Native students from 2008 - 2009 Alaska Heart Institute Fellowship recipients are Alex Bonnecaze, rural Alaska. Brit co-presented with Dr. Biological Sciences major and University Honors College student; Danielle Hirshberg at a number of local, national Kusmider, Biological Sciences major; Oksana Miller, Biological Sciences and international conferences, including major; Cody Rall, Biology major and University Honors College student; the International Congress of Arctic Social Nicolette Skomp, Biology major and Alaska Heart Institute Supplement Sciences in Greenland, in August 2008. Grant recipient Alex Bergeron, Mechanical Engineering major. For more information on their research topics, visit: http://www.uaa.alaska.edu/ours/ Mollie Ramos (PWSCC) has had numerous successes since she started success/competitive-grants/alaska-heart-institute-fellowships.cfm. studying playwriting at PWSCC through classes at the Last Frontier Theatre
Conference in 2005. In addition to presenting in the Play Lab every year u Deana Glick, a junior in the UAA since 2005, four of her plays have been presented in Fairbanks Drama University Honors College majoring in Association’s 8x10 Festival. This past fall, she produced Encore! for the San biological sciences, has been awarded a Luis Obispo Short Play Festival. highly competitive and prestigious Truman Scholarship. Selections were announced u Adam Zandman-Zeman (WWAMI student) along with his brother Ari by Madeline K. Albright, former Secretary of won the Alaska Annual Business Competition hosted by the UAA College of State and president of the Harry S. Truman Business & Public Policy, APU Scholarship Foundation. Department of Business Admin- Glick is one of only 60 scholars named istration and the MBA Program. from 601 candidates nominated by 289 col- Together they created a busi- leges and universities. She was selected ness plan to chart the path for “on the basis of exceptional leadership po- their upcoming start-up venture. tential, intellectual ability and likelihood of Their plan included exercise ‘making a difference.’” This is the fourth year in a row that a UAA University resistance band e-tailor selling Honors College student has won a Truman Scholarship. Each scholarship complete mobile gym packages. provides up to $30,000 in support of graduate study.
accolades 23 SPOTLIGHT ON ALUMNI
Terra Weakley and Tessa Rinner
Life is what you make of it First generation alums tell their tales of struggle and success by Jessica Hamlin eet sisters Tessa Rinner and Terra Weakley, both first generation aised on the opposite end of the country, Gerard Bagsby had a very M college grads. Born and raised in Ketchikan, Alaska, they are proud to R different childhood than Tessa and Terra. Gerard, a ’96 alumnus of UAA, call themselves Alaskans and alumnae of the University of Alaska was born to a 14-year-old mother in south Chicago. He spent the first part of Anchorage. his childhood living with his grandmother, and later moved back in with his Tessa and Terra experienced many challenges on their paths to suc- mother when he and his mother were a bit older. “I had every excuse not to cess. The sisters grew up 12 miles off the road system in a hand-built family finish college or be successful,” said Gerard. “Growing up in a low-income homestead. They didn’t have the luxury of electricity or running water until household in south Chicago wasn’t easy, but life is what you make of it. I they were in their teens, and they commuted to Ketchikan by boat for school had a great childhood – my mom made sure of it.” and other activities. The hardest challenge of all was the tragic loss of their After completing high school, Gerard made the decision to attend the parents. University of Maryland, where he eventually earned a degree in psychology. “Our education was really important to our dad,” said the sisters. “He “Going to college for the first time was overwhelming,” shared Gerard. “I viewed education as the window to a world of opportunities. He felt that vividly remember my mom and grandmother driving me to college and help- education was important in making a person a more well-rounded individual, ing me set up my dorm room – It was a very emotional day for all of us.” and also to better understand the cultures of others, not just your own. It Gerard attributes many of his successes to his mother and grandmother’s was never an option for us not to go to college,” the sisters explained. “Dad expectations. His strong determination to do well in school and be success- always said that very few people have the opportunity to do what they really ful was a direct result of their encouragement. “My mom had high expecta- love. He wanted that for us, and suggested that an education would provide tions for me and she put a very strong emphasis on attending college,” us with the skills to achieve that goal.” explained Gerard. “She programmed me with the fact that I would finish The sisters traveled a lot during high school so transitioning to life in college, and I did.” So did his mother. A semester after Gerard earned his the big city of Anchorage was not a problem for either one of them. “We degree at the University of Maryland, Gerard’s mother completed a degree had the opportunity to participate in an exchange program in Kanayama, in social work. Japan – Ketchikan’s sister city,” said Terra. “Between my experience in Japan, and my time at a college prep school outside of Alaska, I was well prepared for my college experience.” After prep school, Terra spent a short time at Oregon State University, but transferred home to attend UAA. “I was just a number at my school in Oregon,” said Terra. “It’s not like that at UAA. The classes are small enough that students and faculty can get to know each other. UAA is also affordable, and I knew that I could get a great education without having an over- whelming amount of student loans.” Terra, a recent grad, earned her Bachelor of Arts in Political Science in 2008. An internship landed her a full-time gig at Beyond Borders, a non-profit organiza- tion dedicated to developing healthy and sustainable communities by empowering them to meet the needs of those around them. As Program Assistant, Terra helps support the organization’s Transforming Leaders program, which equips rural residents with the tools Gerard Bagsby they need to become leaders. Terra’s older sister, Tessa, is a UAA alumna two, almost three, times over. She earned a Bachelor of Arts in Political Science Gerard met his wife while attending college in Maryland. At the time, in 2000 and a Master of Public Administration in 2006. She’s also very close his wife was in the Air Force, which brought the couple to Alaska. “We to completing her Master of Public Health, which she hopes to finish this always wanted to come to Alaska,” said Gerard. Gerard’s dream to teach year. “I enjoy school and always strive to challenge myself,” said Tessa. led him to UAA. “UAA has a great education program. The staff and faculty Life is what “UAA’s academic programs are rigorous and the faculty are some of the were very welcoming and accommodating – they made the process easy best in the nation.” for me. It was also nice to have classes with other non-traditional students, As Director of Programs for the Denali Commission, Tessa oversees like me.” He graduated in 1996 with a bachelor’s degree in Elementary various program staff, policy activities, budgets and contracts to help sup- Education. you make of it port the infrastructure and development of rural Alaska. A 13-year veteran of the Anchorage School District, Gerard currently “We both believe very strongly in the missions of our organizations,” teaches math at Begich Middle School. His original school, Clark Middle First generation alums tell their said the sisters. “Our roles have a lot of crossover – we’re both working to School, is currently under construction and is scheduled to re-open in Fall improve the lives of rural Alaskans and the state we feel such a connection 2009. He will return to Clark as Chair of the Math Department when the new to. Our jobs are progressive and engaging, and we both love what we’re facility opens. When he’s not at school, he enjoys spending time with his tales of struggle and success doing – something our parents wanted for us more than anything.” wife and three daughters.
accolades 25 It’s a great day to be a
Greetings fellow alumni! awolf! It is a great pleasure having this opportunity to include e There’s never been a better time to be a greetings and comments on behalf of your alumni association. S Despite the seemingly constant negative information flow from local and Seawolf and proud alum of the University national media, this Accolades issue features wonderful and positive news about many of our alums, now more than 37,000 strong. The University of Alaska Anchorage Alumni Association (UAAAA) is working of Alaska Anchorage! Active membership hard making a positive difference throughout the greater Seawolf community. The UAAAA Board of Directors continues working with UAA’s administration to in the UAA Alumni Association provides an advocate for funding, helping grow UAA’s high-demand programs and increasing the quality of educational opportunities at Alaska’s top university. array of personal and professional benefits, We have been active participants in the ongoing development of UAA’s new sports complex, and late last year we dedicated the newly completed Foucault Pendulum in the UAA/APU Consortium Library. In addition, the Association all in support of the University of Alaska continues to host several social events for alumni each year. This year we’ve held events in Alaska, Washington and Texas. Anchorage. Continue your lifelong relation- Looking forward, UAAAA continues its focus on organic growth and building its presence throughout the university system. The basis of our growth depends ship with Alaska’s premier University by upon the success of our soon to be announced new members initiative. Updates on this effort, as well as information on other alumni association events and benefits, can be found on our Web site at www.uaaalumni.org. becoming an active member today. No activity comes without a cost, whether it be in financial or human capital. As the Association begins its annual planning and election process, I’d like to make a brief but passionate appeal to every UAA alum to show your support for UAA by becoming an active member of your alumni association and by making a Please contact (907) 786-1942 or donation to UAAAA. Through these efforts, you will be making a commitment to the growth of the University and demonstrating pride in your alma mater. [email protected] for more You are always welcome to contact me at [email protected] to discuss the opportunities available by reconnecting with UAA through your alumni information. Visit www.uaaalumni.org to association. learn about other membership benefits and Kindest regards,
Robert L. Hagmaier BBA ‘81 to fill out your membership application. President UAA Alumni Association
26 accolades
spotlight on ALUMNI www.uaaalumni.org
Realizing the value in connections by Jessica Hamlin
s a First Alaskan and one of the first graduates of UAA’s Recruitment over 70 employees, managing both the Medicine and Medicine-Surgery Aand Retention of Alaska Natives into Nursing (RRANN) program, Rona units, and oversees the delivery of patient care for 44 of the 150 beds at the J. Johnson is making a difference in the lives of Alaska Native patients and hospital. “I get a lot of energy from helping people,” said Johnson. “I love their families. Johnson is the Clinical Nurse Manager of the 5th floor at the the potential for making change and advocating for excellence in both pa- Alaska Native Medial Center (ANMC). tient and nursing care. I want every patient at ANMC to get the same care With Athabascan, Aleut and Russian ties, Johnson grew up in Kenai, Alaska and graduated from Kenai Central High School in 1988. After her grandmother’s death, Johnson olf realized what she wanted to do with her aw ! future: become a nurse to provide the kind of e care she would give her own family. That’s where UAA came in. S Johnson attended UAA for its conve- nience and the School of Nursing’s outstand- ing reputation. After 10 years of working full-time in various administrative positions and taking classes when she could, Johnson earned her nursing degree in 2003. “It was hard to stay motivated at times,” said John- son. “My time with the School of Nursing was a very personal and warm experience. My professors and classmates became like family to me and I still stay connected to many of them.” As a tutor and mentor for the RRANN program, Johnson developed many strong connections with other students in the pro- gram. “I always considered myself an ‘urban Native,’ since I didn’t grow up in a village, but after talking with a lot of the other Alaska Na- tives in the RRANN program, I discovered that I wasn’t as far from my culture as I thought I was,” Johnson explained. “RRANN made me realize the value in connections, and how “My time with the School of Nursing was a that I would expect my family to get. That’s a intertwined we all are in our culture. The pretty high expectation, and a goal that I ask very personal and warm experience. My Alaska Native culture is very rich, even in an of my staff daily.” urban setting.” professors and classmates became like Soon after landing at ANMC, Johnson The RRANN program, housed within family to me and I still stay connected to initiated the hospital-wide End of Life Support the UAA School of Nursing, is designed Program to prepare nurses with the knowl- many of them.” – Rona J. Johnson to increase the number of Alaska Natives edge and support they need to help patients and American Indians who graduate with and their loved ones with the difficult life Associate of Applied Science or Bachelor of Science degrees in nursing. transitions that death brings. “Death is complicated, and we try to make it It provides an extra level of support to students through advising, college just a bit easier to understand and deal with,” said Johnson. “People often preparation counseling, admission planning, and providing information about still have hope, even at the time of death. Working with people who are degree programs and course requirements. at end of life can give you really interesting perspective on your own life. Johnson’s experiences with RRANN, combined with her determination Shaping this program and watching it grow has made me a more grateful to better peoples’ lives, prepared her for a very rewarding and successful person,” shared Johnson. career at ANMC. Now as a Clinical Nurse Manager, Johnson supervises
accolades 27
spotlight on ALUMNI www.uaaalumni.org
The Seawolf Connection: Making a good first impression by Jessica Hamlin
ollege is all about making connections, and a new mentoring program at C UAA is doing just that. The Seawolf Connection pairs first-year students with UAA alumni for a yearlong mentorship to share experi- ences, successes and challenges. The pilot program was launched in January 2009 and will run through the end of this year. David Weaver, a career development advisor with UAA’s Career Services Center, has worked closely with the UAA Alumni Association and the First Year Experience Program in Residence Life to bring the Seawolf Connection program to life. It’s the first of its kind at UAA, and students and alumni alike are excited about the doors this program will open. “At the Career Services Center we typically work with juniors and seniors who are finishing up their college education and beginning to transition into the workforce,” explains Weaver. “Because of that, we oftentimes overlook the younger first-year students. The Seawolf Connection focuses on our first-year students and matches them with alumni with shared interests who can provide guidance and support to the student during their inaugural year at UAA.” Students in the program reap many benefits from their participa- tion in the Seawolf Connection. Not only do they have the opportunity to meet a personal advocate who can help them navigate their way through challenges, they also develop a connection with someone who can help steer them on the right career pathway. Angela Starks is a new student at UAA who’s pursuing a degree in psychology. After being recommended for the Seawolf Connection by a professor, Angela was quick to jump at the opportunity to participate in the pilot program. “I’m constantly looking for ways to better myself and I’ll always welcome any advice for my academic success,” said Starks. Her mentor, Xio Owens, has a psychology degree and is cur- rently working toward her Ph.D. in psychology. “I’m so thankful that I’ve been paired with someone I can relate to,” said Starks. “Xio is a great help with my academic studies. It’s nice to connect with someone who has already done what I’m striving to do.” Are you a UAA alum who’s interested in being a part of the Seawolf Connection? Please contact David Weaver at (907) 786-4533 or david.weaver@ uaa.alaska.edu, or Timea Webster at (907) 786-1941 or [email protected].
28 accolades SEAWOLF SPORTS
with 32 kills in a five-set win at Central Washington on Nov. 13, then fol- lowed on Nov. 15 with a 30-kill performance at nationally ranked Western Washington. With that last match, her career as a college volleyball player ended in a blaze of glory. She was quickly named to the Great Northwest Athletic Conference (GNAC) first team. The next day she became the first Seawolf ever named as Sports Imports/American Volleyball Coaches Association (AVCA) Division II National Player of the week. And then came the jewel: In early December, the AVCA named Rhea to its Second-Team All America. “Her hitting numbers were obviously tremendous, but people should also remember that she played all-around great defense and was our primary passer as well,” Seawolf head volleyball coach Chris Green said. “People tend to look at stat sheets and see kills, but her leadership was also a major part of our team’s turnaround.” Rhea Cardwell A first-rate All-American athlete by Peter Porco
Turnaround indeed. The Seawolves ended 2007 with a 5-19 record. The pre-season coaches poll for 2008 pegged them last in the nine-team GNAC. Instead, the ‘Wolves finished sixth with a 15-14 record, their first winning season since 2003. Clearly, Rhea was a big reason. But while she’s going to spend one more year of study here at UAA, her eligibility as an athlete has expired. She played a year of Division II volleyball as a freshman at Eastern New Mexico University, a year at Clackamas (Ore.) Community College, and her remaining two years of eligibility at UAA. She may no longer be a Seawolf athlete, but already she’s having an ou only have to look once at the clear and friendly eyes of UAA senior effect on future UAA volleyball teams. “Just being able to tell recruits that Y and champion volleyball player Rhea Cardwell. Immediately you’ll see a we have an All-American on our team, that helps them to realize we can keen intelligence and feel sure Rhea will be able to do anything she wants. be successful up here and that as coaches we can get the best out of our You get the sense success is coded in her DNA. student athletes,” said Green. But so is a becoming humility and team spirit. No ego flashes here. You Rhea plans to cheer on her former teammates next season. “I’m excited remind the 22-year-old Rhea that she’s the first volleyball athlete in UAA his- to go watch ‘em,” she said. For now, however, she’s busy planning for a tory to be named to an NCAA Division II All-America team, and she quickly bright future. Originally from Prineville, Ore., Rhea’s a political science major credits others, especially her teammate, junior Calli Scott. who’s “always loved politics” and who devours her classes. “I’m one of “I owe all of the success I had this year to my coaches and to Calli, my those nerd-type kids who actually enjoys studying.” setter,” Rhea said one day in January. “She gave me the opportunity to be Her husband, Ben Cardwell, also attends UAA, majoring in business an outside hitter (Rhea’s position) … She’s a huge, huge part of our team.” management. They live in an apartment and pay their bills, including tuition, The setter on a 6-person volleyball team is like the quarterback, accord- with help from an athletic stipend for Rhea and with jobs—she at a flower ing to Rhea. The setter calls the plays and passes the ball to another player shop and he at a hotel. She remains debt free, she said. who’s in position perhaps to deliver a point-earning kill. Cardwell said that After graduation, the couple intends to do some traveling and perhaps Scott, who hits with uncanny precision, often set her up well to rack up lots study in Spain, and Rhea very much would like to attend law school on the of kills. East Coast. But there’s more to Rhea’s success than taking a spot-on pass from an- “We’re very much goal oriented,” she said. It’s a characteristic that, in other player. The 5-feet-10 Cardwell is strong and agile—and a work horse Rhea, was only enhanced by playing college volleyball. whose devotion to discipline has paid off enormously. Last fall she enjoyed “It gives you lots of discipline,” she said of the sport. “I go to work now one of the most outstanding seasons in Seawolf volleyball history. Her sea- and my boss is surprised at my ability to get things done that he asks me to son rate of kills per set—the number of times during a game to 25 points that do. Other employees just don’t do things.” a player successfully terminates the play with an attack—was 4.48, or fourth “Athletics teaches life skills,” she adds. highest in the country among Division II teams. Altogether, Rhea set several UAA records—season kills per set, career Learn more about donating to the Seawolf Legacy, a student-athlete scholarship kills per set (4.02) and most attacks in a season (1,457). In the Seawolves’ endowment at UAA. Call the Department of Athletics at (907) 786-1250 or visit two season-ending road matches, she tied the UAA single-match record www.goseawolves.com.
accolades 29 Non-Profit Organization US Postage PAID Permit No 107 Office of Advancement Anchorage AK University of Alaska Anchorage 3211 Providence Drive . Anchorage, AK 99508
Scholarships Provide Opportunities and Hope to UAA Students
A college education can have a dramatic, life-changing impact on a person. It can allow someone to develop talents and achieve goals they might not have been able to without a degree. However, affording higher education is becoming more and more challenging. Because of the current credit crunch, many students can no longer qualify for state and private loans. As you think about your giving plan this year, please consider changing a student’s life by making a gift to the UAA Student Scholarship Fund. The gift of a scholarship provides hope and opportunities for students who are seeking to improve their lives through higher education, but lack the financial means. Your gift can open a new doorway—and career pathway—to deserving students. Each gift is important. To make your gift to the UAA Student Scholarship Fund, please contact (907) 786-4847 or (877) 482-2238. You may give online anytime at www.uaa.alaska.edu/giving.
Seawolves Women’s Basketball Team: 1 #1 in NCAA Division II West Region