B.S. Nursing '08 & M.S. Family Nurse Practitioner '11
Hometown: San Antonio, Texas
Fun Fact: Has black belt ranking in several styles of martial arts and moonlights as a self-defense instructor

UAA alum Brian Erdrich was 26 years old when he found himself in an intensive care unit (ICU) in Houston after a bad accident. ("It's a long story," he says). As fate would have it though, it was that experience of having quality care in facing his own mortality that made him realize what he wanted to do for the rest of his life.

"The nurses were just super nice to me, so I decided I was going to go into health care," he says. "After recovering from the accident, I took a tour of another hospital with a friend's mom who was a nurse. She introduced me to some male nurses and after talking to them and hearing their perspectives, I decided I'd pursue nursing."

By December 1990 he had his associate's degree from San Antonio College and went right to work in critical care and obtained his Critical Care Registered Nurse (CCRN) certification the following year.

"Critical care is fast-paced and very rewarding," he says, adding that it can also be very taxing, which is why his graduate project was about secondary traumatic stress in critical care nurses.

Brian has worked in critical care for 20 years, specializing in open heart patients. "It humbles you because if you make a mistake, someone could die. On the other hand, it's exciting because you have people who come in who are so sick or injured, but you can help turn that around and see them survive."

Brian has always been one for finding the exciting side of things. Growing up in Central and South America, as well as the United States?moving every time his military intelligence officer father got a new assignment?Brian took up hobbies like martial arts, shooting and other athletics.

"My plan when I was younger was to be a Green Beret," he says. "After I started taking college classes, I got accepted to the Marine Corps platoon leader class to go in as a pilot, until I found out that I had some hearing loss in my left ear from not using ear protection when shooting. Since I couldn't enter the military as an officer which was my goal, I decided to go a different path, which was winding for a while." He took some time away from college to find his calling.

Bouncing around from motorcycle mechanic to construction to lifeguarding and supervising at a water park, Brian took a little longer to discover his passion for health care. But once he did, he was hooked.

After working as an RN in Texas, Montana and Idaho for 9 years, and knowing he always wanted to live in Alaska ("for the hiking and fly fishing"), Brian arrived in Anchorage in 1999 to follow a job opportunity with Providence. Six years later he enrolled at UAA to upgrade his associate degree to a bachelor's, quickly following up with a master's degree as well.

"I decided I really wanted to be a nurse practitioner," he says. "I'd been working in critical care for so long that I decided I really wanted to do something proactive and try and help prevent people from ending up in the ICU. I thought if I could see people more in primary care, I could maybe catch some problems before they got so sick."

Now Brian has transitioned from Providence's ICU to an independently owned health clinic in Anchorage to focus on primary care and has his sights set on a Doctor of Nursing Practice program to start in the fall. "I love teaching and yet still have so much to learn; I learn something new daily," he says. His ultimate goals: to be part owner of a small clinic and to be on faculty in UAA's nursing program. He also wants to help more men discover what a wonderful career nursing can be.

And don't worry. He's not expecting to be bored with primary care, either.

"I think it's actually more stressful here," Brian laughs. "In critical care, I had control of almost everything. Here you're seeing somebody for hypertension, you're taking their word that they're going to take the medicine you've prescribed, and they walk out the door. You have no control. And you have a much wider range of issues to deal with. In one week, I had a four-week-old patient and then a 102-year-old the next day. Family practice is hard; it can be really intimidating."

Luckily, he has a great network of support between his boss and clinic-owner Jyll Green (a UAA nursing alumna), colleague Cheryl Bays-Goodman and many other NPs throughout Anchorage who were fellow classmates or alums. He also appreciates the support of local physicians who are receptive to nurse practitioners providing primary care in the community. He loves the diversity he sees in the Anchorage population that comes through his doors for care, and he loves it when he gets to speak Spanish. For outlets from the stresses of his job, he turns to his passions of martial arts, his two Japanese mastiffs and enjoying the outdoors with his wife of six years, Casey.

"I started training in martial arts when I was in the 4th grade, just finding different schools and clubs as we moved around," he says. His highest ranking is 3rd degree in Hapkido, and it was his merging interests of martial arts and preventative health care that prompted him to pursue teaching self-defense classes in his spare time for the last seven years. "I believe being a nurse made me a better martial artist and being a martial artist made me a better nurse." He has also had the opportunity in the past to teach as an adjunct clinical professor for UAA, and remembers his time here as a student fondly.

"The nursing degree programs at UAA were so convenient in helping me advance my career in health care," Brian says. "My professors were very pro-education and really wanted to see me go on further, and I like that. And my preceptors during the M.S.N. program were wonderful mentors and are still available for collaboration."

Brian also mentions that he was really lucky to have never had to take out any student loans. Working while going to school, he stresses that more students should look into the tuition management services at UAA that allows them to set up a monthly payment plan rather than paying a full semester's tuition up front.

So his parting advice: Avoid loan debt with monthly tuition payments and wear your ear protection! He promises neither will take the excitement out of either higher education or the shooting range.

B.B.A. Accounting '89
Hometown: Ajmer, India
Fun fact: Participated once in a whale hunt in Barrow

In 1986 Ragu and Gita Bhargava left India for the U.S., a young married couple bound for a great adventure in a new land. By the time they got to Anchorage, they had just $5 in their pockets. Today they are co-founders of their own outsourced finance and accounting firm, Global Upside Inc., which does business in over 30 countries. Part of their success is what they learned and experienced at UAA.

Although Ragu already had a bachelor's degree in science from the University of Rajasthan, India, he believed in the importance of a U.S. education and the great opportunities UAA could give him. As Ragu began taking his first accounting classes at UAA, he and Gita were making the transition from their lives in India to their new lives in Alaska. Some of the everyday changes were difficult, like the drastic change in weather, but the culture shock was made a little bit easier by the warmth, openness and acceptance of the Alaskans they met, who quickly became a great, supportive group of friends.

During their first year in Anchorage, their new friends introduced them to the life and culture of Alaska and in return, Ragu and Gita introduced them to some of their culture from India. A highlight of these experiences was a Diwali party. Diwali, the Hindu festival of lights, is one of the biggest holidays of the year, where friends and families celebrate together; there is always an exchange of sweets but meat and alcohol are never served. When Ragu and Gita hosted their first Diwali party for their new friends in Alaska, many did not realize that there would be no meat or alcohol at the party and were a bit apprehensive when they arrived at a college party without either one. But in no time they forgot the lack of both and had a fantastic time. "Our apartment was completely packed," Gita recalled. "It was standing room only! Everyone had a great time!"

Through the support of friends and professors, Ragu was able to proudly graduate from UAA with his bachelor's degree in business administration in three years. Ragu's hard work and achievement at UAA enabled him to win an internship with Deloitte & Touche, one of the global giants of the audit and accounting world. The internship gave Ragu opportunities and a lot of experience he couldn't get anywhere other than in Alaska.

One of these opportunities, unique to Alaska, was auditing the accounts of the Alaska Native Inuit regional and village corporations in Barrow. Through these audits Ragu was able to gain valuable accounting experience. Ragu was also able to experience the skill and strong community of the Barrow Inuit during their yearly whale hunt, an event which once seen is never forgotten. One memorable moment was his first taste of "Eskimo ice cream," which he was surprised to learn is a dish made from whale blubber.

After graduation from UAA, Ragu continued to work with Deloitte in Alaska. Ragu and Gita took full advantage of the warm summer months and beautiful Alaska wilderness to go camping almost every weekend. "We couldn't get enough of the beautiful landscape," Ragu recalled. Ragu and Gita stayed in Alaska for almost nine years before moving to Los Altos in the heart of California's Silicon Valley.

In California Ragu developed his auditing and accounting skills, rising to the position of audit senior manager at Deloitte. In 1999 he and Gita co-founded Global Upside as a finance and accounting outsourcing firm dedicated to providing cost-effective finance functions from a team of experienced accountants in India. While Gita played a major role in running the company, Ragu took a behind-the-scenes role as an adviser. In 1999 Ragu joined a Silicon Valley software company, NetIQ as corporate controller. His responsibilities included all of the company's accounting functions as well as managing several major acquisitions. He went on to serve as chief financial officer at ActivIdentity, a leader in security software and identity management. In 2008 Ragu decided to leave the large corporate world to take over as CEO of Global Upside (GU). His vision was to develop a specialty in outsourcing that would offer the quality, responsiveness and customer service that American companies expect.

Four years later, Ragu's vision has been realized. Under his leadership, GU has grown into a multimillion dollar business with large and small clients across the globe. Ragu and Gita lead a phenomenal team of skilled professionals and GU's reputation continues to grow.

Ragu attributes much of his success as a businessman, and a family man, to the valuable education he received at UAA: "My education at UAA taught me to think for myself. My professors taught me to understand and solve problems instead of just memorizing answers from books. This has helped me think outside of the box and solve issues I encounter in business. This thinking also allows me to help my clients and we are a trusted partner for most of them. My UAA education has made me a better businessman."

Although Ragu and Gita love living in the U.S., they proudly keep their Indian culture alive. They have three children, ages 16 to 21, and all have grown up in California, but with a keen awareness of their roots. The family celebrates Diwali every year and Gita cooks a wide range of Indian food. Ragu and Gita are proud of their culture and make sure that their three children know their heritage and are proud of it as well. "We teach our children about their heritage because if you are comfortable with your roots and where you come from then it is easier to move forward into new places and cultures," says Ragu.

"We raise our children to know their heritage so that they can go anywhere and be strong," Gita adds. "If you have strong roots and morals you will have a strong future."

For more information, please contact Global Upside Marketing Assistant Sarah Lytle at sarah.lytle@globalupside.com.

Retired physicians and career-long Alaskans Cindy and Dave Schraer have seized opportunities in the last few years to enroll in classes not typically offered in a medical school education. Russian. Art. Geology. Ceramics. "We both come from a background of heavily left-brained activity in the medical field," says Dave, who's been enjoying some right-brain indulgence in art and ceramics classes and bringing some of it home. "We've got some sculptures and we use some of the pottery. And we've got some watercolors on the walls," he says. Cindy credits their daughter with the framing and display of all Dave's art and sculptures and says they tracked the slow arrival of spring this year as the snow melted to reveal Dave's outdoor sculptures.

Cindy's interests don't have the same displayable projects (unless she wants to think about framing some of her academic papers), but geology classes have led her to a greater understanding of some of her fossils. However, the first classes she pursued at UAA were Russian classes. As a female in med school during an era where it wasn't uncommon to be told she didn't belong in the business and would have to work harder than anyone to succeed and overcome that "estrogenic fog," Cindy says, "I didn't really have a chance to cover anything more than the bare basics in humanities and arts, so coming into the Russian program to study literature and social conditions and history and to do that in the language it was written in was a really wonderful experience." And for the last few years she's followed her passion for Earth history and paleontology into a series of geology classes. "I took classes to help me understand my fossil collection better and found the whole thing was really interesting," she says. So interesting she just may end up with a degree in it.  Perhaps they'll reserve some wall space for it next to one of Dave's watercolors.

Dave and Cindy contribute to UAA in ways that extend beyond their individual classes, as well. As scholarship donors, they enable other students to pursue their educational goals with a little less financial worry. They've also worked to share their professional knowledge by developing community health aide curriculum in diabetes education for the University of Alaska. And they're willing to share something else of great value: the wisdom they've gained being 20 to 30 years farther down the career/life path than some of their fellow students. Cindy laughs and says, "We could be the grandparents of some of our fellow students." Dave says he is inspired by students' incredible energy. "Basically, I enjoy UAA because it puts me in contact with students, who are truly a gas. And I think that I and Cindy can add something to their lives, be it only by age perspective sometimes." Cindy sees it as a reciprocal relationship, offering her time and focus and class notes in exchange for some help from students with the high tech components of classes.

Both Cindy and Dave built their medical careers in Alaska, beginning in Barrow, where they met and married. Partly responsible for recruiting Dave to work in Barrow, where she was already practicing in 1975, Cindy refers to Dave, who arrived on Jan. 3, 1976, as "my mail order husband." Two years to the day after Dave's arrival, they were married on Jan. 3 (dedicated Alaskans will note that this is Alaska Statehood Day), 1978. "We called it a frigid romance. The sun never rose on our wedding day," Dave says. Though they moved to Anchorage later that same year, health in rural Alaska continues to be a concern for them. Cindy still works in medicine on a part-time basis with the Alaska Native Tribal Health Consortium, doing epidemiological work.

Both Cindy and Dave love that UAA makes it possible for students of all ages to come together in the classroom or art studio. "I think a lot of people don't realize how accessible classes are to non-traditional college students. That's one of the things I appreciate about this university. As a little old lady, I've been able to come in and get educated in things I never had the opportunity to work in before," Cindy says. "I'm proud of UAA for having been so generous and accepting of older people." It seems the UAA community is truly the beneficiary here.

Accounting, Class of 2012
University Honors College Scholar
Hometown: San Francisco, Calif.
Fun Fact: Owns his own tutoring business

You know how some airlines have that radio channel where you can listen to air traffic control? ?I was always on that as a kid,? says 2012 senior Brian Franklin. ?I always wanted to be the one talking on that channel. I don?t remember a time when I didn?t want to be involved in aviation.?

And he literally means ?as a kid.? He was 14 when he started training for his private pilot?s license, flew his solo test on his 16th birthday, and got his license at 17, ?because those are the ages you?re allowed to do those things.?

So it?s not surprising that Brian had his sights set on a degree in aviation as he shopped around for college programs nationwide and chose UAA.

?I knew people from the Bay Area who had come up here specifically for air traffic control,? he says. ?I was eyeing aviation management, and there are a lot of opportunities here for that as well. I thought it was a lot better value to come here for the program than other schools, and all the firms that mattered to me still recruited up here.?

As soon as he was accepted, he also applied for UAA?s Honors College and has been an honors student since his freshman year.

?I think it is important to be around other students who are motivated and faculty who push you to do more than you thought you could do,? he says about making the decision to apply. ?That?s the type of environment that allows people to discover what they?re capable of doing.?

The arrangement has worked out splendidly for Brian. As he?s applied himself, professors also nudged him in directions he hadn?t originally considered, with great results. First, a good example of how he?s applied himself: A few months after beginning his freshman year, he recognized the need for a little extra cash, so he started his own tutoring business. Aside from the fact that starting your own business as a freshman in college is pretty notable, it was his relationships with his professors that took him the next step.

?I happened to take an accounting class for the aviation degree, when my professor [Professor Patrick Fort] said I wasn?t too bad at it and should maybe consider it as a major,? says Brian. ?So I switched majors from aviation to accounting and it has worked really well with growing my business.?

Frontier Tutoring went from just Brian in 2008 to a full-time business partner and 15 paid employees in 2012 that serve the Anchorage School District, college students and other non-traditional students. As he?s been earning his B.B.A. in Accounting, he?s been directly applying his classroom education to the real world.

Professor Fort later became Brian?s thesis advisor, along with Professor Kevin Dow, as Brian embarked on studying the different accounting techniques and management incentives of the various frequent flier programs among the seven major airlines in the U.S.

?I really had to go into my research with an open mind,? Brian says. ?I thought the process was going to be pretty one-dimensional as I looked at the mechanics of each accounting method, but in reality it was a lot more interesting and involved. I talked to people here at UAA who were able to point me in other directions I was able to take the paper and the final product turned out completely different, and better, than what I thought it was going to be.?

Brian also attributes his experience with undergraduate research through the University Honors College with standing out in job and grad school interviews. So much so, that Brian has been accepted into Harvard?s prestigious M.B.A. program as part of the Class of 2016.

?It?s actually a deferred admission,? he explains. ?They want me to work two more years, so I just accepted a job in the Bay Area at an airport finance consulting company. The fact that I could say I chose to do a thesis on this aviation-related topic, in both interviews, was really helpful. Plus I?ve actually learned something by doing it!?

So obviously he hasn?t left the field of aviation in the past. It?s going to be very much a part of his future and he?s excited about the possibilities. Including the possibility to return to Alaska someday.

?I like it up here a lot,? he says, including his involvement in the Accounting Club and Professor Dow?s Justice for Fraud Victims Program. ?I really tried hard in the job search process to stay here. I?d like to maybe move back here after the M.B.A.?

And in the meantime, he will continue to remain a partner in his tutoring business that serves the Anchorage Bowl and remember his time at UAA fondly. ?Had I gone to any other school, I don?t think there would have been the same environment that allowed me to start a business,? he says. ?There is a lot of untapped opportunity here that I don?t think really exists in that many other places. If you have the drive and the motivation, you can still do some very cool stuff here because it just hasn?t been done yet.?

Spoken, and played, like a true pioneer.

A.A.S. Radiologic Technology '10
Radiology Coordinator, Central Peninsula Hospital
Hometown: Kenai, Alaska
Fun Fact: Learned how to apply for financial aid from her daughter Rosa

Judy McDonald's second chance came when her husband of 20 years "fired" her. The newly single mom needed to figure out a plan B to support herself and her two kids. Scholarships at UAA gave her that second chance to get back up and embrace the next chapter of her life.

At the time of her divorce, Judy was working as a file clerk for a doctor's office, a place that inspired her to start thinking about a career in radiologic technology. "Every day I watched the lab techs at work and it piqued my interest," Judy says.

"I had no idea I could go to school," she says, "not only because I was just making ends meet, but over the years I heard over and over that I probably wasn't smart enough to succeed in college?I started to believe it."

But then some people that challenged that belief entered Judy's life. The doctor that Judy worked for was quick to recognize her talent and potential. When asked to complete radiology tasks in the office, Judy rose to the top?something that didn't go unnoticed. This positive feedback led Judy to chase that second chance of earning her college degree. She also met a lovely gentleman that encouraged her pursuit of a higher education.

With new hope, Judy started believing in herself again and enrolled in a summer algebra class to kick-start her college journey.

When it came time for her daughter Rosa to finish high school and explore college options, Judy watched intently as Rosa sought out loans and grants to help pay her way. "She taught me how to go through the process of seeking financial aid."

Judy maintained a full-time job during the course of her studies at UAA. "I couldn't have made it through without scholarships," she says. She also credits a great support system. "You need people that believe you can do it, but you have to believe in yourself first."

Judy?who lives in Kenai?was able to complete the two-year radiologic technology program mainly via distance delivery. She traveled to Anchorage for a two-week stint to complete clinical hours and also elected to do a rotation in Bethel as a bonus.

A 2010 recipient of the Second Chance Scholarship, Judy says that receiving this scholarship truly did give her a second chance. "For years I believed I was created to be a wife and mom," she says, "but when that fell through, I needed a plan B."

The Second Chance Scholarship was established by the late Margaret Krieber in 2008. Since its creation, the scholarship has changed the lives of more than 20 UAA students pursuing careers in allied health fields.

Thanks to the support of scholarships, Judy was able to earn her associate degree debt free. "I'm very fortunate and I know that," she says. "I certainly wasn't rich; it was scholarships, grants and a very tight budget that got me through."

Even after the urge to quit her first semester, Judy says she was inspired to push on. "People give this money to scholarships with the hope that someone is going to better themselves. Someone believed in me; I knew I needed to stay with the program and make a difference."

Judy took hold of her second chance and earned her Associate of Applied Science degree in radiologic technology in 2010. She now works as a radiology coordinator for Central Peninsula Hospital, where she juggles a busy schedule, keeps the hospital's radiology equipment up to par and works as an x-ray technologist.

When veteran newspaperman Pat Yack moved to Alaska, the UAA Department of Journalism and Public Communications (JPC) knew his 30+ years as a journalist would be a great asset to the program and offered him the 2009 Atwood Chair of Journalism. That first connection with UAA proved to be mutually beneficial, introducing Yack to his current boss, Alaska Public Telecommunications Inc. (APTI) president Steve Lindbeck, and securing Yack's enduring support of JPC.

The Atwood Chair of Journalism, a visiting professorship funded through an endowment, allows JPC to host a nationally recognized journalist for one semester each academic year to teach news writing and reporting and to represent the journalism profession in the community. Yack loved the opportunity he had to work with students so much during his too-brief tenure as Atwood Chair that JPC has had no trouble getting him back in the classroom nearly every term since. "I love being on campus with the students," he says. A quick check of UAA's fall 2012 schedule reveals he's signed up to teach JPC A204 Information Gathering.

Yack's continued work in the classroom is only part of his commitment to UAA. He is also an advocate for the Atwood Chair position. "I've been working to try and attract some additional interest and enthusiasm for the Atwood Chair," he says. "It's a phenomenal program." He would like to see it become a yearlong visiting professorship, which would benefit both students and the community. He's seen firsthand the mutual benefits gleaned by a community from having a strong, connected university?access to great athletics, library resources, visiting speakers and artists, to name just a few. "In some communities, there's a real gap between the gown and town, as they say, and that's unfortunate because the college benefits from the community and the community unquestionably benefits from the college." Another charge of the Atwood Chair is connecting "the gown and town" through networking with local journalists and embracing public speaking opportunities.

"I've been fortunate to live in communities that have really vibrant universities, vibrant campuses," Yack says, referring to past hometowns Dallas, Texas, Eugene, Ore., and Jacksonville, Fla. "I'm just bullish on universities and love living in university towns." So, although he's relatively new in town and a busy newcomer at that, working as the vice president of public media for APTI (the folks who bring us KSKA, APRN and KAKM), he still makes the time to foster connections with UAA. He and his wife Suzanne have offered to open their home to host a fundraiser for the Atwood Chair of Journalism endowment. The Atwood Foundation has pledged $2.4M toward the full endowment of the Atwood Chair of Journalism contingent on broad community support to raise the remaining $100K needed.

A first generation college graduate, Yack, who attended Southern Methodist University, appreciates that he had that opportunity for higher education. He says, "I've always felt it was important to give back in some way. I think people sometimes make the mistake of thinking their contribution, whether it's to the university of somewhere else, if it's not headline-making, it's not valuable. I think that's a mistake." Beyond giving to his own alma mater, he feels it's important to give back to his kids' universities and to the university in his town. "I've never expected a room to be named after me or to have some special award from the president, I just felt it was the right thing to do," he says. His philanthropic philosophy is simple: support what's important to you and your family. "That's been the reason for my involvement at UAA and my continued involvement at UAA."

B.B.A. Finance '84
Certified Management Accountant & Certified Public Accountant,
Cathleen S. Hahn CMA CPA LLC

Money makes the world go ?round, especially UAA alumna Cathleen Hahn's world. With dual professional certifications as a Certified Management Accountant (CMA) and Certified Public Accountant (CPA), Cathleen's days are filled crunching numbers.

Getting a college degree was always on the to-do list for this Anchorage native. After a temporary stint in Yakima, Wash.?where she earned her high school diploma?Cathleen moved home and enrolled in courses at UAA in 1975.

Her experience doing the books for her family's local security business led her to seek a degree in business with an emphasis on finance.

"I wanted to gain a broad financial background," says Cathleen. "Somebody has to know the numbers, how you accumulate information and transactions, deal with paperwork and tax returns, and handle compliance issues with the federal government. These kinds of things seemed to naturally fall on my desk and it was important for me to understand not only how to do all of these things, but why I was doing them."

Newly married with two young daughters, Cathleen had several balls in the air during her studies at UAA, but after nine years she managed to earn her Bachelor of Business Administration in Finance degree in 1984.

"A college education was always important for me to have, so it was all worth the effort."
Diploma in hand, Cathleen earned her CMA certification and continued working for the family business for the next 20 or so years. But after two decades, she reached the point in her professional life that she couldn't grow any further. "I needed a new challenge," she says.

Cathleen returned to UAA to take a series of three tax courses to explore her interest of the topic. "I was at a transition point in my career, but I wasn't really considering becoming a CPA," she says. A convincing professor encouraged Cathleen to apply for an internship with a local accounting firm, which she landed, and after just three months a permanent job offer was on the table.

Surrounded by accounting colleagues who were abuzz studying for the CPA exam, Cathleen?already a CMA?decided to also sit for (and passed) the intense two-day, four-part exam.

After three years at the accounting firm, Cathleen went into business for herself and started Cathleen S. Hahn CMA CPA LLC in 2001. Specializing in real estate, Cathleen works as a tax and financial advisor to individuals and small businesses.

Always one to be connected, Cathleen served as the university's student body president during her final year at UAA. "I have good memories of my time at UAA," Cathleen says. "I think UAA is a good school. Classes are small, yet diverse, and you feel like you're a part of the education process. That's important to me, to be a part of the community."

As an alumna, Cathleen remains connected with her alma mater as a leadership level donor and served for seven years on the UAA Alumni Association Board of Directors. She also currently serves on the Chancellor's Task Force on Alumni Relations.

"Having strong support from the Anchorage business community is important for UAA, and I wanted to do what I could to help improve the visibility of the university," she says.

Robert "Bob" Bulmer has spent the last 66 years watching Anchorage grow from the college-less town with three paved roads of his first visit as a boy in 1946 to a thriving city with a "very fine university." A second-generation Alaskan with family roots in Alaska's fishing industry, he sees the University of Alaska Anchorage as vital to the economy and culture of Anchorage today. "We're emerging. It's exciting because we can all get involved." Bulmer has done just that from cheering for Seawolf athletes to serving on advisory boards that spur the direction of academic programs at UAA.

A University of Washington graduate, Bulmer is eager to help UAA achieve the same status and loyalty of his alma mater and the profound effect it has had on Seattle. "It's like everyone went to the UW. Even if they didn't?they know UW because of the Huskies," he says. "We can do that for Anchorage." Bulmer believes we're on our way and that a great athletics program is one important way a school can solidify its connection with the community. "It pulls in the people, it pulls in the community and shows their interest, their support?mentally and monetarily?I think this new arena they're building?it's fabulous," he says, referencing the new Seawolf Sports Arena?slated for construction beginning in spring 2012?that will be able to hold up to 5,000 Seawolf fans (and perhaps a few brave supporters of their opponents).

In addition to his support of athletics at UAA, Bulmer stays busy championing academics through his service on the advisory board for UAA's College of Business and Public Policy and as chair of the College of Arts and Sciences advisory board, both of which are notable for achieving 100 percent giving among board members. Achieving that united philanthropic support from every board member was not difficult, Bulmer says. "They caught on to the idea. People want to be part of [the university] and have an influence." When board members from the community endorse the university, it can have a ripple effect. For instance, Bulmer says, if a legislator asks what community members are doing to help the university, "we'll say, ?we're giving?that's why we're asking you to give.'"

Bulmer is the founder and president of Alaska Executive Search, so he knows a little something about economic trends in Anchorage and throughout the state. And he knows that a great university grows and changes to meet the needs of its community. In fact, that's what he loves most about UAA, "?how dynamic it's become. Everyone seems to be moving?the students, the faculty, the administration. People are moving because it's growing and they don't have any choice but to keep moving." And he's proud of the role he has in spreading the word about all the extraordinary activity at UAA and how it is important to the community. He says, "I'm as excited about this as the UW. In fact, this is more exciting because the UW has done it, now we're doing it." What UAA's future reputation and success will hinge on, Bulmer speculates, is the storytelling: "Those outside need to know more about it. That's the university's challenge."

Bob and his wife, Anne, have made Anchorage their home since 1975, just before Anchorage Senior College officially became the four-year University of Alaska Anchorage. It's 2012 that has Bulmer really excited, though. "It's a critical mass what's happening right now. We're to the point where this is something; this is a power. It's exciting for all of us to watch it." And, if you follow Bulmer's example, to roll up your sleeves and get involved.

B.B.A. Management and Marketing '01
Hometown: Anchorage, AK
Fun Fact: Loves her "crazy early" morning spin class

It has been just over a decade since Erica Cline was on UAA's campus, busily double majoring in management and marketing, double minoring in communication and justice and competing on a regular basis as a member of the Seawolf Debate Team. And that decade hasn't gone by without her thinking about her debating experience almost on a daily basis.

"I never would have gone to law school if it wasn't for debate," says the Anchorage native and Service High School grad. "I really attribute director Steve Johnson, Shawnalee Whitney and my team to where I am today."

Where she is today is in Philadelphia, seven years into a successful career with an international law firm as a corporate defense lawyer. Her day-to-day schedule frequently consists of depositions, calls with clients from banks and other large companies, and counseling nationally known residential mortgage companies in connection with their efforts to respond to changes in the legal and regulatory landscape that has been caused by increased defaults and foreclosures over the past few years.

"When you work at a large firm defending companies, it's great intellectually, but what I really value is my pro bono work," she says. "One of my current clients is a one-year-old in foster care, and we're representing him to ensure that he is getting the care that he needs."

Originally thinking she would major in elementary education at UAA, Erica enjoys making children the focus of her pro bono work, which has also included education law supporting special education services for young students and immigration law helping kids abandoned by immigrant parents. She says she is thankful that her firm is really supportive.

And again, Erica goes back to her experience on the debate team to explain why she followed the path of a lawyer instead of an educator.

"Debate was great for learning to think on your feet and respond to stressful situations," she says. "It sounds geeky, but how to analyze and structure arguments fascinates me. I also loved following current economic and political events all over the world, as well as the performance aspect of debate."

Growing up an only child, Erica also found the debate program to be a great environment to forge friendships. "The bond between debate partners is hard to describe," she says. "We could finish each others' sentences."

Mainly she is referring to her debate partner, Quianna Clay, who was joined at the hip with Erica through their junior and senior years of college. Together they practiced for countless hours, briefed each other on issues and conducted research as a team?which paid off in many successes debating together on the national and international circuits.

"Quianna taught me that you can't take life too seriously," Erica says. "I consider myself a fairly serious person, but Quianna would always make sure I would relax and enjoy life. She had a great heart."

Quianna was tragically killed in a car accident shortly after both women were finishing their first years of law school. But Erica has never let go of that bond that grew between them. She founded and has been funding the Quianna Clay Debate Scholarship since 2008, awarding $1,000 to a Seawolf debater each year.

Memories of these past friendships and growing up in Alaska have never failed Erica. She also remembers fondly working behind the counter at her family-run service station downtown, Cline's Tesoro (still there on 4th and Gambell; her dad always reminding her that he was her first official boss). And since her parents are still in Anchorage, along with an aunt she considers a sister, Erica visits her hometown at least once a year. Recently married, she jokes that she needs to get her husband up here in the summer so he can really understand the beauty of Alaska (he has been there twice, both in the winter in freezing temperatures).

In the meantime, she loves the way of life and culture of Philadelphia, as well as her job and the firm she works for. And as Quianna's legacy lives on through the debate scholarship at UAA, so does Erica's?in every student's life that that scholarship touches. So it's sort of like she never left.

UAA has a Campus Champion (capital Cs courtesy of BP) in engineer Jenny Jemison, a UAA School of Engineering (SOE) alum and the youngest member of its advisory board. In addition to working as a reservoir engineer on BP Alaska's Milne Kuparuk reservoir, Jenny is tasked with shaping future generations of Alaska engineers by supporting local college students through scholarship programs and student club sponsorships.

As UAA's Campus Champion, Jenny lobbied BP Alaska to award $12K in scholarship dollars to SOE students in 2010. In 2011, she helped expand the program to include students from UAA's College of Business and Public Policy, the project management program and the construction management program. It's been such a success, BP has pledged to continue awarding the scholarships annually. Jenny is also the woman behind BP's title sponsorship of the American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE) Pacific Northwest conference at UAA last year where some of the 50-member student chapter of ASCE had the chance to compete in the steel bridge competition. On having UAA advocacy as part of her job description, Jenny says, "It's so rewarding. I love being able to have that face-time with students at UAA."

Jenny also knows first-hand that energizing future generations of UAA grads starts before they even think about submitting an application for admission. That's where her mentorship activities with Anchorage School District's Gifted Mentorship Program students come in. A product of the program herself, she's excited to be on the other side of the partnership now and has had a chance to act as mentor while working for BP.

Last year, she mentored South Anchorage High School student Jordan Batac and connected her with ANSEP. "She did [the junior academy] program last summer and then she got to do this kick-start program with them where she took Calculus II and III?she's a senior in high school?Calc II and III at the university!" Jenny says. "Next summer she'll be in their summer bridge program and then be an intern, possibly at BP." And the best part? "She's planning to go to UAA!"

As a UAA alum who loved her own experience, she's pleased to note a sea change in how UAA is viewed by local middle and high school students. The Society of Petroleum Engineers, of which Jenny is a member, sponsors a student tour event where they take a group of high school juniors and seniors on a tour of H2Oasis and then the SOE at UAA. "The first year I did it we had about 60 students and maybe 10 of the 60 wanted to be engineers and none of them planned to stay in Anchorage and attend UAA," Jenny says. This year, when they did a poll of their 120 participants from public and private schools across Anchorage, "probably 80 percent wanted to be engineers and half of them wanted to stay in Alaska for school at UAA or UAF, which was really awesome."

Beyond going to college in Alaska, many UAA and UAF grads are getting snapped up by Alaska employers in growth industries. "I always tell students, ?you can be a big fish in a small sea up here.' The companies here are starving for engineers and scientists and teachers, so there's a lot of opportunity for growth in your career." Jenny mentions that BP Alaska employs something like 100 UAA and UAF alums and 38 percent of their new hires are from the UAs or Alaska residents. "Everyone just wants to see Alaskans here!"