October 2012
October 2012
Dear UAA Community,
One of the great things about being Chancellor is having the opportunity to see so much of what is happening on campus and those who are making it happen. The leadership among students, faculty and staff is inspiring. At this level of activity—classes, events, speakers, celebrations, resource fairs, trainings, the list goes on and on—everyone is working at warp speed.
There were hard choices this year among the nominees for the Chancellor's
Awards in all categories. Thank you to all those who nominated people for recognition
and to all those nominated.
Chancellor's Award winners are:
- Natasa Masanovic - Excellence in Diversity
- Hilary Davies - Excellence in Sustainability
- Gabriel Garcia - Service to Community
- Amy Seamans - Service to Community
- Lance Howe - Service to Students
- Rachel Gehri - Service to Students
- Anissa Hauser - Staff Excellence
- Jo-Ann Mapson - Excellence in Research & Creative Activity
- Larry Foster - Excellence in Teaching
- Environmental Health and Safety Team - Small Team Collaboration
- UAA Snow Team - Large Team Collaboration
For the fourth consecutive year, UAA was designated a "Military Friendly
School" by Victory Media, the premier media entity for military personnel transitioning
into civilian life, honoring the top 15 percent of colleges, universities and trade
schools supporting military and veteran student success.
Over 100 trees were blown or down throughout the Anchorage campus due to
the windstorm in early September. University Police Department, Housing and Facilities
crews removed downed trees and debris and brought the Anchorage campus back on line
efficiently and safely. Great job!
Event Notes:
The sold out third annual Green and Gold Gala raised funds for scholarships
and honored UAA alumni: Carol Comeau, Roald Helgesen and Candice McDonald.
The 20th annual Celebrity Chef Invitational was a rousing success featuring
celebrity chef Kirsten Dixon and raising more than $50,000 in scholarships for the Culinary and Hospitality Program,
celebrating its 40th anniversary this year.
Innovation, research and commercialization note:
In August, Vice Provost for Research and Dean of the Graduate School Dr. Helena Wisniewski submitted an application, as the president of Seawolf Holdings, to the 49th State Angel Fund for a $1.5M equity investment in Seawolf Venture Fund LP. In July the UA Board of Regents unanimously approved UAA's formation of an agile business infrastructure to commercialize technology based on faculty and student research at UAA. This infrastructure includes Seawolf Holdings LLC and a for profit private equity fund—Seawolf Venture Funds. The Board of Regents approved the Board of Directors for Seawolf Holdings LLC at their recent meeting in Juneau.
Faculty and staff notes:
Governor Parnell appointed Dr. Susan Kaplan, administrative dean for the College of Health, to the Governor's Council on Disabilities and Special Education.
Andre Rosay, Justice Center director, was awarded a Visiting Executive Research Fellowship with the National Institute of Justice. Dr. Rosay is the first Alaskan to be awarded this type of fellowship. He is primarily working on analyzing a national victimization survey of American Indians and Alaska Natives.
Dr. Brad Myrstol, assistant professor of justice, was appointed director of the Alaska Justice Statistical Analysis Center in September.
Dr. David Wartinbee, Kenai River Campus professor of biology, was interviewed by National Geographic TV programs about the life cycle and critical economic and cultural value of Kenai River salmon.
E-Learning modules for developmental math and developmental English developed by Kenai Peninsula Campus (KPC) faculty will become part of Carnegie Mellon University's Open Learning Initiative (OLI). KPC's Val Bienieki (instructional designer) and Clair Kochis (math faculty) will attend the OLI Developer's Workshop at Carnegie Mellon in October.
Dr. Sudarsan Rangarajan's book Critical Essays on Michel Butor's L'Emploi du temps will be published by Peter Lang Publishers, New York in 2012. Dr. Rangarajan is associate professor of French and coordinator of the French program.
Advising Note:
Faculty alerts are being offered this fall warning of students falling behind for all 100 level Anchorage campus courses. Workshops on study skills, career clusters, safety, making degree plans and protecting GPA, will occur throughout the year.
Newly reconfigured space for UAA's Military and Veteran Student Resource Center is on the first floor of the Student Union.
Development notes:
A 2012 Cadillac SRX and 2008 GMC Acadia are the newest additions to the
Community and Technical College's automotive technology program courtesy of General
Motors Co. The Detroit Three automaker contributed the vehicles with a combined retail
value of more than $70,000 to bolster hands-on learning opportunities for students
enrolled in the GM Automotive Service Educational Program.
Find out more.
Joe and Carolyn Floyd established the Joe and Carolyn Floyd Kodiak Scholarship. Carolyn Floyd was instrumental in starting Kodiak Community College and served as its first president from 1969-1987.
Alaska Native Science and Engineering Program (ANSEP) was awarded a $1.25M National Science Foundation Grant which will fund the Louis Stokes Alliances for Minority Participation Alaska Alliance. The Alliance is the B.S. undergraduate portion of ANSEP's comprehensive program for students in middle school through college and beyond. There are currently 1,000 ANSEP students and alumni.
Construction notes:
Sports Arena Phase I site work is currently underway including site layout,
foundation excavation and utilities installation. Foundation and walls for the spaces
outside of the bowl are being formed.
Watch the progress on the new web cam now installed on site.
Grants and Award notes:
UAA received a $504,968 Alaska Native Education Equity Program grant from the U.S. Department of Education to improve opportunities and education for Alaska Native students.
Kodiak and the WICHE group—community colleges from Montana, Wyoming, Colorado, Alaska and Idaho—received a grant to work with online labs in health care classes.
UAA's new Retail Management Certificate program in partnership with the Western Association of Food Chains retail grocery industry organization and western region community college partners received a $1.16M award thanks to the combined efforts of the CTC and College of Business and Public Policy team that worked on the grant. The grant supports workforce development for the retail grocery industry which includes three of the top four largest private-sector employers in Alaska.Â
Keep charging and stay safe!
Tom Case