JPC Alumni Award
Past honorees include Natalie Lowman, communications director of ConocoPhillips Alaska, and David Jensen, owner of David Jensen Photography. The UAA Department of Journalism and Public Communications offers a Bachelor of Arts degree and a social science general education requirement in media literacy.
Meet the 2023 Recipient of the JPC Alumni Award: Leah Boltz
The 2023 JPC Alumni Award was presented to Leah Boltz on Friday, May 5 at the annual JPC celebration, which honors graduating seniors and student work.
Leah graduated from the UAA with a Bachelor of Arts in Journalism and Public Communications in 2006. Even before graduating, she was editing and writing at the MILEPOST travel guide.
The mark of a JPC Alumni Awardee is professional and community achievement. Leah is an exemplar on both fronts. She leads marketing, branding, communications, community outreach, business development, and client services at Bettisworth North Architects and Planners Inc. In 2020, she became a partner and principal of the firm.
Leah was named a Top 40 Under 40 and is past president of Anchorage Rotary Club. She is a founding member of the Society for Marketing Professional Services Alaska Chapter and is a Certified Professional Services Marketer. In 2022, she was named a Fellow of SMPS, being one of only two communications professionals in her industry in Alaska to service in a partner role at her firm.
In 2009, Leah co-founded Parks for All, a grassroots effort to bring inclusive play to Alaska. Anchorage now has almost two dozen inclusive playgrounds. Leah is now acting in an advisory role, volunteering, advocating, fundraising to help communities in Alaska and in the United States adopt inclusive play and inclusive design. She speaks publicly about Parks for All, raising awareness and teaching young leaders to engage in their communities, innovate, and develop their personal brands. View her TEDx Talk “Power of No Fun.”