Healthy Aging laB
Everyone living in the Circumpolar North should have the opportunity to live a long and healthy life. However, we live in an environment that can be challenging as we get older. The physical environment may be difficult to navigate (extreme weather, changing climate, high costs of living, etc) but it is important to remember that the social environment also changes for us as we age. As more adults are choosing to age-in-place and retire at home here in Alaska, we are noticing real gaps in our knowledge about what healthy aging means to our elders and how we can achieve it in our Arctic environment.
The Healthy Aging Lab at UAA works to understand the shifting sociocultural landscape for aging adults and identify service needs to facilitate healthy aging-in-place. We do this in a variety of ways, from Community-Based Participatory Research (CBPR) projects, to community-engaged courses in health sciences, to individual service-learning projects—our work aims to benefit not only the student (and future geriatric workforce), but the senior community as well.
FEATURED PROJECTS
NEWS & Stories
School of Social Work Assistant Professor Amana Mbise and ISER Research Assistant Professor Nathan West are exploring the relationships that Black barbershops play in men's health. Their community-based research prioritizes the lived experiences of the men they talk to, and is revealing how barbershops function not just as grooming spaces, but as social and cultural hubs.
Dacia Davis, a clinical assistant professor in the School of Social Work and a graduate of UAA's MSW program, finds inspiration in teaching and community.
MiLee Yu is a graduate of the University of Alaska Anchorage’s Bachelor of Social Work (BSW) program, and is currently pursuing a Master of Social Work (MSW) degree. In September 2025, MiLee was awarded the BSW Student of the Year award at the Biennial National Association of Social Workers (NASW) Alaska Chapter Conference.
The CAFE Oh Wow (COW) Awards are put on by the Center for Advancing Faculty Excellence (CAFE) and honors faculty who show excellence in teaching, research/creative activity, mentorship, and more.
MSW student Keyshon China is dedicated to serving youth and underserved communities, gaining hands-on experience through UAA's School of Social Work and various extracurricular organizations.
The UAA Healthy Aging Research Laboratory is partially supported by an Institutional Development Award (IDeA) from the National Institute of General Medical Sciences of the National Institutes of Health (NIH) under grant number 2P20GM103395. The content is solely the responsibility of the authors and does not necessarily reflect the official views of Alaska INBRE.
Upcoming Events
Contact Us:
Associate Professor Britteny Howell
Phone: (907) 786-6565
Email: bmhowell2@alaska.edu
UAA Professional Studies Building
2533 Providence Dr., Suite 204
Anchorage, AK 99508
Mailing Address:
UAA Healthy Aging Lab
3211 Providence Dr., PSB 206B
Anchorage, AK 99508
