USUAA president Ryan Buchholdt selected for Kremlin Fellows program

Anchorage campus student body president Ryan Buchholdt was recently selected to travel to Russia in November as part of the Kremlin Fellows program.

Ryan is one of 15 student leaders nationwide selected to participate in this prestigious opportunity. Kremlin Fellows coordinator Cooper Henderson said, "Buchholdt's knowledge of how U.S.-Russia relations impacts Arctic policy and Alaska put him ahead of the other applicants in a very competitive pool." Ryan will join delegates from Columbia, Duke, Harvard, MIT and Stanford, to name a few.

The Russian government looks to build an open dialogue with emerging American leaders and recognizes that former presidents Richard Nixon, Ronald Reagan and Bill Clinton were all campus leaders during their college years. For that reason, the Russian government requested that students visit their country to build an understanding of its inner workings.

During the week of Nov. 13-20, Ryan will join a small delegation of leaders to experience Russian-style government and meet civic, government and student leaders. This is the second year American student leaders will travel to Russia through this program.

While at UAA, Ryan has served on the UAA Union of Students (USUAA) as a senator and assembly chair, and most recently as president. He is a friend of the Coalition of Student Leaders and has supported the group's needs-based financial aid efforts. He also serves on the University of Alaska System Governance Council.

As a student leader, Ryan has worked on successful campaigns to challenge tuition increases, to review student fees for proper and effective use, and to help increase student wages for the first time in eight years. He is on track to earn a B.B.A. degree in management this academic year.
 
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