Bernice Joseph, CRCD, has been selected as the keynote speaker for the 2005 Alaska Federation of Natives Convention Oct. 17-22 in Fairbanks.

Forrest Karr has been named interim director of athletics. Karr takes over for Cory Schwartz who resigned in July.

Sheenjek Drive will reopen Aug. 26. The closure was necessary to allow for installation of a new section of utilidor to serve the Biological Research and Diagnostics Facility, which is currently under construction.

Return to Top

Mike Sfraga is the new head of the UA integrated geography program, which aims at revitalizing geography as a tool for teaching, research, innovation and entrepreneurship. Sfraga will also join UAF's geography faculty as an assistant professor.

UAF researchers successfully released a young humpback whale that became entangled in commercial crab fishing lines near Kodiak July 26. The team used three boats and special equipment in an operation that took five hours to complete.

UAF scientists participating in a month-long exploration of the deep sea under the Arctic ice pack believe they have found seven species previously unknown to science. For more information visit www.sfos.uaf.edu/news/.

Hector Douglas, IMS, is lead author of a study about the natural mosquito defense of the crested auklet published in the July issue of the Journal of Medical Entomology.

UAF researchers, along with state and federal biologists, have formed a UA program on the biology and epidemiology of avian influenza in Alaska to study migratory birds in Alaska and determine how many are infected and how strains of influenza virus jump from one species to another.

Patti Picha has been named director of Career Services. Picha has been with UAF Career Services for three years and has more than 20 years experience in higher education.

Alaska Sea Grant has published Gulf of Alaska, Biology and Oceanography, a compilation of scientific knowledge from studies of the region in the years following the 1989 Exxon Valdez oil spill. For more information visit www.uaf.edu/seagrant/.

TVC's Center for Professional Development and Continuing Education offers classes throughout the year including courses in culinary arts, applied business, computer skills and the certified public manager program. For more information visit www.tvctraining.org.

The work of Jon Runstadler, IAB, on avian influenza was in the Aug. 9 issue of the Anchorage Daily News and featured in a KUAC-FM story July 22. Hear the story at www.kuac.org.

Terry Chapin, IAB, co-authored a paper on the global consequences of land use in the July 22 issue of the journal Science.

Gary Laursen, IAB, co-authored a paper, "Wood Inhabiting Fungi in Alaska: Their Diversity, Roles, and Uses" in Alaska Park Science, Volume 4, Issue 1. Laursen's photograph of tremella lutescens is on the cover.

The first day of instruction is Sept. 1. Residence halls open and new student orientation begins Aug. 28. For more information on important academic dates visit www.uaf.edu/catalog/.

Most campus offices will be closed Sept. 5 in observance of Labor Day.

Todd Sformo, biology and wildlife graduate student, Barbara Taylor, IAB, and the Large Animal Research Station were the subjects of a Natural History New Zealand production for Animal Planet in July.

KUAC has had its most successful year of fund raising ever. Individual giving to KUAC increased 10.5 percent and corporate support has reached an all-time high.

Lincoln Saito has been named interim director of the Northwest Campus in Nome.

Brian Barnes, IAB, presented "Overwintering in the Arctic: Animal Strategies for Surviving the Long, Cold, and Dark" as part of the Marine Biological Laboratory's 2005 Friday Evening Lectures in Woods Hole, Mass. July 1.

Facilities Services is participating in the Fairbanks Northstar Borough's paper recycling program and encourages all UA employees and students to place recyclable paper in the blue paper-only wastebaskets. For more information call 6772.

Return to Top

UAF and the 101st Civil Support team from Idaho will participate in a university-wide crisis exercise on the UAF campus Aug. 18. The scenario will allow departments to practice their crisis plans. This event provides an opportunity to let the public know how they would get information in an actual emergency. Police and fire will be available to respond to 911 calls as usual. For more information visit www.uaf.edu/news/.

ARSC is hosting the High Performance Reconfigurable Computing workshop Aug. 22-24. For more information or to register contact Jenn Wagaman at 8662 or wagaman@arsc.edu.

The short course Design of High Performance Integrated Electronic Systems at the Package Level, sponsored by OEM, takes place Aug. 23-25. The course is free to UAF students, faculty and staff. For more information contact Sonja Bickford at 2013 or s.bickford@uaf.edu.

The 23rd Wakefield Fisheries Symposium, Biology, Assessment and Management of North Pacific Rockfishes, takes place Sept. 12-15 in Anchorage. For more information contact Sherri Pristash at 6701 or fyconf@uaf.edu or visit www.uaf.edu/seagrant/conferences/.

Return to Top

The Lifelong Learning Program, part of UAF Summer Sessions, received a $100,000 grant from the Bernard Osher Foundation.

UAF received honorable mention in "America's Top Ten Fly-Fishing Colleges" in Fly Rod and Reel magazine's July issue.

Matt Nolan, INE, has been awarded $950,000 from the Army Research Office's DEPSCOR program for DInSAR measurement of soil moisture; $110,000 from the National Science Foundation for EarthSLOT; and $98,000 from the National Park Service for climate and hydrology scoping in the Arctic Network of National Parklands.

Promotion and Tenure for Academic Year 2004-2005
Award of promotion and tenure is effective July 1, 2005

Return to Top

CRCD

The College of Rural Alaska has gone through a name change to become the College of Rural and Community Development (CRCD). This change stemmed from a grassroots effort by the TVC advisory council. Members of the council felt the previous name was not representative of their students and mission. The name did not reflect a community-driven education, a key component of the current strategic planning process TVC recently completed. There was also feedback from faculty and staff in Cooperative Extension Service that the name needed to be expanded to reflect their expansive outreach mission across the state. Last spring we asked faculty and staff from across the college to identify possible names that encompass and are sensitive to the combined missions of campuses and units. The College of Rural and Community Development earned the highest ranking and was approved at the June 2005 Board of Regents meeting in Fairbanks.

As a part of our community-driven educational efforts, CRCD reaches out to many parts of the state to partner with industry, school districts and local organizations. I recently attended a future teachers mentoring program funded by a federal grant to the university with partners from Nome Public Schools and the Lower Kuskokwim and Bering Straits School Districts. This program builds on the "grow our own teachers" concept. Participating schools create clubs that promote teacher education with a unique emphasis on their own needs. The program is doing an excellent job of getting students excited about becoming teachers. These partner districts are located within the boundaries of the campuses under CRCD, and we applaud their efforts to train much needed teachers.

TVC is reaching out to the military by partnering with a Fort Wainwright unit, the HHC 1-17 Infantry, to assist soldiers and their families during deployment to Iraq. TVC will be working with the unit's Family Readiness Group to identify activities that will benefit the troops and their families.

It's the wonderful partnerships like this that make CRCD a great place to work. It takes cooperative agreements and dedication by directors, staff and faculty to provide these types of unique experiences to many parts of the state.

Return to Top