SHORT TAKES

Student Leaders Selected For Student Ambassador Program

For most college students, giving campus tours at 30 degrees below zero and talking with high school juniors and seniors nationwide about college experiences isn’t a part of a typical semester– unless they are involved with the UAF Student Ambassador Program. The program, which includes some of the top student leaders on campus, was established nine years ago to enhance recruitment efforts at UAF.

Ten new ambassadors were selected this spring from a pool of international applicants attending UAF. Among them are resident hall assistants and student government members. One new ambassador, when he isn’t busy shooting photographs for international publications, spends his time studying biology. Another electrical engineering student volunteers around Fairbanks as a member of the Sigma Phi Epsilon fraternity.

The new class of ambassadors include Victoria Ables from Gakona, Adam Berkey from Ketchikan, Kara Dunham from Anchorage, Kara Hodgson from Aurora, Colo., Supatcharee Pitakkoshkorn from Bangkok, Thailand; Jimmy Scarborough from Chugiak; and Ryan Wilson from Prather, Calif. The group also includes Johanna Bauman, Melissa Hinojos and Solveig Pedersen from Fairbanks.

Contact: Scott McCrea, UAF Admissions, at (907) 474-6848.

Marine Scientists Tops Longevity List

When Don Button accepted a position at UAF, The Beatles held the top of the American pop charts, the city of Anchorage was recovering from the Good Friday earthquake and Lyndon Johnson beat Barry Goldwater for the U.S. presidency.

Thirty-five years later, Button still works as a professor of marine science at the Fairbanks campus, continuously researching marine issues such as nutrient limitations in oceans. Button was recognized for his years of continuous service during the Employee Service Recognition Awards Ceremony May 11, 2000. More than 220 UAF employees were recognized for their longevity, which totaled 2,810 years of service.

Contact: Professor Don Button, Marine Science, at (907) 474-7708.

Twelve Faculty Honored As Outstanding Advisers

Twelve UAF faculty members received Outstanding Adviser Awards in recognition of service to students. National standards set the award criteria with attention to demonstrated excellence and nomination by their student advisees, according to Academic Advising Center Director Wanda Martin.

This year’s outstanding advisers include: Meriam Karlsson, associate horticulture professor; Thomas Kuhn, assistant professor of biology and wildlife; Laura Milner, business administration professor; and Tom Robinson, associate accounting professor. Also recognized were assistant biology professor Doug Schamel, associate philosophy professor Norman Swazo, and Kay Thomas, Rural Student Services counselor. In addition, Madeline Schatz and Marsha Sousa with the Academic Advising Center and Cindy Hardy, Ed Husted and Jane Weber with Tanana Valley Campus were honored.

Contact: Wanda Martin, Academic Advising Center, at (907) 474- 6396.

Teaching Trio Lead Interdisciplinary Honors Society

Three leading female professors completed a year of service as officers of UAF’s Phi Kappa Phi chapter, one of the nation’s oldest and largest interdisciplinary academic honor societies. Barb Alexander, professor emerita of art history and humanities, joined biology associate professor Joan Braddock and resources management professor Carol Lewis in leading the group. Eligible Phi Kappa Phi members include students in the upper five percent of undergraduate juniors and upper 10 percent of graduating seniors. Outstanding graduate students, faculty and alumni are also eligible to join.

Contact: Carol Lewis, School of Agriculture and Land Resources Management, at (907) 474-7670.

UAF Mathletes Make Mark in National Competitions

UAF mathletes have brought home national honors once again from the annual Mathematical Contest in Modeling. Two three-student teams earned "meritorious" ratings, placing UAF in the competition’s top 15 percent. Nearly 500 teams from 231 institutions in nine countries participated. Team members include Jason Tedor, Gregg Christopher, David Benbennick, Pat Race, Eric Davis and Aaron Suring.

The MCM contest was a double-header for Christopher, who also competed in the annual Association for Computing Machinery regional programming competition with fellow UAF student Dan Stahlke. There, UAF ranked in the top five teams.

Contact: Chris Hartman, Mathematical Sciences, at (907) 474-5829.