Through research and organization, Judith Kleinfeld has worked to inform the public and academia about the problems facing boys today.

From discussing the gender gap in higher education in Alaska, to serving as director for The Boys Project, Kleinfled, a professor of sociology, has been a leading voice on campus for gender issues.

While also heading the Northern Studies program here, Kleinfeld has written extensively on issues such as the education of girls and culturally diverse children, as well as the gap in performance between the genders.

In a recent article, Kleinfeld brought attention to the gap in enrollment rates for Alaska Native males and females.

"The gender gap in the University of Alaska system exists for all students," Kleinfeld wrote, "but is far more extreme for Alaskan Native males, especially rural males."

She noted that this trend is by no means unique to Alaska Natives.

The gap of postsecondary enrollment rates between males and females is growing nationwide. Kleinfeld noted that in 2000, white women earned 131 bachelor's degrees for every 100 men earned.

This is especially true of minority groups, where 192 bachelor's degrees are awarded to black females for every 100 awarded to black males.

Alaska Native males exhibit "the most extreme gender gap of any minority group in the United States," Kleinfeld wrote, with males earning less than one-third of the bachelor's degrees awarded to Alaska Natives.

To explain the statistics, Kleinfeld said "school success and employment in occupations that require academic credentials are inconsistent with the traditional, prestigious male role as independent hunter and provider."

Kleinfeld, in her article, pointed out that the skills and tasks associated with the traditional male role do not emphasize the relevance of higher education.

She said that as "the transition from a mixed wage economy is making hunting skills less vital to sheer survival, communication and quantitative skills are becoming more essential to the flourishing of indigenous communities."

"The educational attainment of indigenous people, both male and female, is crucial," Kleinfeld wrote. "But educational programs, particularly at the postsecondary level, are poorly adapted to the traditional cultural roles of Alaska Native males."

Kleinfeld said "educational programs that reinforce traditional male roles and virtues, such as physical prowess, independence of action and the performance of functions of obvious value to the family and community will offer a far higher probability of success for many young Alaskan Native men than traditional, individualistic college programs."

As an example of such a program, Kleinfeld discusses the new Construction Trades Technology program.

The CTT program is intended to create programs more attractive to Alaska Native men and to develop a skilled workforce in rural villages.

The students undertake projects that directly benefit their communities, such as building equipment sheds.

While only a pilot program, the CTT program was successful in attracting a high Alaska Native male enrollment. Of the 217 students enrolled in 2004, 85 percent were Alaska Native males, primarily between age 18 and 29.

"The education program itself makes young men feel that they are doing something useful and are needed by their community: it shows young men in the role of hard workers," Kleinfeld said. She reported that the program connects students because it is relevant and engaging.

Kleinfeld addresses similar issues that affect young men nationwide in The Boys Project.

The Web site says The Boys Project's mission is "to help young males develop their capabilities and reach the potential that their families and teachers know they have."

In what she calls the "boy crisis," Kleinfeld says that "we are losing young boys to a sense of failure that comes from schooling poorly adapted to their needs."

The Web site for The Boys Project has a plethora of statistics to substantiate this point. For instance, according to the site, 335 boys are expelled from public schools for every 100 girls.

To overcome the boy crisis, the The Boys Project proposes three main points concerning providing models that have worked elsewhere, educating the public about the "crisis," and developing initiatives to further research and legislation.