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Last week, the U.S. Supreme Court issued two highly-anticipated rulings that have
impacts on higher education. In the first case, the Court determined the Biden Administration
lacked legal authority to provide student loan debt relief to certain borrowers. And
in the second case, the Court ruled that use of race as a factor in college admissions
(commonly known as Affirmative Action) is unconstitutional.
Student Debt Relief
UAA, UAF, and UAS are consistently ranked as some of the most affordable public universities
in the United States. Many students attending UA also have the opportunity to access
non-loan financial aid - including the Alaska Performance Scholarship, UA Scholars
Program, Pell Grants, and other tuition assistance programs.
Affordability and accessibility are also priorities of President Pitney and the Board
of Regents. Goals and Measures established by the President and Board include reducing
the percentage of students graduating with debt, lowering the average debt of graduating
students, and increasing the percentage of students who receive non-loan financial
aid. As an institution, we’ll continue to support and promote efforts systemwide that
empower students for long-term success.
Affirmative Action
For now, we don’t anticipate the Court’s decision on affirmative action will have
a significant impact on admission processes, although UA Leadership is still reviewing
the ruling.
UAA, UAF, and UAS are a little different than many universities, in that their missions
include what would, in most systems, be community colleges. As a result, admission
to UA is open to anyone who meets the minimum academic requirements of the university
to which one applies, and race is not a factor in whether a student is admitted.
Contact: Jonathon Taylor
As of July 1, Bridget Weiss has begun working as the new liaison for the Alaska College
of Education Consortium (ACEC).
As the Liaison for ACEC, Bridget will be working directly with each of the three schools
of education. She’ll support each of the Universities in their programmatic efforts,
and help foster partnerships and coordination statewide to meet community needs.
Bridget holds a Master’s in Mathematics from Eastern Washington University, and a
Doctorate in Educational Leadership from Washington State University. Her work has
been in districts as small as 1,800 students, and as large as 29,000. She’s also the
current chair of the Alaska Superintendents Association.
Bridget said she looks forward to bringing her experience to ACEC to work collaboratively
across the state with districts, and help each of our universities’ academic plans
for teacher education programs thrive based on their institutional strengths and regional
demand.
Contact: Jonathon Taylor
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