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University of Alaska Fairbanks

Coordinates: 64°51′32″N 147°50′08″W / 64.85889°N 147.83556°W / 64.85889; -147.83556
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University of Alaska Fairbanks
MottoNaturally Inspiring
TypePublic
Flagship
Sea-grant
Sun-grant
Land-grant
Space-grant
Established1917
Endowment$143.7 million[1]
ChancellorMike Powers (interim)
Academic staff
688
Students10,216
Undergraduates9,007
Postgraduates1,207
Location
Fairbanks, Alaska
,
U.S.

64°51′32″N 147°50′08″W / 64.85889°N 147.83556°W / 64.85889; -147.83556
ColorsBlue & Gold
   
AffiliationsUArctic
MascotNanook
Websitewww.uaf.edu
File:University of Alaska Fairbanks logo.png

The University of Alaska Fairbanks (UAF) is a public research university in Fairbanks, Alaska, United States. It is a flagship campus of the University of Alaska System. UAF is a land-grant, sea-grant, and space-grant institution, and it also participates in the sun-grant program through Oregon State University. UAF was established in 1917 and opened for classes in 1922. UAF was originally named Alaska Agricultural College and School of Mines and later as the University of Alaska from 1925 to 1975.

UAF is home to seven major research units: the Agricultural and Forestry Experiment Station; the Geophysical Institute, which operates the Poker Flat Research Range; the International Arctic Research Center; the Arctic Region Supercomputing Center; the Institute of Arctic Biology; the Institute of Marine Science; and the Institute of Northern Engineering. Located just 200 miles south of the Arctic Circle, the Fairbanks campus' unique location is situated favorably for arctic and northern research. The campus' several lines of research are renowned worldwide, most notably arctic biology, arctic engineering, geophysics, supercomputing and aboriginal studies. The University of Alaska Museum of the North is also on the Fairbanks campus.

In addition to the Fairbanks campus, UAF encompasses seven rural and urban campuses: Bristol Bay Campus in Dillingham; Chukchi Campus in Kotzebue; Interior-Aleutians Campus, which covers both the Aleutian Islands and the Interior; Kuskokwim Campus in Bethel; Northwest Campus in Nome; and the UAF Community and Technical College in Fairbanks, UAF's community college arm. Fairbanks is also the home of the eLearning and Distance Education, an independent learning and distance delivery program.

In fall 2013, UAF enrolled 10,214 students. Of those students, 59.3 percent were female and 40.7 percent were male; 88 percent were undergraduates, and 12 percent were graduate students. As of May 2013, 1,288 students had graduated during the immediately preceding summer, fall and spring semesters.[2]

History

Founding

Signers' Hall

The University of Alaska Fairbanks (UAF) was established in 1917 as the Alaska Agricultural College and School of Mines, but its origins lie in the creation of a federal agricultural experiment station in Fairbanks in 1906.[3] The station set the tone for the strongly research-oriented university that developed later.[4]

In the spring of 1915, the U.S. Congress approved legislation that reserved about 2,250 acres of land for a campus around the research station. It also allowed the federal government to give the college land that had been surveyed and unclaimed in the Tanana Valley; the proceeds from the sale and development were supposed to help fund the operation of the college. However, because most of the land in Tanana Valley remained unsurveyed for years, the college only received 12,000 acres. In 1929, Congress attempted to remedy the situation by granting the college an additional 100,000 acres anywhere in Alaska, but those rights were extinguished in 1959 when Alaska became a state.[5]

Four months after Congress approved the legislation for the campus land in 1915, a cornerstone for the college was laid by Territorial Delegate James Wickersham on a bluff overlooking the lower Chena River valley. The ridge, which the indigenous Athabaskan people called Troth Yeddha', soon became known as College Hill. Charles E. Bunnell was appointed the university’s chief executive and served the university for 28 years. The new institution had its first opening day on September 18, 1922 and offered 16 different courses to a student body of six (at a ratio of one faculty member per student). In 1923, the first commencement produced one graduate, John Sexton Shanly.[6]

In 1935, the Alaska Legislature passed a bill that officially changed the name of the college to the University of Alaska. When William R. Wood became the university’s president in 1960, he divided the academic departments of the university into six select colleges: Arts and Letters; Behavioral Sciences and Education; Biological Sciences and Renewable Resources; Business, Economics, and Government; Earth Sciences and Mineral Industry; and Mathematics, Physical Sciences, and Engineering. From that point on, the both the university’s student population and research mission grew tremendously. Then, with the appointment of Chancellor Howard A. Cutler in 1975, the University of Alaska became the University of Alaska Fairbanks; it was, and still is, the primary research unit of the statewide university system.[7]

The two other primary UA institutions are the University of Alaska Anchorage and the University of Alaska Southeast in Juneau.

Significant events

The Alaska Constitutional Convention was held in the freshly constructed Student Union Building on the Fairbanks campus from November 1955 to February 1956. While the convention progressed, the building became known as Constitution Hall, where the 55 delegates drafted the legal foundation of the 49th state. The campus’ old library and gymnasium was renamed Signers’ Hall after the Alaska Constitution was signed there in February 1956.[8]

Academics

Academic rankings
National
Forbes[9]414
U.S. News & World Report[10]NR
Washington Monthly[11]248
Global
ARWU[12]401-500
THE[13]301-350

Schools and colleges

UAF has nine academic schools and colleges:

  • College of Engineering and Mines (CEM)
  • College of Liberal Arts (CLA)
  • College of Natural Science and Mathematics (CNSM)
  • College of Rural and Community Development (CRCD)
  • Graduate School
  • School of Education
  • School of Fisheries and Ocean Sciences (SFOS)
  • School of Management (SOM)
  • School of Natural Resources and Extension (SNRE)

There are 190 different degree and certificate programs available in more than 120 disciplines.

Libraries

Research units

UAF is Alaska's primary research university, conducting more than 90 percent of UA system research. Research activities are organized into several institutes and centers:

Student life

Housing

UAF has several student residence halls on both lower and middle campus. Housing is offered year-round. All halls are smoke-free. Each hall has a kitchen, laundry facility, exterior door hall access system and maintenance services. The halls vary from each other slightly to suit different preferences of the student population. Additional housing locations on campus are only available to graduates, families, employees and non-traditional students.[16]

Representation

The Associated Students of the University of Alaska Fairbanks (ASUAF) is the representative group for the students attending UAF.

Each student enrolled in three or more in-person credit-hours pays a $42 student government fee for the fall and spring semesters; this money funds ASUAF. The income is divided among the student government, KSUA Radio, the concert board and a student-run newspaper called The Sun Star.

ASUAF holds general elections every November and April. As per the ASUAF Constitution, there is a president, a vice president and no more than 14 senators, all of whom must be in good academic standing (2.0+ CGPA). Senators, the president and the vice president have terms of one full academic year. The Senate meets at 4 p.m. every Sunday during the fall and spring semesters.[17]

Athletics

Main article: Alaska Nanooks
Alaska vs. Air Force ice hockey game

University of Alaska Fairbanks sports teams are the Alaska Nanooks, with the word Nanook derived from the Inupiaq word for "polar bear." Though often known as UAF within the state, the university prefers to be called simply "Alaska" for athletics purposes. The school colors are blue and gold.

The Alaska Nanooks compete at the NCAA Division I level in hockey as a member of the Western Collegiate Hockey Association. The Nanooks play home games at the 4,500-seat Carlson Center, located in downtown Fairbanks. The Alaska Nanooks also have a Division I rifle team which has won 10 NCAA National Rifle Championships (1994, 1999–2004, 2006–2008). The rifle team is a member of the Patriot Rifle Conference. The men's and women's basketball, cross country running, and women's volleyball teams are Division II members of the Great Northwest Athletic Conference, while the women's swim team is a member of the Pacific Collegiate Swimming Conference (PCSC) and the men's and women's Nordic skiing teams are members of the Central Collegiate Ski Association (CCSA). The men's basketball team, women's basketball team, and women's volleyball team play home games in the 1,622-seat Patty Center. Due to its isolation from the Lower 48 and the lack of a dome to protect against the harsh elements, Alaska does not have a football program, as is true for all three branches of the University of Alaska.

The Nanook hockey team has gained fame with the increased popularity of their introduction videos, which feature a mascot known nationally as "Hockeybear," who engages in over-the-top antics such as destroying planets, moons, galaxies and even rival cities such as Anchorage or Columbus, OH. Hockeybear then ends his destruction when he arrives at the Carlson Center, usually entering through the roof after tearing off a large section. Kenny Loggins' "Danger Zone" is featured prominently.

Since the UAF athletics program was operating at a financial deficit, a new student fee was initiated in 2008. This fee charges UAF students $8 per credit hour they are enrolled in, up to a maximum of $96 per semester. The fee grants students free admission to select UAF athletic events. Effective 2014, the fee increased to $10 per credit hour, up to a maximum of $120 per semester.

In fiscal year 2010, the department was able to meet financial obligations without additional year-end funding for the first time.

The department has increased scholarships for women by 95 percent since 2005, and was recognized by the Chronicle of Higher Education for Title IX compliance in an article titled "Turnaround Stories."

Publishing

There are several book publishers at UAF, including the University of Alaska Press, the Alaska Native Language Center, Alaska Sea Grant, the University of Alaska Museum of the North, Cooperative Extension Service, and the Alaska Native Knowledge Network. The University of Alaska Foundation also publishes books.

Magazines include:

The student newspaper is titled The Sun Star,[24] formed after a merger of The Polar Star, an independent student paper, and the The Northern Sun, the journalism department's student newspaper.

Arts

The Fine Arts Complex hosts the Charles Davis Concert Hall, the Lee H. Salisbury Theatre and the Eva McGowan Music Room. The building is also home to the UAF Art Gallery, which is used for student art shows, thesis shows and faculty shows. The Art Department offers MFA, BFA, and BA degree programs in painting, photography, Native art and a variety of other artistic disciplines.

Notable faculty and alumni

See also

References

  1. ^ http://www.uaf.edu/pair/factsheet/Enrollment-Fact-Sheet.pdf
  2. ^ "UAF Facts and Figures - Facts". Retrieved 3 July 2015.
  3. ^ Catalogue of the Public Documents of the Fifty-ninth Congress and Other Departments of the Government of the United States for the Period from July 1, 1905, to June 30, 1907. Vol. 112, p. 1364.http://books.google.com/books?id=LB0oAAAAYAAJ&source=gbs_navlinks_s
  4. ^ Davis, Neil (1992, p. 39) The College Hill Chronicles: how the University of Alaska came of Age. Fairbanks, Alaska: University of Alaska Foundation.
  5. ^ Cole, Terrence (1994, p. 6) The Cornerstone on College Hill: an Illustrated History of the University of Alaska Fairbanks. Fairbanks, Alaska: University of Alaska Press.
  6. ^ Cole, Terrence (1994, p. 7, 37 - 40) The Cornerstone on College Hill: an Illustrated History of the University of Alaska Fairbanks. Fairbanks, Alaska: University of Alaska Press
  7. ^ Cole, Terrence (1994, p. 55, 206 - 208) The Cornerstone on College Hill: an Illustrated History of the University of Alaska Fairbanks. Fairbanks, Alaska: University of Alaska Press.
  8. ^ Cole, Terrence (1994, p. 152 - 154) The Cornerstone on College Hill: an Illustrated History of the University of Alaska Fairbanks. Fairbanks, Alaska: University of Alaska Press.
  9. ^ "America's Top Colleges 2024". Forbes. September 6, 2024. Retrieved September 10, 2024.
  10. ^ "2024-2025 Best National Universities Rankings". U.S. News & World Report. September 23, 2024. Retrieved November 22, 2024.
  11. ^ "2024 National University Rankings". Washington Monthly. August 25, 2024. Retrieved August 29, 2024.
  12. ^ "2024 Academic Ranking of World Universities". ShanghaiRanking Consultancy. August 15, 2024. Retrieved August 21, 2024.
  13. ^ "World University Rankings 2024". Times Higher Education. September 27, 2023. Retrieved August 9, 2024.
  14. ^ "Primary Source Material". Retrieved 3 July 2015.
  15. ^ http://library.uaf.edu/120-biosciences-library
  16. ^ "Residence Life Home - University of Alaska Fairbanks". Retrieved 3 July 2015.
  17. ^ "ASUAF". ASUAF Student Government. Retrieved 3 July 2015.
  18. ^ "UAF Cornerstone news and informationAurora spring 2015". UAF Cornerstone news and information. Retrieved 3 July 2015.
  19. ^ "University of Alaska Fairbanks Research". Retrieved 3 July 2015.
  20. ^ "Home - School of Natural Resources and Extension". Retrieved 3 July 2015.
  21. ^ Challenges official site
  22. ^ Ice Box official site
  23. ^ "permafrost - Department of English". Retrieved 3 July 2015.
  24. ^ "UAF Sun Star - University of Alaska Fairbanks". Retrieved 3 July 2015.
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