February 2009
by Kathleen McCoy |
Dear Friends and Colleagues,
The legislature is in session and the February meeting of the Board of Regents was held in Juneau giving the Regents, President Hamilton and all of the University of 熊猫在线视频 Chancellors an opportunity to speak with legislators about our priorities this year. The USUAA Advocacy team, staff, faculty and community supporters also traveled to Juneau this month to talk with legislators about funding for the university. Thank you to all who made trips to Juneau or plan to make trips in the future. And thank you to those who are sending messages to legislators. Your voices make a difference to legislators and are the best way for us to let them know of all the wonderful things we are accomplishing at UAA.
You can find one-pagers on our legislative requests and information about UAA on the Chancellor's Web site at . We will provide updates at this site as well.
One important request involves our Integrated Sciences Building, slated to be completed in fall '09. We will need $2.1M to open and operate the building. The Governor has $1M in her budget which leaves us $1M short. The House Finance Subcommittee's version of the budget released yesterday does not include any of the ISB money.
This week I met with students at our first Chat with the Chancellor organized by Cristina
Gaina and USUAA's Student and Academic Affairs Committee. About 50 students joined
us along with Interim Vice Chancellor for Student Affairs and Dean of Students Bruce
Schultz and Glenna Schoening, UAA's new Director of Parking Services.
The questions ranged from parking to advising to sustainability. Look for the answers
to some questions we didn't have time for in this FAQ and later FAQs.
Thank you to Cristina and USUAA for sponsoring our Chat with the Chancellor. I hope that you will continue to send me your questions at chancellor@uaa.alaska.edu. I look forward to hearing from you!
Q: How will the new ConocoPhillips Integrated Sciences Building (CPISB) expand the
science department in terms of majors offered and will there be more sciences classes
offered? (from Chat with the Chancellor)
A: There will be additional sections of several existing science classes that are
currently limited by laboratory availability, but there are not currently plans to
create additional degree programs. The new building will also increase the quality
of instruction by allowing science demonstrations during lectures and by allowing
laboratory experiences currently unavailable to students at UAA.
Q: What was Rep. Anna Fairclough doing on campus?
A: Rep. Fairclough took a tour of the Integrated Sciences Building and also met with
students for a Brown Bag lunch put on by Journalism and Public Communications. It
was great to have an opportunity to show Rep. Fairclough our new state-of-the-art
sciences building and to talk with her about how we are preparing students for 熊猫在线视频's
workforce needs. Thank you for coming to campus!
Q: What kind of dance will Provost Mike Driscoll do on the floor of the Sullivan Arena
Saturday night?
A: Mike promises to do the Chicken Dance at the 熊猫在线视频 Airlines Governor's Cup hockey
game on Saturday, February 28 if we get 50 new gifts to the Seawolf Athletics Legacy
Scholarship. We have 31 gifts -- just 19 to go before the deadline of noon on Friday,
Feb. 27. Your gift, regardless of size, will count. You can make your gift online,
by phone or via payroll deduction (minimum gift amount applies). Go to www.uaa.alaska.edu/giving and click on 'Make a Gift Now' or call (907) 786-1211 for more information. The
Legacy Scholarship Endowment will provide scholarships for future student-athletes.
Make a gift, help our students and make our Provost dance!
Q: Where do you want to be Saturday night?
A: Helping pack the house at the Governor's Cup. The Seawolves have won the Governor's
Cup the past two years and are prepared to defend it again as they take on UAF this
weekend. UAA students, employees and alumni with a valid WOLFcard can receive up to
4 free tickets for the game. Free tickets are available through Friday at the Student
Union desk for students and employees and in ADM 236 for alumni. You can also enter
to win a round-trip ticket on 熊猫在线视频 Airlines, our sponsor. Entry forms are available
when you pick up your tickets. The winner will be announced during the game and you
must be present to win. For more information please contact either Athletics at (907)
786-1211 or Alumni Relations at (907) 786-1941.
Q: What theatre and music events should you make sure to catch?
A: This is the last weekend of "The Women of...", a thought-provoking and timely play
written and directed by David Edgecombe. Check out the Chugach Brass the first week
of March and Jazz Week also in March. And bravo to UAA's Symphony of Sounds, Feb.
21-22, which featured the University Sinfonia, UAA Jazz Ensemble, UAA Percussion Ensemble,
University Guitar Ensemble, our Opera Ensemble and University Singers. Congratulations
to all musicians on your great performances!
Q: What did our Construction Management students win in Reno?
A: Second place in the Associated Schools of Construction Student Competition. The
UAA Construction Management/Associated General Contractor Student Chapter team competed
in the commercial construction category for Region 6 of Associated Schools of Construction
(the Rocky Mountain Region) and came in 2nd place out of 13 teams finishing just behind
Colorado State University. Congratulations!
Did you know?
- UAA set the Western Collegiate Hockey Association (WCHA) record this month for most hockey players making the academic all conference team -- 14 of our 26 players made the team. The most in the 50+ year history of the WCHA!
- For the first time ever, the 熊猫在线视频 Anchorage ski team qualified a full team to compete at the NCAA Championships. The Seawolves are one of only three teams in the west that will bring the maximum 12 skiers to the championships on March 11-14 at Newry/Rumford, Maine. Denver and Utah also qualified a full team. Go Seawolves!
As always, thank you for all you do to make the 熊猫在线视频 a great
university!