news briefs

UA President Pitney extends UAA Interim Chancellor Siemers’ appointment

University of Alaska (UA) President Pat Pitney announced that she had concluded the UAA Chancellor search process and would extend Interim Chancellor Cheryl Siemers’ appointment through the following summer. Interim Chancellor Siemers had led UAA since May 2025, when President Pitney appointed her after former Chancellor Sean Parnell’s retirement. In September, four finalist candidates visited UAA as part of the final stage of the search. After the visits, President Pitney reviewed stakeholder and community feedback and consulted with the UAA Chancellor Search Committee and the Board of Regents before deciding to extend Interim Chancellor Siemers’ appointment. While all four finalists were qualified and received generally positive feedback, the overwhelming consensus was that Interim Chancellor Siemers had done an excellent job leading UAA over the past five months and that extending her appointment would provide important institutional stability.

UAA Conversions Supervisor Jacob Mikula helps set up American Red Cross cots in the auxiliary gym in UAA’s Alaska Airlines Center as the space is converted to provide temporary shelter for evacuees from storm-ravaged Western Alaska communities.

Alaska Airlines Center provides shelter to 400 evacuees displaced by Typhoon Halong

Responding to the widespread devastation in Western Alaska caused by Typhoon Halong, Gov. Mike Dunleavy issued a disaster declaration, underscoring the severity of the situation and the urgent need for coordinated support. Valuing its role as a community partner, UAA coordinated with the Municipality of Anchorage and local agencies to provide emergency shelter for approximately 400 residents displaced by the storm, opening up the Auxiliary Gym in the Alaska Airlines Center on its Anchorage campus to serve as a temporary shelter location. (UAA Conversions Supervisor Jacob Mikula helps set up American Red Cross cots in the auxiliary gym in UAA’s Alaska Airlines Center as the space is converted to provide temporary shelter for evacuees from storm-ravaged Western Alaska communities.)

Art alumna Maureen Meyer’s, A.A. ’21, B.A. ’23, “Bangka Under Srii’,” a collaborative community painting created in celebration of Filipino American Heritage Month at UAA, hanging outside UAA’s Alumni Center in the Consortium Library in October 2025.

Honors College offers first-ever UA class on Filipino American history and culture

The UAA Honors College introduced HNRS A390: Filipino American Communities and Experiences in fall 2025, marking the first Filipino American studies course in the UA system. The class follows the 2023 statewide recognition of Filipino American History Month, sponsored by UAA alumna and state representative Genevieve Mina, B.A. ’23. Developed through Project Kapwa, a faculty-led initiative meaning “fellow being,” the course explores Filipino American history, identity, health and media representation. Taught by professors Gabriel Garcia, Ph.D., E.J.R. David, Ph.D., and Joy Chavez Mapaye, Ph.D., the class features guest speakers such as poet Jan-Henry Gray and filmmaker Michelle Josue. Offered online across all UA campuses, it creates a lasting academic home for Filipino American scholarship and cultural understanding in Alaska — a century after Filipino workers first arrived to work in the state’s canneries. (Art alumna Maureen Meyer’s, A.A. ’21, B.A. ’23, “Bangka Under Srii’,” a collaborative community painting created in celebration of Filipino American Heritage Month at UAA, hanging outside UAA’s Alumni Center in the Consortium Library in October 2025.)

UA President Pat Pitney and Regent Christine Resler cut the ribbon for the newly renovated Sally Monserud Hall during the celebration of UAA’s Health Workforce Expansion Project. Ribbon-cutting party members included: President and CEO of Mat-Su Health Esther Pitts, College of Health Interim Dean Kathy Craft, Interim Chancellor Cheryl Siemers, Providence Alaska Chief Human Resource Officer Florian Borowski, UAA Provost Denise Runge, UA President Pat Pitney, WWAMI student Reed Thomas, Regent Christine Resler, sonography student Chloé Sweet and Associate Dean of Clinical Health Sciences Cary Moore.

UAA unveils state-of-the-art building to strengthen Alaska’s health care workforce

The UAA College of Health celebrated the grand reopening of Sally Monserud Hall on Sept. 24 with a ribbon-cutting ceremony highlighting new high-tech labs, simulation spaces and expanded allied health programs. The renovation, part of UAA’s Health Workforce Expansion project, strengthens the university’s role in preparing students for Alaska’s growing health care needs. The upgraded facility now supports programs in certified nursing assistant training, diagnostic medical sonography, surgical technology, interprofessional simulation and the WWAMI School of Medical Education. Funded through public and private partnerships — including the U.S. Economic Development Administration, Sen. Lisa Murkowski, Providence Alaska, the Mat-Su Health Foundation and the State of Alaska — the project represents a major investment in Alaska’s health care future. (UA President Pat Pitney and Regent Christine Resler cut the ribbon for the newly renovated Sally Monserud Hall during the celebration of UAA’s Health Workforce Expansion Project. Ribbon-cutting party members included: President and CEO of Mat-Su Health Esther Pitts, College of Health Interim Dean Kathy Craft, Interim Chancellor Cheryl Siemers, Providence Alaska Chief Human Resource Officer Florian Borowski, UAA Provost Denise Runge, UA President Pat Pitney, WWAMI student Reed Thomas, Regent Christine Resler, sonography student Chloé Sweet and Associate Dean of Clinical Health Sciences Cary Moore.)

Simulation participants gather to celebrate a successful (simulated) birth as UAA College of Health Simulation Center uses a wearable Avbirth Childbirth Simulation Device for the first time to help train students in the Full Embrace Doula Program.

Simulated birth training gives doula trainees real-world practice at UAA

Over the summer, UAA’s Interprofessional Health Sciences Simulation Center partnered with the Division of Population Health Sciences and Due North Support Services’ Full Embrace Doula Program to host Alaska’s first doula simulation training using the AvBirth Simulator — a wearable system that mimics real-time labor and delivery. The full-day event allowed trainees to navigate the emotional and clinical complexities of childbirth in a realistic hospital setting. Funded through the UA Foundation’s Excellence in Health Sciences Simulation account, the project brought together faculty, simulation staff and community partners to strengthen maternal health education. Research shows doulas play a key role in reducing cesarean rates and improving maternal outcomes, and organizers hope to expand access to future training statewide — bridging clinical innovation with community care. (Simulation participants gather to celebrate a successful (simulated) birth as UAA College of Health Simulation Center uses a wearable Avbirth Childbirth Simulation Device for the first time to help train students in the Full Embrace Doula Program.)

NASA’s Wallops Flight Facility in Virginia. Photo by NASA and in the public domain.

Device developed by UAA students launched into space aboard NASA rocket

A team of UAA students from the Anchorage and Mat-Su campuses watched their experiment soar into space on June 26, aboard a NASA Terrier-Orion sounding rocket launched from Wallops Flight Facility in Virginia. The payload included a student-designed device built to measure Earth’s mass — part of NASA’s competitive RockSat-C program, which allows university teams to send experiments on sub-orbital missions. Led by faculty advisor Dan Nichols, Ph.D., the team included students Justice Darby, Walter Nagel and Kenneth Sparks, who developed custom software in MATLAB to collect and analyze flight data. While Earth’s mass is already known, the group’s design could eventually help measure other celestial bodies, offering valuable hands-on experience and laying the groundwork for future student-led space research. (NASA’s Wallops Flight Facility in Virginia. Photo by NASA and in the public domain.)

Anna Reichenbach, a smiling, happy, and excited female person dressed in a blue graduation cap and gown outfit holding up a UAA (University of Alaska Anchorage) pennant as she points at it while standing outdoors somewhere; Photo courtesy of Anna Reichenbach

Natural sciences freshman lands Cards Against Humanity STEM scholarship

Freshman Anna Reichenbach is one of five recipients nationwide of the $20,000 Science Ambassador Scholarship, funded by sales of Cards Against Humanity’s science-themed expansion packs. The scholarship supports women and non-binary students in STEM fields and awards based on a three-minute video lecture rather than an essay. Reichenbach’s winning entry explored how birds may use quantum mechanics — a process called magnetoreception — to navigate during migration. A lifelong bird enthusiast, Reichenbach is majoring in natural sciences with a concentration in environmental science and minor in journalism. She hopes to become an ornithologist and launch a campus birding club to promote bird conservation. Inspired by UAA’s seabird research programs, Reichenbach says studying birds offers both scientific insight and a deeper appreciation for the world around us. (Photo courtesy of Anna Reichenbach.)

11 UAA alumni among Top 50 Women Leaders of Alaska for 2025

On June 2, Women We Admire, a membership organization comprising some of the most accomplished women executives and leaders across the U.S. and Canada, announced its Top 50 Women Leaders of Alaska for 2025. Congratulations to all awardees, including the 11 UAA alumni and one staff member who made this year’s list.

Cinderella Tollefsen
Chief Executive Officer, Alaska Health Services
M.B.A. General Management ’19

Ariel Gibson
President, Resource Data
M.B.A. Business Administration ’03

Janelle Vanasse
President, Alaska Pacific University
M.Ed. Educational Leadership ’04

Kathy Fontaine
Vice President of Operations, Crowley Maritime
B.S. Civil Engineering ’94, M.S. Environmental Quality Engineering ’98

Sonnet Nyback
Senior Vice President of Proposal Development, Chenega Corporation EH&F
B.Ed. Secondary Education ’00

Leatha Merculieff
Chief Operating Officer, Southeast Alaska Regional Health Consortium
B.B.A. Management ’00

Elizabeth Pavlas
Chief Operations Officer, Global Credit Union
B.B.A. Marketing and Management ’01, M.B.A. Business Administration ’04

Stacey Matteson
Vice President and General Manager, Umialik Insurance Company
B.B.A. Business Management ’91

Jessie Lavoie
Chief Executive Officer, YWCA Alaska
M.P.A. Public Administration ’15

Ahmbra Austin
Director of Employee Experience, University of Alaska Anchorage

Toni Deboer
Senior Director of Customer Service, GCI General Communication
A.A. General Program ’01

Deborah Johnston
Director of Business Operations, Alaskan Brewing Company
B.B.A. Accounting ’84

(From top left to bottom right: Leatha Merculieff, Sonnet Nyback, Ariel Gibson, Stacey Matteson, Kathy Fontaine, Toni Deboer, Elizabeth Pavlas, Ahmbra Austin, Jessie Lavoie, Janelle Vanasse and Cinderella Tollefsen. Photos courtesy of Women We Admire.)

5 UAA alumni among 2025 Achievement in Business Leadership honorees

On June 24, the Alaska Journal of Commerce recognized its 2025 Achievement in Business Leadership honorees at a special celebration at the Aloft Hotel. Honorees were selected for consistently demonstrating strong leadership, integrity, values and commitment to excellence and diversity in Alaska’s business and nonprofit sectors. Congratulations to all honorees, including the five UAA alumni who made this year’s list.

Nathan Bentley
Altura Bistro
A.A.S. Culinary Arts ’12

Jonathan Bittner
Alaska Small Business Development Center
B.S. Geological Sciences ’08

Amie Collins
Best Beginnings
B.A. Political Science ’13, M.B.A. General Management ’17

Laurie Fagnani
MSI Communications
B.A. Journalism and Public Communications ’86

Jamie O’Connor
Intertidal Consulting
B.A. Journalism and Public Communications ’14

(Photo courtesy of the Alaska Journal of Commerce.)

4 UAA alumni among Leadership Anchorage 2025 cohort

On Aug. 13, the Alaska Humanities Forum announced its Leadership Anchorage 2025 cohort. Founded in 1997, Leadership Anchorage is a nine-month leadership development program designed to develop the skills, knowledge, perspective and networks needed for established or emerging Alaskans to be effective and compassionate changemakers. Congratulations to the entire cohort, including the four UAA alumni and one staff member who made this year’s list.

Ingrid Goodyear
U.S. Department of Justice
M.Ed. Educational Leadership ’11

Shanice Lawton
University of Alaska Anchorage

Tammalivis Salanoa
Community Advocate
B.A. Art ’20

Sheryl Saturnino
Rasmuson Foundation
B.A. Psychology ’11

Alysyn Thibault
Anchorage Youth Court
B.A. English ’09

(From left: Ingrid Goodyear, Shanice Lawton, Tammalivis Salanoa, Sheryl Saturnino and Alysyn Thibault. Photos courtesy of Alaska Humanities Forum.)

3 UAA alumni among 2025 Governor’s Arts and Humanities Awards recipients

On Oct. 28, the Alaska Humanities Forum honored the Governor’s Arts and Humanities Awards recipients for 2025 during a ceremony at the Anchorage Museum. The honorees were selected for consistently demonstrating strong leadership, integrity, values and commitment to excellence and diversity in Alaska’s business and nonprofit sectors. Established in 1968 by the Alaska Humanities Forum, the Alaska State Council on the Arts, the Anchorage Museum and the Alaska Arts and Culture Foundation, the Governor’s Arts and Humanities Awards recognize Alaska individuals and organizations whose noteworthy contributions to the arts and humanities have made a lasting impact on Alaska’s social, economic and civic life. Congratulations to all awardees, including the three UAA alumni receiving this year’s honors.

Melissa Shaginoff
Rising Humanities
B.A. Psychology with a minor in Alaska Native Studies ’12

MoHagani Magnetek
Distinguished Service to the Humanities in Community
B.A. English with a minor in Women’s Studies ’16, M.F.A. Creative Writing and Literary Arts ’20

Dr. Loralie Gax.áansán Heagy
Individual Artist Award
G.Cert. Language Education ’13

(From top: Melissa Shaginoff, B.A. Psychology with a minor in Alaska Native Studies ’12; MoHagani Magnetek, B.A. English with a minor in Women’s Studies ’16, M.F.A. Creative Writing and Literary Arts ’20; and Dr. Loralie Gax.áansán Heagy, G.Cert. Language Education ’13. Photos courtesy of the Alaska Humanities Forum.)

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