Arctic Leadership Initiative

Multi-tier mentoring structure · University of Alaska system

$5M Rasmuson Foundation gift · UA Board of Regents strategic priority

Tier 1 · Senior Faculty Anchor

President's Arctic Professors

One distinguished senior faculty member per UA campus. Provides scholarly leadership for the entire initiative and mentors Early Career Faculty Fellows.

3 professors

▾ Details + current cohort

Term

2 years, appointed by UA President

Selection

One per campus: UAF, UAA, UAS

Current cohort (2026–2028)

Eugenie Euskirchen (UAF) · Raghu Srinivasan (UAA) · Eran Hood (UAS)

Primary responsibilities

Anchor ALI's Arctic research identity · provide cross-system scholarly leadership · mentor ECF Fellows · support student cohort engagement

Mentorship

Tier 2 · Early Career Faculty

Early Career Faculty Fellows

Early-career faculty across the UA system in two-year appointments. Mentored by the Arctic Professors above, they mentor student cohort members and lead Arctic-focused research with real community impact.

8 fellows

▾ Details + current cohort

Term

2 years, competitive application

Selection

System-wide, all three UA universities

Incoming cohort (2026–2028)

Mariah Seater, Seoyeon Kim (UAF) · Amy Cross (UAA) · Xiaofei Song (UAS) · plus continuing fellows from the 2025–2027 cohort

Primary responsibilities

Advance Arctic research · mentor student cohort members · engage communities and partners · participate in cohort-based leadership development

Mentorship

Tier 3 · Student Leaders

ALI Student Cohort

Undergraduate and graduate students selected annually from across all three universities. Mentored by Fellows and Professors, they tackle real Arctic problems through coursework, field experiences, research projects, and circumpolar exchange.

25 students/yr

▾ Details + activities

Term

1 academic year

Levels

Undergraduate + Graduate

Selection

Competitive, system-wide: UAF, UAA, UAS

Tuition benefit

One 3-credit ALI course waived per year

Key activities

Challenge Project teams on real Arctic problems · Arctic field schools · AES Summit presentations · circumpolar exchanges · cohort coursework with Alaska leaders

Supporting programs + awards

Arctic Engagement Awards

Competitive grants for faculty-led community partnerships, policy engagement, and research translation across Alaska.

Ambassador Travel + Residency Awards

Short-term circumpolar exchanges for faculty and students. Next rolling deadline: July 27, 2026.

Arctic Field Schools

Summer intensives connecting students to Arctic environments, field research methods, and Alaska communities.

Arctic Challenge Projects

Student teams tackle real, community-embedded Arctic problems and present findings at the Arctic Encounter Summit.