Alaska EPSCoR News

  • Town buildings nestled in front of large spruces and a snow-tipped mountain. It is dusk, and the full moon is high in the sky. One large building is most prominent; it has many windows, and the bottom of the building is stone-walled. Mounted upon the stone wall are the words, “Welcome to Cordova” with five large salmon around the words.

    Alaska EPSCoR Professional Development Travel Awards

    April 11, 2025

    The Alaska EPSCoR Interface of Change project is accepting applications for travel funding of up to $2,500 for domestic travel to present at a conference or attend a training this spring. Students, staff, or faculty from any Alaska institution of higher education are eligible to apply. Applications are open now - apply by 5 p.m. AKDT, April 18, 2025!

  • Students huddle around a lab bench, examining pieces of PVC pipe coated in kelp spores.

    Interface of Change Year 2 Seed Awards

    April 10, 2025

    Alaska EPSCoR is now accepting applications for Interface of Change seed awards to fund research, student research, education and broadening participation. The deadline to apply for all three seed award solicitations is 5 p.m. AKDT, May 30, 2025. An informational webinar on the application process will take place at 12 p.m. AKDT on April 22, 2025.

  • Middle school students wearing white lab coats and safety goggles puzzle over chemistry equipment and notes in a lab.

    Students test knowledge and skills at Alaska Science Olympiad

    March 21, 2025

    The Alaska Science Olympiad competition for students in grades 6-8 will convene March 28-29 at the University of Alaska Fairbanks.

  • Interface of Change Annual Community Participation Workshops

    February 04, 2025

    In February and March 2025, Interface of Change researchers are visiting Cordova, Seldovia, Homer, Haines, and Klukwan for Annual Community Participation Workshops.

  • Frank Witmer, UAA

    Meet Frank Witmer, New UAA Co-PI for Interface of Change

    November 26, 2024

    Meet Frank Witmer, UAA co-PI for the Interface of Change project, faculty member and computational geography of the UAA Computer Science & Engineering department.

  • The Land Loves Us: Relationship to the Land from an Alaska Native Perspective

    November 11, 2024

    Join us November 18, 2024, 12-1 pm for a virtual presentation by Tia Tidwell and hosted by Debbie Mekiana of the UAF College of Indigenous Studies, Department of Alaska Native Studies and Rural Development

  • “We listen with our ears,” said Justina Starzynski-Hotch as she tugged on her earlobe. She said the phrase in Tlingit first, then in English as she sat in a circle of 33 children in the center of the gymnasium of the Klukwan School. Their cross-legged bodies circled around the school’s logo: a formline representation of Eagle and Raven, the two Tlingit moieties, leaping after a basketball.

    Alaska Science Olympiad Visits Klukwan School

    November 04, 2024

    “We listen with our ears,” said Justina Starzynski-Hotch as she tugged on her earlobe. She said the phrase in Tlingit first, then in English as she sat in a circle of 33 children in the center of the gymnasium of the Klukwan School. Their cross-legged bodies circled around the school’s logo: a formline representation of Eagle and Raven, the two Tlingit moieties, leaping after a basketball. “We listen with our eyes,” she said as she touched the corner of her eye. “We listen with our mouths. We listen with our bodies.” Among the many hats worn by Starzynski-Hotch, she is a Tlingit language teacher and the STEPS coordinator at the Klukwan School. She has been involved in the village school for many years, and cares deeply for its survival. On September 19, she was substituting. And it was a special day – Science Olympiad day.

  • In a state both so large and so small, how can we include Alaskan children in STEM learning opportunities more evenly across the state? This fall, with remaining funding from the NSF EPSCoR Fire & Ice project, we were able to make a special effort to reach rural Alaskan communities that cannot feasibly transport a team of children to Fairbanks to compete in the Alaska Science Olympiad.

    Bringing Science Olympiad to Rural Alaska

    October 31, 2024

    In a state both so large and so small, how can we include Alaskan children in STEM learning opportunities more evenly across the state? This fall, with remaining funding from the NSF EPSCoR Fire & Ice project, we were able to make a special effort to reach rural Alaskan communities that cannot feasibly transport a team of children to Fairbanks to compete in the Alaska Science Olympiad.

  • Announcing the 2024 Interface of Change Seed Awardees

    October 31, 2024

    We are delighted to announce the 2024 Interface of Change seed awardees! We awarded three research seed awards, and one student research seed award.

  • Scuba diving at the Sitka Sound Science Center

    Support for Sitka Sound Science Center Participation

    September 17, 2024

    Alaska EPSCoR is offering support for students, postdocs, and faculty to apply for support to participate in the Sitka Sound Science Center's "Scientist in Residency Fellowship" (SIRF) or "Scientists in the Schools" (SIS) programs in spring 2025. Apply by September 30, 2024.