Yay hey hey! Aarigaa tavrapiallak- Congratulations to our North Slope whaling crews, families and the many hands involved in providing abundance to all of the North Slope communities. We are endlessly grateful for the gift of the whale that feeds the many families here on the North Slope.

Click here to see the Spring 2024 Course Schedule!

We are pleased to announce the great news about the Student Government!

From October 11-October 18, 2023, Iḷisaġvik College students cast their votes for their President, Vice-President, Secretary and Treasurer.

The ballot counting was held last 10/19/2023 and below is the election results.

Total # of votes received: 31 (12 from online voting, 17 from completed in-person voting and 2 invalid in-person voting)

President: Faith Muavae

Vice President: Ronald Kippi-Kingik

Secretary: Patricia Alberca

Treasurer: Tatiana Lavaka

Thank you for all your support to our students. This will be an exciting term for the new officials as they will represent the voices of the student body.

Aarigaa Tavrapiallak to our former Iḷisaġvik President, Dr. Edna Paniataq Ahgeak MacLean (1995-2005) on receiving the 2023 Alaska Federation of Natives Elder of the Year Award as well as our current Assistant Professor of Iñupiaq Studies, Jerica Niayuq Leavitt and her husband Qaiyaan for receiving the 2023 Alaska Federation of Natives Parents of the Year Award! As Alaska’s only Tribal College, we are incredibly blessed to celebrate these individuals who give so much to our community and State.

Piqpakkutiqaġniq suli Qiksiksrautiqaġniq Utuqqanaanun Allanullu

Love and Respect for Our Elders and One Another

Read more about these awards here:

or here:

Frieda Nageak, External Affairs Coordinator, attended The College of Menominee Nation 2nd Annual Womens Empowerment Summit Training. Frieda was on a panelist of 5 speaking about women leadership to our community. Iḷisaġvik had a breakout session and talked about Iñupiaq Women of the Arctic. Deb Haaland, Secretary of Interior, and Dr. Jill Biden, First Lady, gave speeches on indigenous women in leadership. 150 were in attendance and the breakout session and panel speaking were well received!

Learn more about the trip in this video:

We had an amazing time at Elders and Youth! Our workshop on Gifting the Iñupiaq Culture Through Storytelling & Painting was a hit and folks made some beautiful paintings and many shared their stories.

Student Thomas Fields and Dean of Students, Hal Haynes represented Iḷisaġvik College at the First Americans Land Grant Consortium (aka FALCON) 2023 in Denver, Colorado this month. The conference included sessions in 1994 land-grant teaching, extension programs and research that benefits Indigenous students, communities, governments, and lands.

Thomas and Hal were also very happy to reconnect with our friends from the College of Menominee Nation in Keshena, Wisconsin!

For our Glimpse program, students from Hopson Middle School participated in a computer rebuilding activity organized by John Kaui from the IT department. Students were gifted the computers they worked on and were allowed to take them home. Quyanaqpak to everyone involved!

MORE ABOUT OUR GLIMPSE PROGRAM:

This program is designed to give students a “Glimpse” of what college is all about. Each semester, the local school's students sign up to take part in the program. Every Wednesday from 3-4pm, the groups of students are transported to Iḷisaġvik College via Iḷisaġvik College Transportation Services. The students then take part in a one-hour activity planned by one of the departments within the college.

Iḷisaġvik College is pleased to announce the Fall 2023 recipient of the Dr. Birgit Meany Employee Scholarship Program.

Alexander Tuttuvak Dattilo, Training Facilitator, is pursuing his bachelor’s degree in social sciences with an emphasis on Anthropology, History, and Psychology at the University of Alaska Southeast. He took a break to obtain EMT licenses and workforce certifications but has now returned to complete his education.

He is primarily interested in History and Anthropology which have been a long-standing personal passion for him. Alex believes that the skills he will gain through his education will be essential in supporting the progress of Iḷisaġvik College.

Iḷisaġvik wishes to congratulate Alex on his determination and commitment to lifelong learning! He will be awarded $2,000.00 to support his studies this Fall semester. Aarigaa tavrapiallak!

REMINDER: The next deadline for scholarship applications is December 1, 2023, for the Spring 2024 semester. Applications should be turned in to the Office of the President before the deadline.

Click here to download application and apply today!

We are so happy Aaron is now working here at Iḷisaġvik College as our Administrative Assistant to Student Services!

Aaron was born in Spokane, WA, spending half his youth there and the other half in Olathe, KS. He graduated from Iḷisaġvik College earning an Associates of Applied Science in Accounting. After obtaining his associate’s he has continued his education here at Iḷisaġvik pursuing a bachelor’s in business administration. Prior to moving to Utqiaġvik two years ago, Aaron was the Retail Compliance Coordinator at Microcenter, a retail computer store, in Overland Park, KS. During his time there, he developed a strong appreciation for good customer service. He strives to bring that same customer service mindset to his duties in Student Services.

In Aaron’s free time he enjoys spending time with his wife, son, and family; cooking, trying new foods, puzzles, board games, and online gaming. Since moving to Utqiaġvik his appreciation for nature and other cultures has continued to grow. 

“Quyanaqpak, I’m grateful for the opportunity to give back to the community that has welcomed my family these last couple of years.” – Aaron Viehouser

CLICK HERE OR ON THE IMAGE