Changing higher education: Alaska university offerings for the new economy.

• Author: Stomierowski, Peg
• Position: EDUCATION

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New offerings at higher education institutions in Alaska, including the University of Alaska, Alaska Pacific University and Wayland Baptist University, continue to emphasize real-world training to help educate Alaskans for Alaska's jobs in times where economic uncertainty has snowballed.

Along with a new doctorate in indigenous studies being offered in Fairbanks, short-term occupational endorsements or certificates (usually one-year) are being offered at several sites to give residents a way to efficiently boost entry-level job prospects; global marketplace competency programs are receiving attention as well.

During the last decade, said Kate Ripley, public affairs director for the UA system, emphasis has been on work force training and development, or "growing our own" talent for Alaska's most in-demand jobs--a direction supported and facilitated by retiring UA President Mark Hamilton.

Emphasis in recent years on health and technology programs has paid off, Ripley said, and attention also is going to engineering and professional teacher training.

ALASKA PACIFIC UNIVERSITY

"A lot of people want something immediate for their jobs or a change in careers," observed Donna Dougherty, interim registrar at Alaska Pacific University. Pending final approval of the newest addition to the catalog, some students at APU's Anchorage campus are expected to begin working toward a new Associate of Arts degree in human services. Classes, through the Psychology Department, will prepare them for positions in this diverse field, especially in rural Alaska.

The degree program will be offered fully online and in the evening, and the courses can be applied toward a Bachelor of Arts degree later, Dougherty said.

WAYLAND BAPTIST UNIVERSITY

At 100-year-old Wayland Baptist University, which has been in Alaska about 25 years and now has four locations through its Anchorage campus, evening classes serve adult learners with an average age of 37. A new bachelor's degree in applied science is available in several formats. Students may elect to study all in a traditional classroom environment, all online or a blend of the two.

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Wayland leaders also are putting together a master's degree in history that may be in place by next spring, according to Anchorage Campus Executive Director and Dean Eric Ash Ph.D., who says finding qualified full-time history instructors can be challenging in Alaska. Also planned at WBU is a 10-day trip next March to the Holy Land directed...