Amid Fall's Splendor, The ANSEP Building Site Is Blessed

By: Lori Keim  Sep 15, 2005

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UAA moves into the construction phase on its new canoe-shaped Alaska Native Science & Engineering Program (ANSEP) Building with a traditional blessing ceremony Friday, Sept. 16, at 4:00 p.m. Corporate, private and foundation contributors to the construction fund will receive commemorative paddles at the event in keeping with the new building’s design.

The exterior of the facility is designed to impart an image of a majestic Alaska Native water transportation vessel. This image was chosen to visually express an indigenous artifact common to all Alaska Native cultures. It is also an expression of the journey into the future that the ANSEP program provides for its students. Traditionally, the canoe is used as a metaphor for community, an idea that is central to the ANSEP mission.

“It will embody the spirit of a people and be a place of safety and belonging,” said Dr. Herb Schroeder, associate dean of engineering and ANSEP founder. “The building will serve students forever.”

The 12,000-square-foot, two-story structure will house a large gathering space, a collaborative learning lab, ‘quiet’ rooms for recitations, a small kitchen, and associated support and storage space.

“The ANSEP Building project will cost $4.955 million and be completed in December 2006,” said Cyndi Spear, associate vice chancellor for administrative services. “It will be in use in the spring of 2007.”

The building’s innovative and uniquely Alaskan design was developed by RIM First People design firm. A committee of Alaska Native community leaders and ANSEP students worked with UAA faculty, staff, and the design team to identify critical design features for this building.

“We studied extensively the building’s relation to light, the physical space, and the expression of commonality between Alaska Native cultures,” Spear said. “We wanted it to feel like wood, without being hidden in the woods.”

The exterior composition is divided into three distinct parts. The front portion is tipped upward like a canoe and will provide a unique first impression to visitors and the Anchorage community, which will view the structure primarily from Providence Drive. This elevation will be provided with ample glazed areas in order to give the occupants views outward, as well as giving a glimpse of the building interior to passersby.

The center section will house the facility’s more utilitarian functions and the design for this section is of solid and opaque surfaces, with small slotted windows and vents. The rear portion will provide entry for the students from the campus ‘Spine’. It will also house the “Community Room” which is the heart of the ANSEP learning experience. Again, this element is tipped upward for dramatic expression with glazed walls allowing visual access to the lush forest and creek located just east of the facility.

The site of the new building is near Chester Creek, just east of the UAA Student Union building and south of the ‘Spine’. The existing parking lot, which serves the Bookstore, Student Union and the Wells Fargo Sports Complex, also will provide parking for the ANSEP Building.

Construction of this signature building is possible due to the generous support of the following partners: Denali Commission, Rasmuson Foundation, BP, ConocoPhillips, the U.S. Department of Education, Alyeska Pipeline Service Company, an FY06 State Capital Budget Appropriation, and private donors.

The Alaska Native Science & Engineering Program (ANSEP) is nationally recognized as a successful model aimed at increasing the recruitment, retention and placement of Indigenous Americans in engineering and science professions. ANSEP represents a new model for engineering and science education where teams of students are engaged with industry professionals from high school on through their time at the University of Alaska.

The ANSEP mission is "to effect a systemic change in the hiring patterns of Indigenous Americans in the professions by putting our students on a career path to leadership." In Alaska, ANSEP is a collaborative effort between the University of Alaska, Alaska Native communities and regional corporations, companies in the oil industry, the professional engineering and construction industry, and nonprofits.