UAA: A "College with a Conscience"

By: John T. Callahan  Jul 18, 2005

The Princeton Review names UAA one of best 81 universities nationwide for community engagement

Conscience-ness
ANCHORAGE — The University of Alaska Anchorage was named one of 81 “colleges with a conscience” by The Princeton Review, a New York-based education services company.

Colleges that made the list stood out from thousands nationwide for the degree to which they engaged their surrounding communities, according to the Review. They also featured programs that fostered student involvement both in and out of the classroom.

UAA was selected from thousands of entries due to its community engagement and tradition of public service. Among the university’s specific programs highlighted:

• The Chester Creek Watershed Project, a unique collaboration of 23 courses (predominately in the natural sciences), gives students an opportunity to provide community service while learning hands-on applications for promoting environmental sustainability.
• The Alaska Native Science and Engineering Program teams Alaska Native students with professionals from their first indication of an interest in science or engineering. ANSEP is aimed at effecting a systemic change in professions through a comprehensive suite of high-school outreach, recruitment, university retention and placement strategies designed to help students fulfill their potential in college, sustain their interest in science, technology, engineering and math, and develop an interest in graduate study. The national retention rate for Native Americans in engineering programs is 27 percent. ANSEP students are retained at a rate of 73 percent.
• The Community Health Nursing Program presents “Healthy Choice Carnivals” to local elementary schools. Through these events, UAA nursing students gain an important presence and visibility within the schools and a true glimpse into the role of nurses working in the community with a population at risk.
• UAA’s Center for Community Engagement and Learning offers tuition waivers to students to play key roles in the development and delivery of community-based learning and research. These students assist faculty in community-based projects, community partnership development and student leadership in disciplinary-based community engagement.

Nationwide, other “colleges with a conscience” include Brown, Dartmouth, Duke, Georgetown, Harvard, Northwestern and Stanford. UAA was the only institution in Alaska selected for inclusion.

The Princeton Review is known nationally for its test-prep courses, books, college and graduate school admission and K-12 services.