A First National Bank Alaska grant funded The Alaska College Track
Episode Panelists:
Who’s In, Who’s Out -
Laury Scandling, Principal, Yaakoosge Daakahidi JDHS Alternative School
Bob Love, UAS-Post High School “Trail Guide” creator
Joe Nelson, attorney from Yakutat and UAS PITAs program director
Expect the Best -
Byron Mallot, CEO First Alaskans Foundation
Frank Coenraad, JDHS Counselor/Founder: Early Scholars Program
Amanda Bremner, UAS Freshman
Get in, Stay In -
Mark Hamilton, UA President
Andy Hope, Southeast Regional Alaska Rural Systemic Initiative Coordinator
Michelle Martin, UAS Education Undergrad
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KTOO/UAS ALASKA COLLEGE TRACK
 The College Track is a PBS production that explores America's commitment to equal access to higher education through the stories of students struggling to become the first in their families to attend college. Each hour of the three-part national series is followed by a taped half hour panel discussion in the KTOO-TV studio hosted by Alaska College Track producer Katie Bausler. The panel views and discusses stories of young people from rural Southeast Alaska as they transition from high school to the rest of their lives.
Each program includes a Culture Connection segment that shows students highly involved in their Alaska Native culture through dance, carving or Native language learning are more likely to get on and stay on the college track. Panelists include Southeast leaders in the fields of secondary and higher education as well as Alaska Native issues.
A First National Bank Alaska grant funded Alaska College Track. It is co-produced by KTOO-TV and the University of Alaska Southeast. UAS Information at: 1-877-465-4827
Alaska College Track is simulcast on Alaska One and ARCS Sundays Nov. 7, 14 and 21 at 5 PM following the PBS-produced The College Track that airs at 4 PM. On KAKM Anchorage, Alaska College Track is broadcast at 3:26 PM following the national series that airs at 2:30 p.m.
Episode Descriptions:
Expect the Best Sunday, November 14, 2004 5 p.m.
Young Southeast Alaskans with the confidence to pursue a college education may engage in uniquely challenging activities such as scuba diving. Like schools in the PBS program, some Southeast schools are working hard to raise academic expectations; destination: college.
- Craig: At Craig’s regular high school the bar has been raised, i.e. required credits for graduation are above the state requirement. Some students are meeting the challenge and planning for college. Some are even taking AP courses within the regular classroom for college credit. Others, like 2004 graduate Garret Sipe, do not plan to go to college. Sipe is working as a maintenance man at his alma mater now and enlisting in the Merchant Marines.
 Only in Hydaburg- The Scuba Connection: Long-time teacher Earl Jeffrey not only helps students apply for college, voc ed, job corps or scholarships in Senior Seminar, he has a unique way of motivating and educating: scuba diving in the backyard. Scuba diving is a for credit class each school day. Some kids get college credit for scuba certification. - Culture Connection Yakutat: The local Tlingit dance group is a major force in the lives of some college and high school age Yakutat residents. Gloria and J.P. are sophomores at UAS and say dancing with the Yakutat group affirms their self-identity, self esteem, and desire to attend and finish college. UAS freshman and dance group members Amanda Bremner and Joe Valle agree.
Get In, Stay In Sunday, November 21, 2004 5 p.m.
The college drop out rate for Alaska Natives and American Indians is higher than that of all minority groups in the United States. Support systems are in place before and during college to get more Alaska Native graduates. Meanwhile, a graduate and a student in the UAS Masters of Arts in Teaching program don’t agree with the PBS College Track premise that a college degree is necessary.
- Yakutat student at UAS Juneau: Our camera stays with UAS freshman Amanda Bremner of Yakutat as she negotiates moving into a dorm, getting oriented and embarking on her college dream. Money is an issue and Bremner is interested in the scholarship PITAs or Preparing Indigenous Teachers for Alaska Schools program.
- The Masters Track: We’ve been learning about the college track to a bachelors degree. Here are the stories of three people who believe a graduate degree is one way but not necessarily the only way to go. They also have strong ties to their home towns on Prince of Wales Island that influence their choices.
- Culture Connection: Glacier Bay/Hoonah: Duain White and another student answered a Park Service call to Hoonah high schoolers to build a model for a clan house at Bartlett Cove. Duain is inspired by trips with elders like Lily White to the home of his ancestors, Glacier Bay. On a stellar fall day, his class mates danced and drummed for the spirit of Kosteen at the Marjorie Glacier. Hoonah college graduate Jeff Davis says his generation didn’t have such cultural opportunities. Duain plans to get his Masters Degree in Anthropology.
Who’s In, Who’s Out Sunday, November 7, 2004 5 P.M.
 Unlike the sorting machine profiled in the PBS program, students in Southeast villages tend to sort themselves into college or non-college material. Social challenges to a college education include acculturation and lack of economic diversification.
Issues: Alaska high school exit exam, high drop-out rate.
- Craig: Teen parents Dannyelle Von Weller and Cameron Savage are enrolled in Craig High School’s group correspondence program so they can finish school while raising their toddler son. Danny’s goal is to attend UAA as a UA Scholar. Not so for Cameron, who struggles with school and passing the High School Graduation Qualifying Examination. Both are enrolled in the PACE program, which strives to give students both independence and attention. Students attend current events and writing classes together, and then work independently on correspondence courses at computer work stations.
- Klawock: For Travis Macasaet, graduating from high school was a major accomplishment, let alone college. No other adult relatives in his life are high school graduates. Travis’s teachers tried to get him to apply for scholarships to UAS, but he was not interested. His future plans at this point are not clear.
- Culture Connection Klawock: John Rowan teaches Native Arts K-12. At a separate clan house, Rowan has carving apprentices working on replicas of the famous circle of totems outside Klawock School. Rowan: “These kids are going to college”. Youth with strong ties to culture have stronger sense of identity and worth.
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